Illegal demolition in Quiapo to displace another 50 families

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For Immediate Release November 22, 2006

Illegal demolition in Quiapo to displace another 50 families

Some 50 houses under the Quezon Bridge of Barangay 384 in Quiapo, Manila were demolished today by the engineering office of Manila City Hall, rendering the evicted families homeless and facing a bleak Christmas.

The demolition took place at 10:00 AM today, catching the residents by surprise since more than a week ago they had talked to the mayor and officials at the city engineering office who promised to give them a three week extension. People say they felt betrayed.

Cesar Tan, a leader from the Social Services of Quiapo Church, accused personnel from the Manila City Hall of ordering the alleged illegal demolition of their houses, many of which had been erected for more than 50 years.

Tan said the demolition came without a 30-day notice as required by the Urban Development and Housing Act (UDHA).

Through a dialogue with Mayor Lito Atienza last November 13, the residents pleaded that their home be spared until a relocation site is given but their appeal went unheeded. They also worry about their displacement from their livelihood and children’s school.

Atty. Christine Anne Marie R. Alcazar of the Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor (PCUP) issued a certification dated November 9, 2006 saying that the Local Government of Manila has not applied for a Certificate of Compliance for the October 22, 2006 demolition of the houses of some 52 families at Oscaris Street, near Quinta Market and for today’s demolition of some 50 families under the Quezon Bridge.

Frantic residents called the Mayor who ordered a temporary suspension of the demolition activity. They told him City Hall did not observe its own promise of three weeks extension and it also does not have a certificate of compliance from the PCUP as required by Executive No. 152 of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.

“In the near future in many parts of the country we may see thousands of poor families huddled along our streets, surrounded by the few pieces of furniture and clothes they managed to save when their homes were demolished. It will seem a major natural disaster has taken place. This will happen if every local government will no longer provide relocation for the poor families it evicts,” said the Urban Poor Associates, a non-government organization working with urban poor issues. -30-


If you require further information please contact Cesar at 0919-8333423 or 734-6830.

Dengue outbreak in Southville, a man-made disaster

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Dengue outbreak in Southville, a man-made disaster

9 November 2006, Quezon City. “The dengue outbreak could have been prevented if the Department of Health (DOH) and the National Housing Authority (NHA) had responded to letters from Church, environmental and social justice groups who urged them to dispatch medical and environmental sanitation teams to the relocation site in Cabuyao, Laguna,” said the Urban Poor Associates (UPA).

Last September 8, to prevent an emerging health crisis, at least 17 non-government organizations requested DOH Secretary Francisco T. Duque to seriously look into the water, drainage, electricity and indoor pollution issues in Southville, which, if adequately resolved, would tremendously improve the environmental health conditions of the residents.

“We are writing with urgency to appeal to the Department of Health (DOH) to immediately deploy medical and environmental sanitation teams to the Southville Housing Project in Cabuyao, Laguna in light of the reported occurrence of skin diseases, diarrhea and other ailments among some of the relocated railway dwellers purportedly due to the poor environmental health conditions in the area,” the letter read.

“Consistent with the Department’s mandate of ensuring accessible and quality health care services to all Filipinos, especially the poor, we urge the DOH, in coordination with the Municipal Government of Cabuyao and other concerned agencies, to speedily and effectively respond to the health needs of the relocatees. Specifically, we ask the DOH to send medical and environmental sanitation teams to the Southville Housing Project on a regular basis or until the local authorities have fully taken on this responsibility,” the letter added.

Also on September 8 for the occasion of the blessed Virgin Mary’s birth anniversary San Pablo Bishop Leo M. Drona issued a Pastoral Statement entitled “From danger zone to death zone” regarding the Southville Housing Project. “They came from the danger zone for we fully know what is life in a ‘home along da riles’ but their life in the relocation site in Southville, Cabuyao is may become a ‘death zone’ if not properly and adequately attended to,” Bishop Drona said.

Bishop Drona urged the national and local governments specifically the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) Chair and Vice President Noli de Castro to address immediately the basic needs of the relocatees such as potable water, electricity, provisions for proper disposal of waste and health centers. “The Social Action Office which I commissioned to look after the condition of relocates alleged that six children had already died. Living near dumps is kin to thrashing their hope for a humane and secured future,” the pastoral letter read.

