Community Based Corrections
in the Philippines
Community-based Correction in the Philippines involved
two-major processes:
• “Front-End “intervention, through the application of an
alternative to imprisonment or sentence.
• As a re-entry option as a “Back-End “intervention after
offender served portion of prison sentence and for all these
interventions the offenders is declared guilty by a competent
Court of Law.
Goals
1. Promote the correction and rehabilitation of offenders by providing them with
individualized treatment in a community-based setting and reduced the incidence of
recidivism;
2. Provide a cheaper alternative to the institutional confinement of offender who are likely
to respond to individualized community-based treatment; and
3. Prevent further commission of crime by promoting their development utilizing innovative
interventions and techniques with the end goal of transforming them into productive, law
abiding and self-respecting individuals.
BENEFITS OF COMMUNITY-BASED CORRECTIONS
Protects the Society
• From the excessive costs of detention.
• From the high rate of recidivism of detained offenders.
Protects the Victim
• It provides restitution.
• It preserves justice.
BENEFITS OF COMMUNITY-BASED CORRECTIONS
Protects the Family
• It does not deprive the wife and children if husband and
father.
• It maintains the unity of the home.
BENEFITS OF COMMUNITY-BASED CORRECTIONS
Assists the Government
• It reduces the population of prisons and jails.
• It lessens the clogging of courts.
• It lightens the load of prosecutors.
• It sustains law enforcement.
BENEFITS OF COMMUNITY-BASED CORRECTIONS
Helps the Offender
• It maintains his earning power.
• It provides rehabilitation in the community.
• It restores his dignity. Justifies the Philosophy of Men
• That life is sacred.
• That all men deserve a second time.
• That an individual can change.
• That society has a moral obligation to lift the fallen.
Probation
Probation is a privilege granted by the court to a
person convicted of a criminal offense to remain in the
community instead of actually going to prison/jail.
Parole
It is the conditional release of a prisoner from
correctional institution after serving the minimum period of
prison sentence.
Executive Clemency
It refers to the Commutation of Sentence, Conditional
Pardon and Absolute Pardon maybe granted by the
president upon recommendation of the Board.
Commutation of Sentence
It is the reduction of the period of a prison sentence.
Commutation of Sentence
It is the reduction of the period of a prison sentence.
Pardon
an act of grace from the chief executive absolving
inmates or persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) from the
punishment prescribed for the crime he has committed.
Conditional Pardon
It is the conditional exemption of a guilty offender for
the punishment imposed by a court.
Absolute Pardon
It is the total extinction of the criminal liability of the
individual to whom it is granted without any condition
whatsoever resulting to the full restoration of his civil rights.
Restorative Justice (RJ)
Restorative Justice (RJ) is a process through which
remorseful offenders accept responsibility for their misconduct to
those injured and to the community which, in response, allows
the reintegration of the offender into the said community. RJ
treats crime as a violation of people and relationships. It creates
an obligation to make things right through proactive involvement
of victims, ownership of the crime by the offender and
participation of the community in search for solutions which
promote repair, reconciliation and reassurance.
Restorative Justice, then:
crime is not just violation of law, but also violation of people’s right and their
relationship;
focuses on the harm caused by crime: repairing the harm done to victims and
reducing future harm by preventing crime;
requires offenders to take responsibility for their actions and for the harm
they have caused;
seek redress for victims, recompense by offenders and reintegration of both
within the community; and
is achieved through a cooperative effort by communities and the government.
Basic Elements of Restorative Justice:
Unlike in the traditional justice system, a restorative effort is a
holistic response to crime or conflict which needs to be attended to in all
these relationships to be able to strengthen community fabric. The
repairing relationships of stakeholders do not mean creating a friendly
and positive attitude between them. It means restoring appropriate
“balance of power” among stakeholders.
1.) Encounter: Create opportunities for victims, offenders and
community members who want to meet and discuss the crime and its
aftermath;
Basic Elements of Restorative Justice:
2.) Amends: Expect offenders to take steps to repair harm they
have caused to their victims;
3.) Reintegration: Seek to restore victims and offenders as a whole
and help them become contributing members of society; and
4.) Inclusion: Provide opportunities for parties with a stake in a
specific crime to participate in the resolution.
Goals of Restorative Justice:
The goal of RJ is to repair the harm. The criminal justice
professional applying the philosophy needs to understand the
impact of crime on the victims, and the latter’s family and future.
By helping the victim, the system can:
Exert efforts to appropriately respond to the victim’s harm;
Accordingly hold offenders accountable;
Reduce the victimization of the victim again;
Protect and empower victims.
Benefits of Restorative Justice
It views criminal acts more comprehensively: rather than defining crime as
lawbreaking, it recognizes that offenders harm victims, communities and even
themselves;
It involves more parties: rather than giving key roles only to government
and the offender, it includes victims and communities as well;
It measures success differently: rather than measuring how much
punishment has been inflicted, it measures how much harm has been
repaired or prevented;
It recognizes the importance of community involvement and initiative in
responding to and reducing crime, rather than leaving the problem of crime to
the government alone.
Principles of Restorative Justice:
Justice requires that we work to restore those who have
been injured;
Those most directly involved and affected by crime
should have the opportunity to participate fully in the
response, if they wish;
Government’s role is to preserve a just public order, and
the community’s role to build and maintain a just peace.
