Government evicts 4,400 families from waterways

THE Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) has evicted some 4,400 families (22,000 persons) from major waterways in Metro Manila.

DILG Secretary Mar Roxas said this is part of the government's Integrated Flood Plan, which he presented during the Flood Summit held last month at the House of Representatives.

About 100,000 families live in danger zones, including some 60,000 along waterways.

Roxas said the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) will evict some 19,440 families (97,200 persons) in order to clean up eight major waterways.

The government's budget for the relocation is P50 billion. A financial assistance worth P18,000 will be distributed (P1,500 a month rental assistance) to each family who agrees to be evicted even if the relocation is not yet provided.

To keep the informal settlers (squatters) from leaving their distant relocation sites, the DILG has constructed few near-site or on-site medium rise buildings in Manila.

President Benigno Aquino III has instructed that the relocation efforts should not displace families from their sources of livelihood and schools.

Source: http://www.rappler.com/news/57635-dilg-moves-families-danger-zones

Related story by UPA: 59 families in Estero de San Miguel-Legarda move to Muzon, Bulacan

Manila parish refuses to fight demolitions

A PASTORAL council in Metro Manila has dismissed accusations that it is not concerned about government attempts to demolish parishioners’ homes in Santolan, Pasig City.

The accusations came after picketing residents successfully blocked a 100-strong demolition team on Aug. 9. They pointed out that no Church officials were seen among them on the picket lines.

However, Denis Teodoro, president of Santo Tomas de Villanueva parish council, countered that “our parish priest does go to the area. We discuss the problem at our meetings. It’s not true the parish doesn’t care, but we want to find the right solution to a problem that has many angles to it.”

The government wants to demolish around 15,000 homes because they are along the Marikina River and Manggahan floodway and are badly affected by occurrences like last September’s Typhoon Ketsana.

© Full report at ucanews.com

Malacañang and esteros

Commentary : Malacañang and esteros

By Denis Murphy
Philippine Daily Inquirer

Posted date: July 28, 2010

RECENTLY WITHIN a span of one week, I visited two places that are within walking distance of each other, but look so completely different you wouldn’t think they belong to the same city: Estero de San Miguel and Malacañang.

We had a host in each area: Aling Imelda Ramos, 72, on the estero and President Aquino himself in Malacañang. We were fortunate to spend a good bit of time with each of these persons. At the end, we felt that the places may be very different, but there is the same Filipino sensibility in both, especially the ability to see the serious side of reality, but also the amusing side, which is surely a great virtue for a poor woman or a president to have.

Along one of the dark and narrow alley ways of Estero de San Miguel we met Aling Imelda. She was seated on her bangkito washing clothes, but she stood up to talk to us. It was a dismal place. She could see we were reacting to the smells of urine and worse, so she said, “We don’t smell it anymore. We’re used to it.” Back along the alleyway we had seen human waste pouring from pipes that extended out over the water from buildings across the way. At one point there was an explosion like a bomb going off. We ducked but it wasn’t a bomb. It was a large plastic bag of garbage dropped into the estero from the fourth story of another building. There were other “explosions” as we talked to Aling Imelda.

She is now in her 70s and has lived there since the time of President Elpidio Quirino. There are between 500 and 600 families living in her section of the estero. She says they are happy because they are long-time residents who know each other and trust each other. “We take care of each other. Most of us are vendors, so we are close to our working areas.”

The government is threatening to remove them from the estero, because it is judged to be a “danger” area, she said, though in the 50 years or more she has lived there nothing bad has happened to them. Even “Ondoy” didn’t hurt them. “It came up to my waist but no one was hurt,” she said. She added, “We don’t want anything from government. We wish they would leave us alone.”

The government talks of esteros and the estimated 80,000 families living on them as if they were all the same and as if one solution could suit all. Esteros differ from one another as much as people do. Not all people on esteros have to be relocated. Some can be accommodated along the banks, allowing for proper easement. Some have to move out. Some can live on idle land nearby. In some esteros people may very well block the water. In others they probably don’t. The government should study each estero carefully. God and the devil are in the details.

Rats peered out at us from cracks in the flooring of the alley. Maybe they wanted to know what was going on.

Replacing the warmth, friendship, security and mutual aid practices of such communities as Aling Imelda’s is very, very difficult for government to do in the best of circumstances. How can it do that for 80,000 families who don’t want to move?

