Consequences Under the Five Pillars Framework
As a consequential reality of a justice system that evidently promotes Retributive rather than Restorative Justice, the PDL sector on the ground go through a flawed criminal justice system, particularly through its five pillars, as enumerated and explained in the Five Pillars of the Philippine Criminal Justice Framework which was outlined in the Executive Order of Former President Corazon C. Aquino on December 19, 1989. The situation of the PDLs are narrated more comprehensively in the framework as it explains what they go through when they pass through each pillar of the justice system in the country, from the Law Enforcement towards and outward to the Community where everyone is included.
Law Enforcement - The Law Enforcement Pillar mainly involves the Philippine National Police (PNP) , and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI). Although enforcers comply with the law and fulfill their duties in detaining PDLs if their cases warrant so, the general rule of law in the country has eroded further in the recent years from being ranked 51st among all countries in the globe in 2015 (Buan, 2021) to a far 102nd in 2021, specifically 120th among 139 countries in the Criminal Justice factor (Fernandez, 2021). This paints a picture of a weak and inefficient justice system, which includes law enforcement, even by the surface, where victims and criminals are not given the justice that laws allow them to be entitled to. In Walong Prinsipyo ng Panlipunang Turo ng Simbahan ayon sa PCP II, among the eight principles is Social Justice and Love. This is substantiated in John J. Carroll Institute on Church and Social Issues’ (JJCICS) Lights and Shadows where it was shown that attaining social justice and love is possible when social policies and government programs aim to correct social injustices, preferentially to marginalized groups, and it must also aim to promote equality, as strengthened by one’s love for his/her neighbor. The call for the general attainment and stability of social justice and love, when applied to the context of the law enforcement pillar, tells us that the flaws in the justice system are systemic, and therefore needs a systemic change. The law should promote both social justice and love, not injustice, inequality, and wrongful and careless accusations. 
Prosecution - The Prosecution Pillar involves state, regional, provincial, and city prosecutors, private lawyers, and public attorney offices. There are developments in the PDL sector with regard to the prosecution pillar, yet it needs to be assessed critically and fairly. This is true for the case of the Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) as it has been assisting more prisoners since the previous decade. In 2018, PAO was able to help and release 66, 401 prisoners out of the 457,195 it represented in court. However, it should be contextualized with the fact that the office has added only around 500 lawyers since 2014, yet there was an increase by around 6 million in the clients that it assisted (Buan, 2019). Furthermore, PAO under chief Persida Acosta had an 82.77% increase in number of criminal cases that ended in favorable results from 2017 to 2018, yet its released data also showed that there was a 211% increase in the number of cases that ended with its clients being convicted of a lesser offense, the first time that it rose to that level since 2014 (Buan, 2019). Lastly, a troubling report on the 2004 National Survey of Inmates commissioned by the Supreme Court revealed that several inmates in Philippine prisons and jails lacked sufficient knowledge on the justice system, “particularly on legal aid services and redress mechanism for delays in the prosecution of cases in court,” (PCIJ, 2021).
	These facts and information should be assessed critically while also being fair to ensure a swift justice system that all citizens, in this case the PDLs, could benefit from, yet equally fair to guarantee that the justice system does not compromise justice itself in the name of an immediate ruling. The limited means of the PDLs, due to their socio-economic status and/or their insufficient wages from their livelihood, make their situation harder than it already is for it blocks their opportunities for getting bail and good lawyers to defend them. The Prosecution pillar could have Good Samaritan Innkeepers and could become a Good Samaritan Institution, as narrated and discussed in NSTP, if it will do its role as a stakeholder in the sector which could be as simple as being present to the PDLs and doing their job well. The Good Samaritan story is an affirmation to us that we could all contribute in extending help to the marginalized sectors in society, among them the PDLs, for it takes the whole effort of society to genuinely and comprehensively liberate them from their unfortunate situations. 
