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Family, church and her dream car
Family, friends and Crucifix
Family, house, sea, and boats
Family, Rice Field and Church
Family, church and Sea
There is no doubt that the participants draw strength from GOD and their families. They are hoping
to have their case dismissed to go home and spend time with their families.
Consolidated Life Experiences of LBT Women in Butuan City Jail
During the declaration of war on drugs of President Rodrigo Roa Duterte, the anti-illegal
drug operations in Caraga strengthens their enforcement with the objective to make Caraga a
“drug-free” region, including Butuan City. As a result, the Butuan City Jail is populated with inmates
involved in drug cases including LBT Women.
Based on the FGD, most participants admitted to have used drugs, but not on the day they
got arrested by the police. They said it was not fair to have been accused with wrong cases. One of
them shared about being physically abused by the arresting officers during operation. There is also
one participant who is in prison for almost a year without the knowledge of his family. Sometimes,
they are being treated or considered less of a human because of their lawlessness. Some of them
are barely fed or given small rations of food and water. The topmost complaint of the participants
is about the slow justice system.
Nevertheless, Person Deprived of Liberty (PDL) are not just inmates who are known to have
committed acts against the law but are also people who wanted to change their lives and
contribute to the welfare of the society. There are inmates who undergo fasting which they call
“Fasting Friday” where they skipped having lunch to save the allocated meal budget in order to
finance their proposed fundraising projects. Last 2017, they have gathered a total of Thirty
thousand pesos (P 30,000) and made donations to the Marawi victims. On June 2019, they have
donated school supplies for the inmates’ children. There are also livelihood programs for inmates
which helped them gain profit to somehow finance their daily plight.
Person Deprived of Liberty (PDL) are doing their best to be a better person. Most of them
are looking forward to get back at home and be reunited with their families. Their only request is
to hasten the justice system.