Patiently Aling Imelda answered all our questions, though the soap bubbles in her washbasin had disappeared and her once clean looking clothes were lying there like dead fish. It was simple courtesy that kept her there talking to us.

A few days later my wife, myself, some urban poor people and NGOs were invited to meet President Noynoy in Malacañang. My wife had complained to friends in the Cabinet that the President and his advisers had completely neglected the urban poor once the election was finished. When the President heard of that complaint, he called for the meeting.

We met in a truly beautiful room. It is used for meetings, but it had the comfortable lived-in air of a family sala. President Cory Aquino had held office there. There were flowers, rare white orchids and oil paintings, one of which showed the moon and a pine forest at night in a blue mist. Everything was restful. We waited for the President at a table for 20 people.

There was a rustle of activity and a powerful looking bodyguard came into the room and gave us a quick look-over. There was no sign of what he thought of us. Then the president came in, talking even as he came near, drowning out the voice of the female assistant who called out, “The President of the Republic of the Philippines.”

We spent over an hour with the President. He could have handled our complaints in 10 or 15 minutes if he wanted. We presented some good and some not-so-good ideas. He listened to them all and talked about them. He explained why he had made certain appointments. He reminisced about concerns that had recently been brought to his attention, that most Philippine provinces, for example, are at high risk of very damaging disasters, and no province is not at risk. He talked about Pagasa’s failure to predict the path of “Basyang” and how he’ll have to attract investments to get better facilities.

Our group appreciated the way he put everyone at ease. He talked about his problems and listened to his visitors’ problems. He laughed a lot. He is not in a hurry. He had time to inquire into the details of some problems presented.

As I was listening to him talk I was reminded of Aling Imelda on Estero de San Miguel.

“Who do we go to when we have problems?” our group asked.

“Come to me,” he said. An agreement was made that he would meet once a month with the urban poor.

The places are totally different—the estero and Malacañang—but the people living in the two places are very much alike, which promises well for the long-range progress of the country, it seemed to us.

Denis Murphy works with the Urban Poor Associates. His e-mail address is upa@pldtdsl.net.

http://opinion.inquirer.net/inquireropinion/columns/view/20100728-283727/Malacaang-and-esteros

©Copyright 2001-2010 INQUIRER.net, An Inquirer Company

WHO CAUSED THE FLOOD

SHELTER FROM HARM A girl whiles away the hours playing in front of her house in Bagong Silangan, Q.C. on Oct. 4.




WHO CAUSED THE FLOOD

Typhoon Ondoy no sooner began to subside than government once again blamed the poor families - - estimated to number about 80,000 families (400,000 men, women and mostly children) - - for the unprecedented flooding.

The government has prohibited these poor families from returning to their homes from the evacuation centers. Housing officials talk publicly about evicting all 80,000 families and relocating them outside the city, far from jobs and basic services.

These government actions are based on the belief that the poor caused the floods by blocking the esteros and rivers. Luckily there were other explanations for the flooding. Architects, geologists and urban planners reminded us that the causes of the floods were much more complex. Cabinet and city officials connived with developers to violate sensible planning rules. Others logged and quarried in the mountains around Metro Manila. Climate change played a role. Guilty, too, are those city officials who ignored the instructions of the Urban Development and Housing Act (UDHA) of 1992 that each city should set aside land for social housing. If that had been done 17 years ago, there would be fewer families on the rivers and esteros.

The poor are partially to blame, but there is a huge difference between the poor, the officials and developers. The latter violate the law for gain, motivated by greed. The poor live on the shabby waterways because they have too. They are there to survive and would gladly move to a relocation center in the city where they could get back and forth to their jobs. They are not necessarily opposed to relocation but to evictions and relocation that are inhuman and violate the Constitution, the country’s international covenants and laws.

We ask for two things. First, let government establish an independent board of inquiry to look into the basic causes of the flooding. We will then know who the main violators of the common good are. The study can examine also the possibilities of in-city relocation for the poor on the waterways.

Secondly, we ask government not to evict poor people until we have an explanation of what really went wrong and fully prepared and discussed plans.

The urban poor will resist evictions and relocation that violate the law and further impoverish them.

If government will not make such an inquiry, the urban poor will do so to the best of their ability.

Do not make the poor the scapegoat for the greed of the wealthy and powerful. We see poor people walking the streets looking for rice for their families. Don’t add to their suffering.

