We need a law. We need legislation that recognizes that wrongful imprisonment—whether due to mistaken conviction or protracted trial detention—is a wound that deserves healing. That recognizes no one should be punished for being poor. That acknowledges the State has a moral debt to those it imprisons without cause.

Because if justice is something you have to pay for, then it is not justice. It’s a commodity. And if release comes only after extortion, then we’ve confused rehabilitation with racketeering.

Yes, three weeks isn’t much. But if there’s one thing I’ve learned from the courts, from the jails, from the endless back-and-forth between paper and people—it’s that real change doesn’t wait for grand legislation. It sneaks in through courtroom doors, it sits quietly in sidebars, it speaks in soft voices and small acts.

With hearts full and spirits renewed, the participants of PRESO, Inc.’s Bukas Loob Tungo sa Bagong Pag-asa project gathered once more at the Centro Divino Pastoral Building of the Parish of the Lord of Divine Mercy—for what would be the culminating session of their five-part reintegration journey.

PRESO, Inc. proudly took part in the 11th Pantalastasan: An International Academic Seminar held on July 9, 2025, at the National College of Public Administration and Governance (NCPAG), University of the Philippines Diliman, Quezon City.

Organizationally, many police units survive on the mercy of local governments. Budgets depend on mayors. And when politics holds the purse, the badge becomes a weapon. LGUs don’t just support police—they command them. They own them. They aim them.