Newsletter Icrc/C
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NEWSLETTER ICRC/C. Lee ICRC - FEBRUARY 2013 AFTER THE STORM: AID TO ‘PABLO’ SURVIVORS SCALES UP Nearly two months later, it was still vivid essentials—like food to feed their families— TURNING THE to 60-year-old Marco Polo Magallano how so they can concentrate on rebuilding their typhoon Pablo (Bopha) ripped away his roof homes and their lives.” and his livelihood in December. WHEELS OF After Pablo made landfall on eastern “Pablo brought destructive forces: strong Mindanao on December 4, about 80 to JUSTICE winds and heavy rains. It sounded like there 95 percent of the worst-affected areas were hundreds of planes cruising above our (Baganga, Cateel, Boston and Caraga Caloy*, a 43-year-old inmate at the Manila house,” said Marco Polo, who lives on Poo municipalities in Davao Oriental province) City Jail, has been behind bars since 2003. island in Baganga municipality in Davao were destroyed. He was jailed for possession of drugs and Oriental province. drug paraphernalia—a violation of the ENHANCING ACCESS TO WATER dangerous drugs law punishable with a His house and the fishing boats he used for AND HEALTHCARE maximum of 16 years imprisonment— a living were not spared from the impact of but his case is moving at a snail’s pace. the typhoon, which claimed thousands of In Cateel and Baganga municipalities, some lives and heavily damaged infrastructure. 19,000 persons have already benefited from Caloy is only one among the many the ICRC-PRC distribution stations of potable inmates whose fates depend on the Now two months after Pablo struck southern water and from bringing water to eight speed at which their cases are tried in Philippines, the need for food, shelter, clean barangays. court. Only six of Caloy’s 33 hearings water, and healthcare still remain among the actually took place, and 14 consecutive survivors. In response, the ICRC, together The ICRC has also donated materials to help hearings were postponed from 2004 to with its local partner the Philippine Red repair the damaged water systems in those 2007. By then, he had spent nine years Cross (PRC), have scaled up their operations two municipalities, benefiting an additional behind bars, away from his family. in areas worst hit by the typhoon: Davao 6,500 people. Oriental and Compostela Valley. While many cases drag on for years with “These water stations should not only no reduction in the influx of inmates, the Amidst the massive scale of devastation, keep us away from water-borne illness, jails are overcrowded to three times their the two organizations began distributing but it would also help us concentrate on maximum capacity. relief food and items at the beginning rebuilding our lives,” says Lanie Mandawe, of the emergency. These efforts have 26, of Ban-ao village in Baganga. Her house “Lengthy detention of inmates still been continuous, totalling about 300,000 was also blown away by the typhoon. undergoing trial is a known major cause recipients in eastern Mindanao, by early of jail congestion in the Philippines, February. Despite recent flooding in eastern With most local health facilities destroyed but to find solutions to this challenge Mindanao caused by non-stop rains, or badly damaged by the typhoon, the ICRC required looking at all angles, even distributions are ongoing. and PRC set up the Basic Healthcare Unit in outside of what the ICRC usually does,” continued on page 2 says Sébastien Bourgoin, ICRC Protection “We are finding every way possible to Coordinator. “It soon became clear that to efficiently meet the needs of the people address the problem in a sustainable way, in communities worst hit by the typhoon,” judicial agencies would need to commit said Pascal Mauchle, head of the ICRC’s to work hand in hand.” delegation in the Philippines. “After they have already lost so much, our assistance continued on page 2 is aimed at giving them relief for the NEWSLETTER continued from page 1 “Many of the patients do not have enough In line with its regular activities to monitor money to buy their drugs in the local the treatment and living conditions in places pharmacy,” Dr. Epp-Graak added. of detention, the ICRC donated building materials to help repair Montevista District After opening in early January, the Jail, which was left without water and healthcare unit is attending to at least 100 electricity after the typhoon. to 120 patients on a daily basis. Most of the consultations have been related to In the aftermath of Pablo, the family of Marco respiratory infections, fever, diarrhea, skin Polo is gradually restoring their normal lives. diseases, and open wounds. “We are now finding ways to fix our boats,” he said. “Nevertheless, the relief items that The ICRC has also provided construction we received, particularly the food items, materials to build the PRC’s advanced have really helped us to move on from this medical