To date, at least five children have already succumbed to dengue, according to the Urban Poor Southville Association Incorporated (UPSAI). The five children who died are the following: Jean Claire Mortera, 12 years old; Jethro Sotto Santos, 3 years old; Alexandra Politico, 1 ½ year old; Kayla Buiza, 3 years old; and Alexandra Kristel Buiza, 5 years old. Some 18 children were confirmed infected but survived the disease, but on November 8 another two children were confirmed positive with dengue.

As early as September, after one child died of dengue, UPSAI tried several times to bring the issue of increasing number of dengue cases to the attention of National Housing Authority (NHA). They pointed that there were manholes filled with stagnant water in Southville that were teeming with mosquito larvae and could be breeding dengue-carrying mosquitoes. UPSAI leaders like Ester Terencio repeated several times this concern to NHA officers, the latest on November 4 and 6 in a meeting with Architect Virginia Domingo in Cabuyao, who brushed off their concerns by saying there is no dengue in Cabuyao. On November 7, the DOH declared a dengue outbreak in the Southville relocation site. -30-

 

appeal letter re. pre-asean summit demolitions

25-A Mabuhay St., Brgy. Central,Quezon City, Philippines
Tel No: 632 426 4119-19;Tel/fax no: 632 426 4132

November 2, 2006

The Honorable Alberto G. Romulo
Secretary of Foreign Affairs
Chairman,National Organizing Committee
Department of Foreign Affairs
PHILIPPINES
Fax No. 632 832 1597
Email: osec@dfa.gov.ph

Governor Gwendolyn F. Garcia
Chair, Cebu Organizing CommitteeCebu Provincial Capitol
Capitol SiteCebu City, Philippines 6000
Fax Number: (+63) (032) 255-0642
Email: gov@cebu.gov.ph

The Honorable Arturo Radaza
Office of the City Mayor
Lapu-lapu CityPHILIPPINES
Tele/fax: +63 32 340 0656


Subject: Demolition of Urban Poor Houses, Arrest and Detention of Protesters


Greetings.

Our organization has received information from civil society organizations in Cebu, Philippines about the September 29, 2006 demolition of 30 shanties affecting 42 families in front of Shangri-la Mactan Island Resort and Spa in Mactan Island, Cebu, the arrest and detention of 12 people who protested against the demolition.The demolition was carried out as part of the preparations for the 12th ASEAN Summit December 2006 in Cebu. The cleared land will be used as a parking lot for Summit participants.

Since the contested land is privately owned the land claimant should have gone to court to get a demolition order. Instead the local government opted to use presidential decree 1096 of former Dictator Marcos requiring government building permit for house construction which requires a land title to be issued. Obviously squatter families cannot obtain such a permit from city hall. Under Marcos Minister for Public Works and Highways Jesus Hipolito instructed through a July 13, 1984 memorandum to government agencies not to use PD 1096 to demolish squatter houses.

The demolition operation was violent. Police used water cannons and truncheons to disperse the barricade put up by members of ASUPA (Atbang Shangrila Urban Poor Association) and students. Scores were hurt, including women and children. Thirteen were arrested with one released at once because he was a minor.

The twelve detained are the following: Almarie B. Marzado, 19; Emalyn M. Aliviado, 23; Lourd Sherry V. Perez, 23; Melba C. Ugbinada, 22; Jo Ann L. Martinez, 24; Rosita D. Blando, 54; Ronald A. Sitoy, 21; John Francis B. Aguilar, 19; Jordan M. Jainar, 19; Deogracias J. Cane, 23; Ashbel C. Edaño, 19; and Reyneil Jim V. Perez, 22. They are asked to post bail of P80,000 each (US$1,633) or a P960,000 (US$19,591), clearly beyond their means. Their detention is now more than a month.

Recently they have been charged with violation of the child abuse law Republic Act 7619 because they “induced” a minor, a 16 year old resident, to join in the barricade, a charge they deny. They are in jail with common criminals.

As you may know, forced evictions in connection with international events such as summits and conferences violate the guidelines contained in General Comment No. 7 : Forced Evictions (1997) issued by the United Nations Committee on Economic,Social and Cultural Rights. The committee is the treaty body of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights which the Philippine government has ratified. The September 29, 2006 forced evictions also violated the instruction of the United Nations Secretary General Kofi Anan which is contained in his Forced Evictions: Analytical Report (1993).

