Soldiers may work with MMDA in Metro clearing operation
Troops join clearing of danger zones
Vendors to challenge MMDA-AFP ‘alliance’ before CHR
Monday, October 15, 2007
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
Saturday, October 13, 2007
Thursday, October 11, 2007
Group welcomes moratorium on demolitions, evictions
** NEWS RELEASE *** NEWS RELEASE *** NEWS RELEASE **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-
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Urban poor leaders ask Zubiri to help stop demolitions, evictions
** NEWS RELEASE *** NEWS RELEASE *** NEWS RELEASE **
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.
-30-
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.
-30-
Thursday, October 4, 2007
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Church joins housing rights advocates in observance of Habitat Day
** NEWS RELEASE *** NEWS RELEASE *** NEWS RELEASE **
Church joins housing rights advocates in observance of Habitat Day
28 September 2007. Bagbag cemetery is what Encarnacion Regalado and her family call ‘home’. They are living on top of a niche, using sacks as wall and dilapidated iron sheets as roof. The family has survived there for 28 years in the midst of heavy rains and a hell-like weather. Their horrific experience so far was not about ghost encounter but the non-stop demolition to make way for new compartments for the dead.
Regalado family is only one of the increasing number of homeless in Metro Manila, according to Urban Poor Associates (UPA), a non-government organization dealing with homelessness. “The government’s policies such as privatization of the public land, improvement of the dangerous area, beautification of the street have triggered forced evictions and illegal demolitions rendering poor families homeless.”
UPA called for a halt to demolitions as the world celebrates Habitat Day on October 1. "Driving away people from their homes is the most inhuman way to celebrate the World Habitat Day,” said Lawyer Bienvenido Salinas II, coordinator of UPA's legal unit St. Thomas More Law Center.
UPA notes that almost all cases of rampant demolitions being conducted by the government throughout Metro Manila have violated in one way or another the international laws and the Urban Development and Housing Act (UDHA), which prohibits use of force during demolitions and requires provision of suitable relocation areas.
Lack of adequate housing highlights a key concern in a letter signed last September 13, 2007 by the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) President and Jaro Archbishop Angel Lagdameo.
The CBCP Permanent Council requests Archbishops, Bishops and Diocesan Administrators, to enjoin their priests to read in all Holy Masses on October 7 the CBCP’s “A Statement on the Nation’s Housing Problems" which was issued by the 94th Bishops' Plenary Assembly.
“As we speak in behalf of our homeless brethren and those living in very difficult conditions, let us continue praying for the speedy action of the government in response to their needs. Let us help them in whatever way we can,” Archbishop Lagdameo said.
Task Force Anti-Illegal Demolition (TF-AID) lauded the Church’s efforts in calling on those concerned to stop uncaring evictions and demolitions. Novaliches Bishop Antonio Tobias, for example, has condemned as inhuman the ongoing demolition of houses along Commonwealth, Quezon City. Last September 24, together with priests and nuns, Bishop Tobias personally asked Mayor Feliciano Belmonte to stop the wrecking crew of Metro Manila Development Authority so that affected families can find temporary staging area.
TF-AID spokesperson Soti Sabarre said poor families who are mostly under eviction threat are set to mobilize next week to urge the government to look into their plight instead of the mouthwatering ZTE deal. “The $329-million contract for the National Broadband Network (NBN) project could already house 300,000 homeless families but this government would never borrow that amount to uplift the lives of the 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. -30-
Church joins housing rights advocates in observance of Habitat Day
28 September 2007. Bagbag cemetery is what Encarnacion Regalado and her family call ‘home’. They are living on top of a niche, using sacks as wall and dilapidated iron sheets as roof. The family has survived there for 28 years in the midst of heavy rains and a hell-like weather. Their horrific experience so far was not about ghost encounter but the non-stop demolition to make way for new compartments for the dead.
Regalado family is only one of the increasing number of homeless in Metro Manila, according to Urban Poor Associates (UPA), a non-government organization dealing with homelessness. “The government’s policies such as privatization of the public land, improvement of the dangerous area, beautification of the street have triggered forced evictions and illegal demolitions rendering poor families homeless.”
UPA called for a halt to demolitions as the world celebrates Habitat Day on October 1. "Driving away people from their homes is the most inhuman way to celebrate the World Habitat Day,” said Lawyer Bienvenido Salinas II, coordinator of UPA's legal unit St. Thomas More Law Center.
UPA notes that almost all cases of rampant demolitions being conducted by the government throughout Metro Manila have violated in one way or another the international laws and the Urban Development and Housing Act (UDHA), which prohibits use of force during demolitions and requires provision of suitable relocation areas.
Lack of adequate housing highlights a key concern in a letter signed last September 13, 2007 by the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) President and Jaro Archbishop Angel Lagdameo.
The CBCP Permanent Council requests Archbishops, Bishops and Diocesan Administrators, to enjoin their priests to read in all Holy Masses on October 7 the CBCP’s “A Statement on the Nation’s Housing Problems" which was issued by the 94th Bishops' Plenary Assembly.
“As we speak in behalf of our homeless brethren and those living in very difficult conditions, let us continue praying for the speedy action of the government in response to their needs. Let us help them in whatever way we can,” Archbishop Lagdameo said.
Task Force Anti-Illegal Demolition (TF-AID) lauded the Church’s efforts in calling on those concerned to stop uncaring evictions and demolitions. Novaliches Bishop Antonio Tobias, for example, has condemned as inhuman the ongoing demolition of houses along Commonwealth, Quezon City. Last September 24, together with priests and nuns, Bishop Tobias personally asked Mayor Feliciano Belmonte to stop the wrecking crew of Metro Manila Development Authority so that affected families can find temporary staging area.
TF-AID spokesperson Soti Sabarre said poor families who are mostly under eviction threat are set to mobilize next week to urge the government to look into their plight instead of the mouthwatering ZTE deal. “The $329-million contract for the National Broadband Network (NBN) project could already house 300,000 homeless families but this government would never borrow that amount to uplift the lives of the 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. -30-
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
