Over 100 inmates infected in coronavirus outbreak at jail in Cebu, Philippines

The Philippines has some of the world’s most overcrowded jails, as a result of President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs

Health authorities say more than 1,000 health care workers in the country have been infected by Covid-19, with 26 dying, including 19 doctors

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A soldier wears a face shield in the Philippines, as the country deals with a coronavirus outbreak at a prison in Cebu City, its second-largest city. Photo: AP

Published: 11:25pm, 22 Apr 2020Updated: 5:48am, 23 Apr 2020

A prison in the Philippines is suffering from a major outbreak of the new coronavirus with 123 infected inmates, officials said on Wednesday, adding to concerns among activists about contagion risks in some of the world’s most overcrowded jails.

The mayor of Cebu City said a new building in the prison capable of handling 3,000 people would be used as an isolation facility to contain an outbreak that accounts for 40 per cent of cases in the Philippines’ second biggest city.

There were no details about the possible source of the outbreak. Eighteen cases have been found at a jail in Manila’s Quezon City, among them nine members of staff, and media has reported infections at other facilities.

Police officers in the Philippines stand back as their offices are disinfected. Photo: EPA-EFE

New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) was among several groups that called for inmates held for minor, non-violent offences, or those with health conditions, to be freed from Philippine prisons to create more space.

Activists globally have been urging governments to free political prisoners.

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