Courts - The Courts Pillar involves all courts from all levels-- from the regional to the Supreme Court-- including the Court of Appeals. PDLs wait long inside the jails for their judgments and trials, and spend years in detention unable to obtain bail, or challenge the charges against them absent good and persistent lawyers. The court proceedings heighten this problem; there are instances where these proceedings are being rescheduled or cancelled repeatedly, as in the case of a CICL in Tanglaw Bulacan, for instance, which he talked about in a kwentuhan session. Additionally, these court delays and absence of judges are also seen in the cases of political prisoners. It is evident that there is a culture of fear that pressures judges and courts to abandon cases or delay them at any chance. This is a clear human rights issue as the rights of the accused to be heard, among others, are limited, if not neglected, by abusive elements in society. Such cases of delayed hearings and reluctant judges are enumerated in the JJCICS’ Lights and Shadows under Human Rights and Justice. One controversial case is that of detained Senator and fierce critic of the Duterte administration Leila De Lima. She is a PDL facing the charges of violating the drug trafficking law (Reformina, 2017), and it is not new in her case the repeated inhibitions of judges to handle her case (Navallo, 2021). As a result, she has been detained for almost five years, yet still retains her innocence from all charges filed against her. The words of the prophet Amos from our Theology lessons can also be applied to political prisoners who have first been red-tagged, and have since been jailed yet still being tried for their charges (Aspinwall, 2020) like in the case of De Lima: 
“Kanilang kinapopootan ang nananaway sa pintuang-bayan, at kanilang kinasusuklaman ang nagsasalita ng matuwid. Palibhasa nga't inyong niyayapakan ang dukha, at inyong hinihingan siya ng trigo: kayo'y nangagtayo ng mga bahay na batong tinabas, nguni't hindi ninyo tatahanan; kayo'y nangagtanim ng mga maligayang ubasan, nguni't hindi kayo magsisiinom ng alak niyaon. Sapagka't talastas ko kung gaano karami ang inyong mga pagsalangsang, at kung gaano kalaki ang inyong mga kasalanan: kayong nagsisidalamhati sa ganap, na kinukunan ninyo ng suhol, at inyong inililigaw sa kanilang matuwid ang mapagkailangan sa pintuang-bayan. Kaya't siya na mabait ay tatahimik sa panahong yaon; sapagka't masamang panahon.” (Amos 5: 7, 10-13)
Corrections - The Corrections Pillar includes the Bureau of Corrections who manages the country’s prison facilities, and the BJMP which manages the jail facilities. Despite much improvement in the implementation and enforcement of laws regarding the rehabilitation of PDLs, the goals of said laws have yet to be fully realised. In our kwentuhan sessions, the PDLs shared that they have been attending health check-ups online which address their mental and physical health, among others, yet the environment in which they live while being rehabilitated defeats the purpose of that. Many jails fail at providing adequate levels of room for PDLs to live. The facilities are often congested, with 344% congestion (Senate of the Philippines, 2021), meaning the PDLs held within them are subject to very crowded living conditions. These conditions may lead to sparsely distributed food and overcrowded living quarters, which make the sector especially vulnerable to the current pandemic. Many LGUs still fail to allot the mandated 1% of their budget to rehabilitation facilities for CICLs according to the provisions of Republic Act No. 9344. This is the reason why CICL facilities like Tanglaw Pag-asa in Bulacan still need to ask for donations of supplies from private entities and individuals to make up for the lack of funding they receive. However, despite the packed conditions, PDLs are encouraged to take jobs within the facilities in order to help their rehabilitation, and journey back outside of prison. Another kwentuhan speaker told of their spouse who works as a teacher among the other PDLs within the prison, having previously finished two years of college. 
	The structures of sin that lead to the institution of an inefficient, inhumane, and harsh justice system keeps them oppressed and neglected by society. The needed resources and facilities by the sector lose its significance to sinful persons in a country where corruption (Elemia, 2021) and wealth inequality (Rivas, 2019) is very much alive. These sins are already embedded in our society, and which therefore contribute to the deprivation of human rights of the PDLs in the form of limited rehabilitation. With their rights violated, freedom curtailed, and dignity taken away, the integral development based on human dignity and solidarity, and the people empowerment of the sector are diminished and/or deliberately neglected.

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