The urban poor extend their compassion to all who suffered in Ondoy, especially to the families of those who died trying to help others. May God take care of all of us.

Mindanao right on our doorstep

Commentary : Mindanao right on our doorstep

By Denis Murphy
Philippine Daily Inquirer

Posted date: September 06, 2008

MANILA, Philippines—Mindanao, with its Muslim-Christian troubles, is far away and beyond the experience of most of us. There is, however, a Muslim-Christian struggle on our doorstep. And this we should be able to understand and recommend solutions to.

Some 376 Muslim families who are clustered tightly around their mosque have been resisting government efforts to evict them and their mosque from the reclaimed land in Manila Bay near Baclaran Church. The government wants them and the mosque out; the people want to stay alongside their mosque.

Evictions are a common problem between government and urban poor people these days, but this particular eviction is complicated by Muslim belief. The president of the people’s organization, Abdelmanan Tanandato, says Islamic law forbids the destruction of houses of worship, including Christian churches. The Muslims on the reclaimed land believe they cannot allow the destruction of their mosque. They must defend it. Their imams have told them they can’t leave the mosque. The government believes it must clear the land, which is very valuable and destined for commerce, luxury housing and casino use.

Years ago in Lahore, Pakistan, I saw proof of what Abdelmanan told me. I visited a huge urban poor area that had been demolished by the government. It was literally leveled; not a stone left upon a stone. One small building, however, a Catholic chapel, stood untouched in the middle of the field.

Abdelmanan says that when the Marawi uprising took place on Oct. 21, 1972, a month after the declaration of martial law, angry Muslims were determined to destroy the properties of Christians, but they didn’t touch the churches in Marawi, Catholic or Protestant.

The Muslims now living on the reclaimed land left Lanao del Sur when the Muslim-Christian war broke out in 1972. Some first went to Iligan which, shortly thereafter, had its own troubles, and so in the end many of them wound up in Manila. They have been on the reclaimed land since 1992; the mosque was built in 1994. They are employed like other urban poor people, many are vendors. “If you have only P500 as capital, you can buy and sell something there in Baclaran,” Abdelmanan says, “even hairclips.”

There was a violent demolition on the reclaimed land in 1999. Houses were destroyed and people were hurt. As a result the families moved closer to the mosque. In June this year, the demolition team came again, but hundreds of Muslim men faced them, spread out across the barren land prepared to fight with wooden clubs to protect their homes and mosque. The demolition team left. The government has offered large amounts of money, but the Muslims did not move.

At that time both Sen. Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino and Bishop Broderick Pabillo spoke to the government on behalf of the people, and the tense situation has calmed down somewhat. There is no change in basic positions, however.

What is the solution in Baclaran? Before investigating, people on both sides should be aware that they look at Moro-Christian problems through a lens of centuries-old bias and suspicion, which make any peaceful solution difficult to arrive at. In addition, the Muslims in Baclaran suffer from society’s general prejudice toward urban poor people.

If the government proceeds with the demolition and eviction, the people will resist—violently most likely. Scores will be injured. Some may be killed. The government will then eventually have to destroy the mosque, a sight that has a good chance of appearing in every newspaper in the world. Will the violence end there? Will there be revenge attacks on Christian churches, for example? The Muslim people believe it is God’s will that they defend the mosque. People must obey government’s laws, St. Paul tells us in Romans, but his precept presumes the laws do not contradict the laws of God as we know them.

If the government allows the mosque to stay, it will remain amid the office buildings, luxury housing and casino facilities that will be built. Why not? The Catholic Church has a church on the reclaimed land. The two religious houses can remind the rich and powerful, including the gamblers, that there is more to life than money and pleasure. They will stand guard reminding the rich to enjoy while they can, for all things are fleeting.

Does this case shed any light on the problems of Mindanao? Probably not much if it does at all, though it does highlight the possibility that alternative ways of thinking can provide good solutions. Insanity can be defined, it is said, by repeating the same actions year after year and expecting different results. We have evicted tens of thousands of poor families. The National Housing Authority says there have been 130,000 poor families evicted from Metro Manila since 1984. The question can be asked, is the city any better off as a result?

The same solutions have been tried for years and years in Mindanao with the same unsatisfactory results. Are there alternate actions, alternate solutions?


Denis Murphy works with the Urban Poor Associates. His email address is upa@pldtdsl.net.

