Vacationists and not prisoners

The Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines or CBCP formed the prison ministry in 1975 which is named as CBCP Commission on Prison Pastoral Care. This ministry takes holistic care of the prisoners.

My prison ministry started in 2010 by conducting free basic literacy program in Maa City Jail in the female dormitory. All my life, I call them prisoners but when I get to be part of the ALS (Alternative Learning System) as an extension activity of USEP (University of Southeastern Philippines) I learned that calling them prisoners is not politically correct because in the context of Maa City Jail, they are vacationists.

The vacationists are behind bars waiting court decisions. Actually they are not behind bars. They are inside a community or village of which they can sell their livelihood, plant their gardens, and at the same time earn a living.

The Basic Literacy Program and the ALS are two of the programs of the BJMP (Bureau of Jail Management and Penology) under education which is given to the lady vacationists who qualify in those programs.

So far, under the the USEP-CAS Extension, there are almost a hundred lady vacationists who graduated from the Basic Literacy Program and from the ALS. Those who were able to complete the ALS are now enrolled in the Education Behind Bars. This is in partnership between the BJMP, LGU, and USEP.

We do not have to celebrate Prison Sunday in order to become aware of the plight and situation of the vacationists inside Maa City Jail or other jails in the country. Everyday, the families of the vacationists need some form of financial and legal assistance and most especially prayers. Our prayers for both the families and the vacationists matter most.