Manila City Jail (Old Bilibid Prison) (City of Manila)

The Manila City Jail (MCJ) has been ravaged by time. It is under-staffed, overcrowded, and its facilities in disrepair. Originally built by the Spaniards in the 19th Century, “Bilibid”, as it is commonly known, was home to prisoners of war during the Japanese occupation of Manila in World War II. Today it houses over 5,300 inmates - a 5x overcapacity rate - on 1.2 hectares, making the MCJ undoubtedly one of the most over-congested jail facilities in the country.