Copyright 2008 Philippine Daily Inquirer. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

MEDIA ADVISORY : Urban Poor Set to March to CHR for Eviction Moratorium

Attention: News Editor, News Desk, Reporters and Photojournalists

MEDIA ADVISORY

Urban Poor Set to March to CHR for Eviction Moratorium

Five hundred urban poor people will march to the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) on Tuesday (September 2) to meet with CHR Chairperson Leila de Lima in order to discuss the moratorium on forced evictions until the laws governing evictions and relocation are clearly agreed upon by all government agencies and the people concerned.

The idea of such a moratorium was suggested by government officials and various people’s groups associated with the Task Force Anti-Eviction. The people agree it is necessary. Too many families are being evicted in violation of the law, the people say.

People from urban poor communities around Metro Manila will march towards CHR at 8:00 AM beginning in front of the National Housing Authority (NHA) office at the Elliptical Road in Quezon City.

Photo ops: People will have someone to impersonate MMDA Chairman Bayani Fernando as “the devil with horns and tails.” There will be a skit and hopefully agreement about the moratorium.

Assembly point: National Housing Authority, Elliptical Road, Q.C.

Date: September 2, 2008 (Tuesday)

Time: 8:00 AM – 11:00 AM

Venue: Commission on Human Rights (CHR), Commonwealth Avenue, UP Complex, Diliman, Q.C.

MEDIA ADVISORY: Running Priest in Baseco for U.N. Run

Attention: News Editor, News Desk, Reporters and Photojournalists

MEDIA ADVISORY

Running Priest in Baseco for U.N. Run

Fr. Robert Reyes, the running priest, will stage a run in Baseco, Port Area in Manila tomorrow (Tuesday) morning 10:00 AM starting at the Herminigildo Atienza Elementary School to publicise a petition which the people will send to the United Nations (UN). The petition will concern the eviction of 7,000 to 10,000 families living in Baseco.

The land was proclaimed by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in 2002. On the basis of that proclamation, aided by the Gawad Kalinga (GK) and Habitat for Humanity (HfH), the people invested in their homes. But now they are told to vacate the 56 hectares because the reclamation done by the government between 2002 and 2004 was poorly done. With the result, the land will liquify if there is a strong earthquake, the government says.

It is estimated well over a hundred million pesos was spent for the reclamation, according to Urban Poor Associates (UPA), a housing rights NGO.

After the run, there will be a brief prayer service. The people of Baseco will also sign a banner with the words “United Nations Housing Rights, please help us. We want to stay here in our homes. We don’t want to move out.”

Date: July 29, 2008 (Tuesday)

Time: 10:00 AM

Venue: Baseco, Port Area, Manila

MMDA demolishes 400 houses in Bagong Pag-Asa, Quezon City

04/28/2008 | 06:51 PM




QTV: 300 shanties demolished in Quezon City
04/28/2008 | 12:33 PM




Nearly 400 shanties demolished in QC

TRO sought against MMDA, DPWH, PNR, NHA to stop forced eviction

** NEWS RELEASE *** NEWS RELEASE *** NEWS RELEASE **

TRO sought against MMDA, DPWH, PNR, NHA to stop forced eviction

16 April 2008. To prevent their eviction and the demolition of their houses, settlers along the railway and Radial Road 10 (R-10) are seeking a temporary restraining order against the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA), Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), Philippine National Railways (PNR) and National Housing Authority (NHA).

Petitioners filed their petition for a TRO and preliminary injunction April 16 at the Supreme Court. The settlers who live along the railroad tracks in Sta. Cruz, Tondo and Sampaloc, Manila are being threatened with demolitions and evictions due to the Northrail Southrail Linkage Project (NSLP). While the residents along R-10, North Bay Boulevard in Navotas City are affected by the road-widening project.

The government agencies should be prohibited from evicting the informal settlers and demolishing houses since the evictions are being carried out in utter violation of the constitutional guarantees and safeguards regarding forced evictions vis-à-vis Republic Act 7279, otherwise known as the Urban Development and Housing Act (UDHA), according to the Urban Poor Associates (UPA), a non-government organization who provided the assistance through its legal unit, the St. Thomas More Law Center.