Eviction Watch therefore demands that the National Organizing Committee and the Cebu Organizing Committee, including the local government of Lapulapu City:

· Stop all forced evictions, including those being planned, related to the holding of the ASEAN Summit in December in Cebu City;
· Pay compensation and provide adequate relocation to the evicted families and observe the other guidelines prescribed by the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in its document The Right to Adequate Housing: Forced Evictions;
· Release, without bail, immediately the 12 people arrested and detained who protested the September 29, 2006 demolition,

Such actions will most certain show that the ASEAN, beginning with the organizers of its 12th Summit, are consistent in their avowals of creating a caring and sharing community .

Yours truly,



Respectfully yours,
Teodoro Anana



Cc

Her Excellency Gloria Macapagal Arroyo
President
Malacañang Palace
JP Laurel Street, San Miguel
Manila 1005
Telephone Nos.: 632-735-6201 up to 10; 632-735-6180
Fax Number: 632-733-2107

Mr. Eduardo R. Ermita
Executive Secretary
Malacanang Palace
Manila
Fax no. 632 736 1010

Mr. Ong Keng Yong
Secretary-General of ASEAN
The ASEAN Secretariat70A, Jalan SisingamangarajaJakarta 12110IndonesiaTel : (6221) 7262991, 7243372Fax : (6221) 7398234, 7243504Email : termsak@aseansec.org

Mr. Miloon KothariSpecial Rapporteur on Adequate HousingUN Council on Human RightsTel/Fax; 91.11.24358492
www.unhchr.ch/housing : www.ohchr.org/english/issues/housing/index.htm

P/Supt. Louie Tiroy OpusPhilippine National Police Headquarters (PNP-HQ)City Hall Compound, PusokLapu-lapu CityPHILIPPINESTel: +63 32 341 1311
Director General Oscar CalderonChief of Philippine National Police (PNP)Camp General Rafael CrameQuezon City PHILIPPINESTel: +63 2 726 4361/4366/8763Fax: +63 2 724 8763 E-mail: ocpnp@pnp.gov.ph

Mrs. Persida V. Rueda-AcostaChief of Public Attorney Office (PAO)DOJ Agencies Building, NIA Road East Avenue1104 Quezon CityPHILIPPINESTel. No. +63 2 929 9010 / 9436Fax No. +63 2 927 6810 / 926 2878Email: chiefacosta@edsamail.com.ph
Ms Leila ZerrouguiChairpersonWorking Group on arbitrary detentionAttn: Mr Miguel de la LamaOHCHR-UNOG1211 Geneva 10SWITZERLANDFax: +41 22 917 900

NGOs condemns pre-ASEAN Summit demolitions, arrest and detention of protesters

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NGOs condemns pre-ASEAN Summit demolitions, arrest and detention of protesters

3 November 2006, Quezon City. Non-government organizations have asked various government agencies in a letter to stop all forced evictions, including those being planned, related to the holding of the ASEAN Summit in December in Cebu City, to pay compensation and provide adequate relocation to the evicted families, and to release, without bail, immediately the 12 people arrested and detained who protested the September 29, 2006 demolition.

“Such actions will most certainly show that the ASEAN, beginning with the organizers of its 12th Summit, are consistent in their avowals of creating a caring and sharing community, said Teodoro Añana, coordinator of the Eviction Watch of the Asian Coalition for Housing Rights (ACHR).

ACHR and the Urban Poor Associates (UPA) condemns the September 29, 2006 demolition of 30 shanties affecting 42 families in front of Shangri-la Mactan Island Resort and Spa in Mactan Island, Cebu, the arrest and detention of 12 people who protested against the demolition.

The demolition was carried out as part of the preparations for the 12th ASEAN Summit December 2006 in Cebu. The cleared land will be used as a parking lot for Summit participants.

The demolition operation was violent. Police used water cannons and truncheons to disperse the barricade put up by members of ASUPA (Atbang Shangrila Urban Poor Association) and students. Scores were hurt, including women and children. Thirteen were arrested with one released at once because he was a minor.

The twelve detained are the following: Almarie B. Marzado, 19; Emalyn M. Aliviado, 23; Lourd Sherry V. Perez, 23; Melba C. Ugbinada, 22; Jo Ann L. Martinez, 24; Rosita D. Blando, 54; Ronald A. Sitoy, 21; John Francis B. Aguilar, 19; Jordan M. Jainar, 19; Deogracias J. Cane, 23; Ashbel C. Edaño, 19; and Reyneil Jim V. Perez, 22. They are asked to post bail of P80,000 each (US$1,633) or a P960,000 (US$19,591), clearly beyond their means. Their detention is now more than a month.

