No discrimination at BJMP – Dial

MANILA, Philippines — The Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) Tuesday said that it will continue to prevent its homosexual jailguards from frisking inmates and visitors as it assures a gay rights group that there is no discrimination and it only wants to ensure the protection of both its personnel and the public.

BJMP Director Rosendo Dial said Tuesday that the bureau will continue to implement its memorandum that it issued September last year that prevents any of its homosexual personnel from participating in body searches of both visitors and inmates.

“We do not want to offend anyone. Our policy aims to protect visitors and inmates against any forms of sexual harassment,” said Dial who reacted to allegations made by gay rights group Ladlad that the BJMP’s policies have been very discriminatory against homosexuals.

With this, Dial explained that the bureau only wants to protect “both sides” since he does not want any BJMP personnel getting complaints as well as avoid both inmates and visitors from getting harassed.

Dial recounted that the memorandum was issued last year following numerous complaints that the BJMP has been receiving from jail visitors who feel that jail guards have been taking advantage of them during frisking and body searches.

“With the memorandum, we hope to avoid our personnel from being doubted and getting complaints,” he stressed.

“The Bureau encourages harmonious working environment in all our facilities. We want to avoid any thought or inconvenience on the part of visitors or inmates that someone is probably taking advantage of them,” added Dial.

The BJMP chief cited that under the Anti-Sexual Harassment Act 1995 that “it shall be the duty of the employer or the head of the work related, educational or training environment or institution, to prevent or deter the commission of acts of sexual harassment and to provide the procedures for resolution, settlement or prosecution of acts of sexual harassment.”

“As a matter of policy, our issued guidelines on this issue aim to ensure that no sexual harassment of any form will take place inside our facility while we are doing our duties to prevent the proliferation or entry of contrabands” Dial said. –JEFFREY G. DAMICOG and CZARINA NICOLE ONG, Manila Bulletin