“The respondent government agencies brazenly laid down its plan of actions for the year 2008 which involve the demolition of houses and evictions of thousands of urban informal settlers in the guise of carrying out its development and/or clearing operation along the whole stretch of railroad tracks and Road 10, Navotas City,” the counsel for the petitioners, lawyer Bienvenido Salinas Jr. and Ritche Esponilla, said in a statement.”

Other NGOs such as the Sentro ng Alternatibong Lingap Panligal (SALIGAN) and Community Organizers of the Philippine Enterprise (COPE) Foundation co-sponsored the filing of the case.

The group cited the Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor (PCUP) who admittedly observed several flaws in the conduct of demolitions and evictions in urban poor communities. Such violations are: a mere 5 five days verbal notice; No consultation; Insufficient fund; No relocation; Proponent (like MMDA) do not apply for the Certificate of Compliance with PCUP as required by E.O. 152; Affected families are forced to receive financial assistance instead of relocation; Relocation sites have few if any available economic opportunities; and Relocation sites have no adequate basic services.

“These looming threats of eviction and demolition despite non-compliance with what are required by no less the Constitution and UDHA – e.g. prior notice/s, adequate relocation and consultation which continuously being undertaken by the respondent government agencies inflict gross injustice on the urban poor community. The effect and impact of massive displacements of affected families, including women and children, cannot be denied.”

Petitioners are aware of the basic principle on the observance of hierarchy of courts. With due deference, however, petitioners find it proper to file this suit directly before the Supreme Court under the exception that “when the issue at hand transcends national interest and with a sense of urgency, petition of this nature may be filed directly with the High Court.”

“Undeniably, the issue at hand which will create, as in fact it has created in last year’s demolitions and evictions, massive displacement of affected families within the railroad tracks transcends national interest. This concerns human beings who are also accorded basic rights by no less the Constitution itself to life and shelter. They cannot simply be dragged and forced from their makeshifts in the guise of development and promotion of general welfare.”

Some 50,000 families living on the railroad tracks will be evicted because of the railway project. About 30,000 families still remain on the tracks. While some 16,000 families along R-10 will be evicted due to the road-widening project. -30-

Urban poor group seeks SC's help vs demolitions

Urban poor asks Supreme Court to stop demolitions

Manila, Navotas residents seek TRO vs MMDA demolition

Group asks SC to stop eviction of railway residents

Group says railway project to displace 50,000 families

Stop to demolition

Hanjin evicts squatters in Subic

04/09/2008 | 07:59 PM




Relocated Subic illegal settlers unhappy with new homes
04/09/2008 | 10:10 PM

‘No demolition without relocation’ - PGMA

** NEWS RELEASE *** NEWS RELEASE *** NEWS RELEASE **

‘No demolition without relocation’ - PGMA

1 February 2008. In a meeting hosted by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo yesterday, the government has assured Metro Manila’s urban poor groups, people’s organizations, non-government organizations and Church leaders that demolitions would no longer be allowed unless there is a relocation site ready for affected families.

Also present were Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Chairman Bayani Fernando, Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor (PCUP) Chairman Percival Chavez, National Housing Authority (NHA) General Manager Federico Laxa and other agency representatives.

President Arroyo announced that P4 billion pesos will be allocated for housing. She said there should be social preparation period for those who will be relocated and people should not be caught off guard or by surprise by not giving them any notice or very late demolition notice. A 45-day notice will be given to informal settlers whose shanties are up for demolition.

The president preferred in-city or near-city relocation sites to distant relocation. She said Montalban, for example, which has been suggested by the poor as a relocation site, should be considered a better option than Calauan, Laguna because it is much nearer.

The president also said she was open to in-city relocation. She instructed NHA General Manager Laxa to talk to the mayors of Taguig and Navotas about in-city relocation and to Mayor Pedro Cuerpo of Montalban about near-city relocation.

When asked to continue proclaiming land for the urban poor, the president said she would not do so now but would first develop the areas already proclaimed, meaning the 80 or so proclaimed sites with approximately 200,000 families will be upgraded and given basic services like water light,sanitation, drainage, roads and day care centers.

Jeorgie Tenolete of the people’s organization KABALIKAT mentioned the fear Baseco people have of being evicted because of a plan to develop Baseco into a commercial area. President Arroyo repeated several times that Baseco is for socialized housing and that the government is even reclaiming more land as part of it and the people should not worry.

Asked about the demolition by soldiers at Sitio Masagana in Taguig City, the president said the military like all government agencies is bound to follow the laws on eviction and relocation.

