Inmates to be tracked by biometrics in Philippines prisons

The Philippines government introduced its first-ever electronic Inmate Management Information System (IMIS) to prevent prisoners in state penitentiaries from overstaying their service of sentence as a result of lost records or inaccurate computation, according to a report by Newsbytes.Ph.

The system was implemented by the corrections component of the justice sector-wide National Justice Information System (NJIS), a program under the current Aquino administration.

The new system was unveiled in a special ceremony led by Department of Justice secretary Leila De Lima at the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) Reservation at Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) compound in Muntinlupa City.

The IMIS boasts a number of features and capabilities, including the live capturing of inmates’ biometric data, automated computation of inmates’ period of confinement including the Good Conduct Time Allowance (GCTA), and the complete monitoring of inmates’ movements and activities.

The system’s biometric feature ensures that inmates are accurately identified and detected regardless of a change in name or other false identity assumed.

Additionally, the biometric component allows for the flagging of the expiration dates of the inmate’s sentence to avoid overstaying, outlines the calendar of hearings, records all visitors of inmates for monitoring and security purposes, and other criminal data.

“The IMIS will be a game changer in the DOJ’s efforts to improve the custody, safekeeping and rehabilitation of prisoners,” De Lima said. “Accurate information readily available to custodians and corrections officers can very well help in applying the proper interventions for security and rehabilitation purposes. The system is also designed to monitor inmate movements within corrections facilities.”

The system will be integrated into the Single Carpeta System which interconnects all Corrections Cluster agencies of the NJIS including the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor), Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP), Board of Pardons and Parole (BPP), and the Parole and Probation Administration (PPA).

Previously reported, the Philippines’ Commission on Elections (Comelec) has called on celebrities to encourage their fans on social media to register their biometrics data so that they will be able to vote in the 2016 presidential elections,

Article Topics

biometrics  |  criminal identity management  |  identity proofing  |  Philippines  |  prisons