EIGHTY-FIVER years old Gerardo Dela Pena, country’s oldest political prisoner, was finally freed from prison after an intense campaign from human rights organizations.
Kapatid, a support group for families of political prisoners, disclosed that Dela Peña was released from the New Bilibid Prison in Muntinlupa City at 9:30 p.m. Sunday.
Prison officials turned Dela Peña over to his son Melchor, who traveled from Bicol to pick him up, and to Fides Lim, spokesperson of Kapatid.
A former head of the SELDA Camarines Norte chapter, Dela Peña was arrested on March 21, 2013, and convicted at age 75 for a murder case despite evidence supporting his innocence.
“We are very happy that Tatay Gerry can finally return home to his family and reunite with his wife Pilar in their twilight years. His release is a milestone for human rights campaigns, but also serves as a stark reminder of the obstacles that impede the release of political prisoners,” said Lim.
“Tatay Gerry’s journey to freedom was very difficult because of systemic challenges and bureaucratic delays. It’s concerning why the Board of Pardons and Parole (BPP) could not immediately implement its own Board Resolution No. OT-08-02-2023 allowing executive clemency for prisoners who have reached 70 years old and served ten years of their sentence,” Lim noted.
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