With the help of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) particularly Archbishop Diosdado Talamayan of Tuguegarao and Bishop Ramon Villena of Bayombong, urban poor leaders belonging to the Task Force Anti-Illegal Demolition (TF-AID) and Urban Poor Alliance (UP-ALL) were able to meet the President Thursday afternoon at the Heroes Hall in Malacañang.

TF-AID was formed in answer to the growing number of illegal evictions by various people’s organizations and NGOs such as Community Organizers Multiversity (COM), Community Organization of the Philippine Enterprise (COPE) Foundation, and Urban Poor Associates (UPA).

TF-AID wants a halt to forced evictions without relocation and the preparation of adequate relocation sites for those who are evicted.

Last year some 9,637 families lost their houses due to demolitions, according to the UPA annual eviction monitor. This is 26% more than the number of evicted families in 2006. “The two electoral events in 2007, the May 14 national election and the Barangay election in October, did not seem to have an impact on the number of evictions, unlike in 2004 where the number of demolitions dramatically went down,” said Ted Añana, deputy coordinator of UPA. About 40% of the 9,637 families were evicted without relocation. -30-

Army unit demolish 300 Taguig shanties

01/29/2008 | 12:21 PM



Soldiers guard planned demolition in Taguig
01/29/2008 | 06:14 AM




Demolition team arrives at Maharlika, Taguig
01/29/2008 | 07:40 AM

Imminent demolition of mosque tears down dreams of Muslims in Baclaran

Urban Poor Associates
25-A Mabuhay Street, Brgy. Central, Q.C.
Telefax: 4264118 Tel.: 4264119 / 4267615

http://jlagman17.blogspot.com
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jlagman17

** NEWS RELEASE *** NEWS RELEASE *** NEWS RELEASE **

Imminent demolition of mosque tears down dreams of Muslims in Baclaran

16 November 2007. With flies swarming around her shanty beside the Grand Mosque, Rahima Amal was cooking banana and cassava with coconut milk for a traditional Maranao Kanduri or thanksgiving, in which gifts are shared with extended family, neighbors and friends.

She believes that by sharing food, her wishes may be granted. She wants her life to be featured on the TV show “Wish Ko Lang.” Rahima would wish for a simple “sari-sari” store in Baclaran.

She hopes to save some money before she gives birth to her sixth child this December. She once worked as a vendor but personnel from the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) would always catch her and confiscated her merchandise.

The 35-year old mother may have all the reason to lose hope but she simply never stops dreaming. “Here in Manila it is free to dream something big, it doesn’t cost a thing,” she said. That thought keeps her going despite the series of unfortunate events that happened to their community.

Five months earlier, an army of over 1000 persons, security personnel of the Philippine Reclamation Authority (PRA), police officers from Pasay City and Salam Police, and a Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) unit entered the reclaimed area near Baclaran where 800 Muslim families lived and bulldozed houses.

Residents tried to prevent heavily armed policemen from entering the community, demanding a court order that would authorize the demolition. But the demolition team shoved their way into the human barricade, hitting residents with clubs, night sticks and truncheons.

Some 376 families retreated to the mosque for sanctuary. While praying inside the mosque, residents were intimidated, threatened and coerced to come out.

The police cut off the water and electricity supply and destroyed the area the residents used for performing ablutions before prayer.

After negotiations, the PRA agreed to spare the mosque from destruction until a relocation site had been found and agreed to pay some families P30,000 in ‘disturbance pay’.

Since the demolition, 30 children have stopped going to elementary and high school. Barbed wire fence has been placed across the main access path leading to the local school. Seven children have been hospitalized for malaria and fatigue.

PRA guards have surrounded the small community with barbed wire and spy on the families living under tarpaulins.

To date, after months residing in sub-standard conditions, without access to basic services of water, sanitation and electricity, the community has still not been consulted regarding relocation plans and no site has apparently been identified.

Rahima could only cry and pray. Her husband became sick and lost his job as terminal dispatcher. Her 9-year old daughter is now working along the streets selling plastic bags. Rising cost of commodities won’t allow her to buy medicines for her 2-year old baby.

Despite the problems, Rahima’s family find it hard to go back to Malabang, Lanao del Sur where farming is the only way to survive. “Aside from the problems of armed conflicts, rodents and wild pigs usually ruin our harvests. Our only problem here is eviction. The mosque is our shelter, we have nowhere else to go,” Rahima said.