post, which is providing much- appalling experience caused by Pablo.” needed medical care to people affected by ICRC/S. Velasco ICRC/S. Velasco the typhoon in Baganga. With the typhoon resulting in staggering humanitarian needs in the longer term Patients get registered at the busy Red Cross Basic In Compostela Valley Provincial Hospital in eastern Mindanao, the ICRC will Healthcare Unit. Because local health facilities in and New Bataan Rural Health Unit, both continuously work to bring assistance. To Baganga municipality, Davao Oriental, were badly in Compostela Valley province, the ICRC fund an operation of this scale, the ICRC damaged by typhoon Pablo, this facility was rapidly provided materials to repair water pipelines made a preliminary appeal to donors for 10 set up to ensure that people continued to have that had been severely damaged by Pablo. million Swiss francs (433 million Philippine access to health care. It also continues to pay for 90 liters of fuel pesos) and will launch the final appeal per day for the Cateel District Hospital’s amount in February. Baganga to provide residents with medical generator as the restoration of electricity is care in the meantime. underway. “The need for assistance now and in the coming months is truly immense. This facility—which offers maternal and NO STRANGER TO MINDANAO Families who bore the brunt of the massive child healthcare, psychosocial support, destruction are starting to rebuild, but it and free medications—made it possible for For decades, the ICRC has worked in will be a big challenge,” said ICRC’s Mauchle. medical care to be within reach of typhoon Mindanao, including its eastern region, to “We will continue to focus on meeting the victims, said Dr. Gundula Epp-Graak, who meet humanitarian needs related to armed essentials, with a view to help them restore was the first doctor working at the unit. conflict. their normal life.” Jesse Edep continued from page 1 violation of their right to speedy trial,” the justice says. The ICRC has been visiting inmates in Philippine places of detention for more than Every month the task force members 60 years, and in 2007 began the “Call for meet to identify cases needing immediate Action” process to address the causes and attention. These include inmates detained consequences of jail overcrowding. for at least six months and with cases pending in the Metropolitan Trial Court, In November 2011, upon the request of or detained at least three years with cases the ICRC, the Supreme Court created Task pending in the regional trial court, inmates Force: Katarungan at Kalayaan (“justice waiting for sentencing, elderly and mentally- and freedom”) to monitor cases of incapacitated inmates. detainees in Manila City Jail and to work ICRC/C. Lee towards their timely disposal. The ICRC is a The task force profiles these inmates by permanent member and serves on the task taking note of basic case information, length force’s secretariat with the Bureau of Jail of detention, and the number of hearings ICRC staff interview Manila City Jail inmates about the Management and Penology. that actually took place or were reset. status of their trial proceedings. The ICRC works with the jail to prioritize cases of detainees who are experiencing The task force reports to the Supreme Court After reviewing 459 “problematic” cases overlong preventive detention. The cases are submitted Committee on the Decongestion of Jails in the Manila City Jail male dormitory for review by the Task Force: Katarungan at Kalayaan, chaired by Justice Roberto Abad, who has since January 2012, the task force which will then recommend action to the courts. shown his sincere commitment to help. submitted recommendations to the courts for action. The recommendations “Statistics on decongestion rates could never “The committee has achieved several range from “immediate release due to be compared to the value of a life regained.” milestones to help decongest our holding service of maximum penalty,” “release on jails,” explains Abad, who gives the example recognizance,” or “speedy resolution.” In February, the task force included Caloy of the amendment to the court’s rules under the “release on recognizance or exempting persons from paying certain Since calling attention to these cases, 64 reduced bail” in its recommendation to the fees before they can be released. Before the percent have seen some action taken by the Manila court that handles his case. The next amendment, he says, a detainee’s inability courts, including 67 inmates who have been month, his case was heard. to pay these court clearance fees would released, 95 sentenced, and 40 transferred mean continued incarceration despite the to prisons to serve longer sentences. Small For inmates like Caloy, nothing is more fact that the case against him was already steps to reduce overcrowding in Manila valuable than being given the gift of time dismissed.