Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, January 20) — A human rights group is appealing for the release of an 83-year-old prisoner, described as the country’s oldest political detainee, as it questioned the lack of political inmates freed by the government in its bid to decongest jails.
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The organization Kapatid on Thursday said it has written to the Bureau of Customs, the Department of Justice, the Supreme Court, and the Commission on Human Rights to expedite the release of Gerardo Valencia Dela Peña from the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) on humanitarian considerations of his age and “deteriorating health.”
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A farmer from Camarines Norte, Dela Peña is the oldest of the 824 political prisoners nationwide and has been detained for nearly a decade, according to the group.
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He claimed he was wrongfully convicted at age 74, a supposed “scapegoat for a killing the NPA (New People’s Army) had claimed responsibility for,” Kapatid said.
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“Subhuman conditions have aggravated his high blood pressure and created new ailments,” read the group’s statement.
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“In 2019, he reported coughing up phlegm streaked with blood. He is also long overdue for a cataract operation,” it added.
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Kapatid also noted that Dela Peña’s family lives in Camarines Norte and is unable to visit him regularly due to financial constraints.
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It quoted the inmate as saying, “Masasakitin na ako. Matanda na. Sa ilang panahon na ako’y may buhay pa, makapiling ko sana ang pamilya ko. [I’m sickly and old. I hope to be able to spend the time I have left with my family.]
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The group’s spokesperson, Fides Lim, said they have submitted Dela Peña’s name to the Justice department every year since 2019 for humanitarian release.
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“But no political prisoner has been included in any of the trumpeted government releases of elderly PDLs (persons deprived of liberty),” Lim pointed out.
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