Like most of her neighbor, Rahima left her province hoping to find better luck in the city. Her dream is to someday go back to her province, buy a passenger jeepney and have a small business.

The Muslim community asked the Urban Poor Associates (UPA), a non-government organization that monitors forced evictions, to help them. Last October 10, UPA arranged a consultative meeting with Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri and Senator Rodolfo Biazon regarding unlawful demolitions in various parts of Metro Manila including the Muslim area. Government agencies acceded to the appeal of urban poor leaders to have a 1-month moratorium on demolitions.

Abdelmanan Tanandato, president of Samahan Ng Nagkaka-Isang Na-Demolis Sa Roxas Blvd. Baclaran, Pasay City, also sought the help of Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick Pabillo which led to a dialogue with PRA General Manager Andrea Domingo. Still the problem remains unresolved and negotiations continued.

The PRA denied the request of Bishop Pabillo to allow the entry of water rationing trucks into the area, which had been requested during the fasting month of Ramadan. The justification provided in the letter for the denial of water provision was that reclamation work was going on in the vicinity. With a water rationing truck at the Diosdado Macapagal Boulevard, residents are hoping to get some water even if they have to walk about 100 meters.

The makeshift pedestrian bridge connecting the community to Roxas Boulevard was destroyed during the demolition, isolating the community from the main thoroughfare. Using a pushcart, some people have to buy water from the Baclaran area and transport it via a longer route going to the Diosdado Macapagal Boulevard. Hence, residents have to pay 20 pesos for 5 gallons of water.

The Muslim community started reclaiming the land in 1992. In 1993, the Grand Mosque was built. In 1994, the Muslim leaders decided to make it concrete. It was completed in 2002 and the total amount of expenses reached 11.3 million pesos. Various Muslim groups donated the money while some residents contributed their coins, hard-earned money for the construction.

The Muslims built the mosque at the reclamation area in Baclaran with the endorsement of the then Parañaque City Mayor Joey Marquez. In a letter addressed to Jose Yulo Jr., General Manager of Philippine Estates Authority (the forerunner of the PRA), Mayor Marquez said the city does not interpose any objection to the establishment of the mosque in its present site for the Muslims to exercise their faith. The area is now considered a part of Pasay City.

During a mission to the Philippines in October 2007, a three-member team from the Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions (COHRE) visited the Muslim community. COHRE is a Geneva-based nongovernmental organization working to promote and protect the right to adequate housing.

In an open letter to President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo last October 23, Deputy Director Jean du Plessis of COHRE said his organization is deeply concerned about the lack of genuine consultation surrounding the evictions and plans for relocation, the lack of access to basic services for the community, and the use of violence during the evictions and demolition. He also asked the President to take action to protect the affected families. -30-

MMDA wants soldiers help in clearing operations

Soldiers may work with MMDA in Metro clearing operation




Troops join clearing of danger zones

Vendors to challenge MMDA-AFP ‘alliance’ before CHR

Market demolition by MMDA turns violent

Group welcomes moratorium on demolitions, evictions

Urban Poor Associates
25-A Mabuhay Street, Brgy. Central, Q.C.
Telefax: 4264118 Tel.: 4264119 / 4267615

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Group welcomes moratorium on demolitions, evictions

11 October 2007. Top government officials promised a one-month moratorium on demolitions to Metro Manila’s urban poor at a consultative meeting held at the Senate’s Padilla Room yesterday.

Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Chairman Bayani Fernando acceded to the appeal of Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri and Senator Rodolfo Biazon to stop demolitions as the Metro Manila Inter-Agency Committee (MIMIAC) develops its operational procedures.

At least 100 urban poor leaders went to the Senate to seek help from Senator Zubiri, Chairperson of Senate Committee on Urban Planning, Housing and Resettlement.

Also present were officials from Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC), National Housing Authority (NHA), Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor (PCUP), Commission on Human Rights (CHR), and Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).

During the meeting, Senator Zubiri criticized the demolition of houses of informal settlers in various parts of Metro Manila. “Merong existing laws at mandatory provisions and Urban Development and Housing Act (UDHA). Ang MMDA ay hindi sumusunod. Within one month time, habang ginagawa pa ang polisiya, magkaroon ng moratorium.”

