Tag Archives: jail cells

Government, International, Law Enforcement

PHILIPPINES TO LEASE 2,000 JAIL CELLS IN THE NETHERLANDS

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Jail cells for lease in The Netherlands
Jail cells for lease in The Netherlands

MANILA, Philippines (The Adobo Chronicles) – President NoyNoy Aquino today announced that the Philippines and Dutch governments have signed an agreement for the lease of some 2,000 jail cells in the Netherlands.

The Netherlands recently announced that it will close eight prisons because of a lack of criminals. The Dutch justice ministry said that declining crime rates in the Netherlands mean that although the country has the capacity for 14,000 prisoners, there are only 12,000 detainees. The decrease is expected to continue, the ministry said.

Aquino said that the lease will help solve his country’s problem of prison overcrowding while ensuring that there will be sufficient jail cells to accommodate the growing number of   political officials being convicted of graft, corruption, plunder and other criminal offenses.  Aquino himself is being charged for violation  of the constitution in connection with the illegal use of funds under the Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP) and the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF).

Asked how the Philippine government will pay for the lease, Aquino said, “Why, from DAP and PDAF, of course.”

International, Law Enforcement

INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE LISTS BEST PRISONS IN THE WORLD, PHILIPPINES IS NO. 1

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imageThe Hague, Netherlands (The Adobo Chronicles) – The International Court of Justice (French: Cour internationale de justice; commonly referred to as the World Court or ICJ) has just released its 2014 list of the Top Ten Best Prisons in the World.

ICJ is the primary judicial branch of the United Nations. It is based in the Peace Palace in The Hague, Netherlands. Its main functions are to settle legal disputes submitted to it by states and to provide advisory opinions on legal questions submitted to it by duly authorized international branches, agencies, and the UN General Assembly. 

This is the first year that ICJ is releasing the best prison list, based on an international survey it has commissioned to look at prison conditions in U.N. member countries.

The Philippines ranked No. 1 on the ICJ list, followed by Great Britain and Japan.

Reacting to the good news, Philippines Secretary of Justice Leila de Lima told reporters that her efforts to rid the country’s prison system of corruption and mismanagement have finally paid off. “We should treat all prison inmates with respect and dignity by providing them comfortable accommodations during their incarceration,” de Lima said.

Rounding up the top ten list are U.S.A., China, South Africa, Australia, Switzerland, New Zealand and Singapore.

(Michael Martin Navarrete Bello contributed to this report)