(MindaNews / 28 April) – While residents in cities and provinces suffering from extreme heat are rushing to airconditioned malls, restaurants and moviehouses to feel cool, inmates of the Iligan City Jail-Male Dormitory (ICJMD) are rushing to the multipurpose and recreation area areast during the hottest time of the day to beat the heat through sports, cultural and other recreational activities.
A press release from the ICJMD said they are finding ways to keep cool because “intense heat can cause jail disturbances so you need to steer emotions and other mental health concerns.”
Inmates play billiards, table tennis and do guitar playing sessions at the multipurpose area of the facility to keep them away from their packed dormitories during the hottest hours of the day.
Others are allowed to troop to the facility’s recreation area to play a variety of board games, including monopoly, Brazilian checker, chess, scrabble, and tic tac toe, among others, “as these activities also facilitate social interactions that lessen stress, promote emotional well-being, and help alter distressing thoughts.”
The ICJMD also started a dance program to keep the inmates’ minds and body fit, improve self-esteem and to socialize with other PDL.
“This initiative led to the creation of the ‘Dancers Behind Bars’ with at least 10 PDL spending up to two hours a day practicing a growing repertoire of a score of dances. Although they are barred from performing outside the facility, they are currently producing a dance routine to the tune of Tyla’s ‘Water’ which will be uploaded soon on the facility’s social media channels for the public to enjoy.”
The ICJMD also organized basketball and volleyball tournaments to keep the PDL out in the open air at the most appropriate time of the day, when it is least hot.
“But of course, aside from timing it right, we are making sure that water is always available to rehydrate the players well and take in as much water as they desire,” said JO2 Ricky N Tabug, unit jail nurse. “We are also monitoring the PDL players carefully for necessary action,” he added. Nurses on duty have been instructed to attend to the concerns of the PDL all day vis-a-vis the extreme heat index.
According to JO2 Walter W Mainit Jr, chief welfare and development officer of ICJMD, the activities “not only offer physical and mental health benefits during this difficult time of the year, but they also empower individuals and contribute to a more connected and rehabilitative environment.”
The jail is home to at least 580 inmates. JO3 Emerson P Lactuan (Community Relations Services Officer told MindaNews on Sunday that the jail’s maximum capacity is 1,000.
Jail warden Carlo Obriqe said these activities are part of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology’s rehabilitative programs and dispel the harrowing narratives about detention and penal facilities.
“The idea of jails and prisons as fortified dungeons is no longer true,” the press release quoted Obriqe as saying. He said they make it a point to make the inmates’ stay in jail as “worthwhile, productive, and rehabilitative.” (MindaNews)