Senator Biazon, former Chairman of the Committee, supported the move saying that Executive Order 152 should be implemented otherwise it should be junk. “Bakit pa nag-issue ang Presidente ng EO 152? Violators of EO 152 challenge the authority of the President,” he said.

Urban Poor Associates (UPA), one of the housing rights non-government organizations that accompanied the people, welcome the moratorium saying this is good news for the urban poor.

“Our demolition monitor shows that MMDA is the top violator of housing rights,” said Ted Añana, deputy coordinator of UPA. “In fact, MMDA doesn’t secure Certificate of Compliance from PCUP prior to demolitions.”

He said thousands of poor families will be affected by on-going demolitions along Pasig River, Manggahan floodway, San Juan River, R-10 Navotas, Southrail, Del Pan, Commonwealth Avenue and along estero in Makati, Pasay, Quezon City and Manila.

UPA together with other NGOs such as Community Organization of the Philippine Enterprise (COPE) Foundation and Community Organizers Multiversity (COM) formed the Task Force Anti Illegal Demolition (TF-AID) to help people’s organizations affected by various government projects.

“Parang hindi pa rin tinatanggap ng MMDA ang batas. Pwede pa rin silang mag-summary evictions,” said Soti Sabarre, community organizer of COPE. “Aminado ang PCUP na wala silang magawa dahil takot kay Bayani.”

Sabarre said there should be plans, consultation and budget for relocation to maximize the one-month moratorium. “Gusto ng tao ang near-city relocation sa Montalban. Suporta lang ng gubyerno ang wala.” -30-

Urban poor leaders ask Zubiri to help stop demolitions, evictions

Urban Poor Associates
25-A Mabuhay Street, Brgy. Central, Q.C.
Telefax: 4264118 Tel.: 4264119 / 4267615

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Urban poor leaders ask Zubiri to help stop demolitions, evictions

10 October 2007. Plagued with the problems of distant relocation, forced eviction and illegal demolition, thousands of urban poor families in Metro Manila are trying to solve the problems they face by seeking the help of Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri, Chairperson of Senate Committee on Urban Planning, Housing and Resettlement.

At a consultative meeting this afternoon held at the Sen. G.T. Pecson Room 2/F Right Wing, Senator Zubiri was asked to look on the demolition of houses of informal settlers in various parts of Metro Manila.

Urban poor leaders also asked Senator Zubiri to order the national agencies involved, especially the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) to stop evicting poor families if there is no relocation.

Catherine Arquero, spokesperson of Task Force Anti Illegal Demolition (TF-AID), told the Senator that housing and not demolitions will solve the root causes of homelessness.

“Ang batas ay ginawa para ipagtanggol ang mamamayan, lalo na ang mahihirap. Pero sa mga nangyayaring illegal na demolisyon, walang silbi ang batas dahil wala namang napaparusahan,” said Arquero.

TF-AID represents people’s organization of some 100,000 poor families affected by demolitions along Pasig River, Manggahan floodway, San Juan River, R-10 Navotas, Southrail, Del Pan, along estero in Makati, Pasay, Quezon City and Manila, and those who were relocated to distant sites due to government projects.

It was the first Senate hearing in the last 6 years about forced evictions and illegal demolitions, according to the Urban Poor Associates (UPA), one of the housing rights non-government organizations that accompanied the people.

“Demolitions causes terrible suffering to poor families. Evicted families are forced to live on the streets. The children and the aged suffer most of all. Their children fall sick with colds and rashes. It is a traumatic experience for school children,” said Ted Añana, deputy coordinator of UPA.

Recently, the MMDA have forcibly evicted at least 1,000 families along Commonwealth Avenue to give way to a road widening project. No relocation site was provided, making the poor families homeless and more miserable. The same fate awaits some 393,000 families in Metro Manila. These are unprogrammed demolitions for non-budgeted projects, according to Percival Chavez, chairman of the Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor.

TF-AID was formed by UPA, Community Organization of the Philippine Enterprise (COPE) Foundation, Community Organizers Multiversity (COM) and people’s organizations affected by government projects such as flood control, railway improvement, road widening and beautification

The group organized the meeting at the Senate to ask for the following:
· Stop violent and illegal demolition. Follow the laws.
· Give relief assistance to victims of illegal demolitions.
· Include representatives of affected families to the Metro Manila Inter-Agency Committee.
· Make in-city or near-city relocation sites as viable option to distant relocation.

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