Recently they have been charged with violation of the child abuse law Republic Act 7619 because they “induced” a minor, a 16-year old resident, to join in the barricade, a charge they deny. They are in jail with common criminals.

“Since the contested land is privately owned the land claimant should have gone to court to get a demolition order. Instead the local government opted to use presidential decree 1096 of former Dictator Marcos requiring government building permit for house construction which requires a land title to be issued. Obviously squatter families cannot obtain such a permit from city hall,” according to UPA.

Under Marcos, Minister for Public Works and Highways Jesus Hipolito instructed through a July 13, 1984 memorandum to government agencies not to use PD 1096 to demolish squatter houses.

Forced evictions in connection with international events such as summits and conferences violate the guidelines contained in General Comment No. 7, Forced Evictions (1997) issued by the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. The committee is the treaty body of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights which the Philippine government has ratified. The September 29, 2006 forced evictions also violated the instruction of the United Nations Secretary General Kofi Anan which is contained in his Forced Evictions: Analytical Report (1993). -30-

Hard quest for a living space

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October 14, 2006

Hard quest for a living space

It is not the house that counts, nor the comfort of it that is more important but survival.

Alberta Abenaza, now a widow and mother of 7, had been living for 26 years under the San Andres Bridge 1, along Estero Tripa de Gallina, a jurisdiction of Brgy. 734 and 735 in Manila.

“Kaya tumagal dito, ang hanapbuhay nasa bubong lang,” said Abenaza who is now 46 and supports her family through rug making.

Abenaza left her distant village in Leyte at the age of 11 to find a better life in Manila. Soon after graduating in High School, she was married to Everjisto, a jeepney driver. With meager income, her growing family found it hard to rent a place so they decided to build a shanty under the bridge.

“Nung una ayaw ko kasi madilim, mabaho, maingay, malalim ang ilog at walang maapakang lupa. Humanap kami ng mauupahan pero isang taon lang nasunugan kami kaya ito na ang naging bahay namin,” Abenaza said.

Some 54 families are now living under the bridge. Most of the residents are vendors along Osmeña Highway. Being in constant threat of demolitions, the community organized the Samahan ng mga Taga Ilalim ng Tulay Neighborhood Association (SAINT).

“Karamihan dito katulad din ng kwento ng buhay ko. Nangangarap din kaming mabigyan ng pabahay. Maiahon sa ilalim ng tulay, subukan ang buhay sa taas. Dito para kaming dagang nagtatago sa lungga,” said Abenaza, president of SAINT.

Since 2001, Abenaza have written various letters asking for relocation assistance from the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC), Presidential Action Center, National Housing Authority, Department of Social Welfare, Department of Public Works and Highway, Urban Settlement Office, and Manila City officials.

“Kung meron pa silang konting awa, umaasa pa rin kami hanggang ngayon na mabigyan ng pag-asa upang mabago at maitaguyod ang aming pamilya sa maayos na pamumuhay,” said Abenaza.

The residents along Estero Tripa de Gallina have been given until October 20, 2006 to evict their shanties, according to a Notice of Eviction issued by the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) September 19.

SAINT sought the help of Urban Poor Associates (UPA) to save their dwellings from demolition in the absence of relocation program as stipulated in the Urban Development and Housing Act (UDHA).

“Cities do not comply fully with the content of section 28 of the law that says there should be no demolition without adequate relocation,” according to a research conducted by the UPA, a non-government organization working with urban poor issues. “Hence, the endless cycle of homelessness.”

In the aftermath of typhoon Milenyo, after dismantling the “killer” billboards, the government wants to immediately remove informal settlers near esteros, creeks and rivers to prevent flooding during the rainy season.

The Esteros Program of the HUDCC shows that 21,047 families will have to be relocated but it has a funding requirement of 2,253 Million Pesos. -30-

Group comes to the aid of families in toxic relocation site

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October 8, 2006

Group comes to the aid of families in toxic relocation site

Heaven sent angels in Southville.

These are the words that describe how hundreds of afflicted families felt after receiving medical services and free medicines from non-government organizations yesterday at the Southville Housing Project in Cabuyao, Laguna.

"Uso dito ang skin diseases, sore eyes, diarrhea, lagnat, ubo, sipon, pneumonia at sakit sa puso. Malaking ginhawa sa amin ang medical mission na ito," said Ester Terencio, president of the Urban Poor Southville Association Inc. (UPSAI).

