Recommendations of Persons Restored of Liberty (PRLs) on Police Reform in the Philippines

The 1st National Conference of Persons Restored of Liberty cannot end as a single event. Its success will not be measured by the conversations that took place on May 22, but by the reforms, partnerships, and opportunities that follow. The discussions must move beyond conference halls and become part of how institutions operate, how policies are crafted, and how communities welcome people home. The journey from deprivation to restoration does not belong to formerly incarcerate

The month of May brought to the forefront the concept of lived experiences in the criminal justice sector. This even as we continued with our flagship programs: Community Bail Bond and Better Versions. Now more than ever, we at PRESO Foundation see how much has been gained but much, much more needs to be done. COMMUNITY BAIL BOND PROGRAM What has been done: Our Program Field Officers continued with their regular activities that included conducting weekly monitoring/home visit

PDLs and PRLs are mentors, teachers and heralds of hope. Their lived experiences, inside and outside of prison, preached. And from these lived experiences, fraught with sufferings and difficulties, come forth thoughts and lessons that sparkle.

1st National Conference of Persons Restored of Liberty, held last May 22, 2026, placed formerly incarcerated individuals at the center of criminal justice system-reform. It recognizes that those who have experienced arrest, detention, incarceration, and reintegration offer valuable insights toward building a more humane, effective, and responsive justice system. Here is the sharing of Sally, a PRL that spent 30 years in prison.

The month of April was highlighted by increased activities for our Community Bail Bond, Bukas Loob Tungo sa Bagong Pag-Asa and BANDILA Aftercare Programs. This even as we started doubling efforts in the preparation for a major conference seeking to bring focus on the lived experiences of former PDL. COMMUNITY BAIL BOND PROGRAM What has been done: Our Program Field Officers continued with their regular activities that included conducting weekly monitoring/home visits of succes

Hopefully, more spaces will emerge where lived experience becomes part of policy-making rather than an afterthought. Hopefully, the voices of those who survived detention and incarceration will no longer remain at the margins of criminal justice discussions, but become essential to the design of laws, procedures, and correctional programs. Because if the criminal justice system truly exists for people, then people must also help shape it.

The 1st National Conference of Persons Restored of Liberty is more than a gathering—it is a movement. It transforms individual stories into collective insight, and collective insight into actionable reform. By listening to those who have lived through the system, we take a critical step toward building a justice system that is not only effective, but truly humane.

Ultimately, the goal of studying and reforming the criminal justice system is not only to understand it but to improve it. This objective cannot be achieved if it is grounded solely in partial truths derived from data and theory. A comprehensive understanding requires the integration of lived experience as a central component of analysis.