Shortly after typhoon Milenyo devastated newly built houses in Southville, the Grassroots Women Empowerment Center (GWEC) organized medical teams composed of doctors from Caloocan Medical Society and dentists from Emilio Aguinaldo College.

"The government has relocated the poor families into a site with limited access to clean water, clinics, electricity, schools and transport. Hence, widespread diseases has made these people in dire need of medical services," said Lee Salamanca of GWEC.

Tthe Ecowaste Coalition, a group of environmentalists, has recently categorized Southville as a "toxic relocation site" since it is located only a few meters from a hazardous dumpsite.

Southville Housing Project is an instant community of 7,000 families relocated from Metro Manila railway tracks to give way for the Northrail-Southrail Linkage Project (NSLP). It may soon add another 10,000 households with the development of a 100-hectare Southville Housing Project II.

"The enormous numbers of displaced railway families in a site, most of them below the poverty line, is economically and socially unsound. The heightened hunger and poverty brought on by uprooting poor families from their source of income can only be viewed as a disaster in the making," said the Urban Poor Associates (UPA), a non-governent organization working with urban poor issues.

His Eminence Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales was able to publicize the issue but he have not been able to influence government to take decisive steps in solving the problem. "Perhaps our appeals for the poor families have fallen on deaf ears," the UPA added. -30-

A mother’s tale of love, sacrifice and survival

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A mother’s tale of love, sacrifice and survival

5 October 2006, Quezon City. When she left Maguindanao six months ago, fleeing a series of unfortunate events, Salama Polayagan hoped to start over abroad. Like many Muslim women in her place, she chose a country at the Middle East that not only shared her religion but also filled promises of golden opportunities. “Para mabuhay at makapagtapos ng pag-aaral ang mga anak ko. Matulungan ko ang magulang ko. Para hindi na mahirap ang buhay namin,” she says.

Salama’s mother died after giving birth to her on a mountainous village of Matanog, Maguindanao. She stopped schooling after Grade 2. At the age of 17, she was married to a farmer. She had 10 children but one of them died due to high fever. In 1996, while giving birth in a regional hospital, her 1-year paralyzed husband succumbed to heart disease and ulcer. During an all-out-war against Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) the year 2000, the military forces burned down her house. Her family moved to safety in Parang, Maguindanao where she began buying vegetables to resell back home. “Mahirap ang buhay sa probinsya. Isang beses lang kaming kumain, kanin at gulay, minsan kamoteng kahoy,” Salama recalls.

So with a salary of 45 Dinar per month, Salama left to work as a domestic helper in Kuwait last April 3, 2006. The first month, she worked with different employers. Soon she met “Badria”, an employer who taught her everything about housekeeping. All is well but after 1 month, Badria started maltreating Salama. “Araw-araw binubugbog ako kahit wala akong kasalanan. Sinusuntok, tinutusok ang mata at tenga. Sinusubsob at sinasampal. Nagtiis ako kasi baka magbago pa siya,” Salama says.

One early morning in July, while Badria was sleeping, Salama escaped through a window of the three-story house. She headed to the Philippine Embassy. Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) brought her to Mubarak Al Kabeer Hospital for a medical examination. “Kung hindi ako aalis sa amo ko, baka mabaliw ako. Sumasakit ang ulo ko. Nangitim ang braso ko. Nahihirapan din akong huminga, kumikirot ang opera ko,” says Salama.

After 2 months at the Embassy, Salama received her Travel Document valid in lieu of her passport. Penniless, she sought the help of her relatives in an urban poor community in Manila as she goes back to her home province.

According to Salama, the story of some 300 more women Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) still seeking refuge at the Embassy is one of hard luck, occasional violence and stubborn survival.

“Forced migration not only to cities but also to wealthy countries is not a massive flow moved by hope, but rather a desperate struggle to stay alive,” according to the Urban Poor Associates (UPA), a non-government organization working with urban poor issues. “This is a phenomenon which is provoking the rural communities through the massive flight of their most promising men and women, the profound destruction of their culture and the disintegration of their families. There is a need to attack the deep causes of these problems and restitute the hope of poor people.”

Today, still nursing her injuries, Salama would still want to stake her life and limb on an uncertain future in another country. “Mahirap ang buhay sa probinsya,” she says. -30-

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