Squatting in the Philippines

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A squatter settlement in Manila in 2007 Squatter settlement in Manila Philippines (3486250858).jpg
A squatter settlement in Manila in 2007
Shacks at Payatas dumpsite in 2010 Payatas (Commonwealth Avenue, Quezon City)(2010-08-23) 2.jpg
Shacks at Payatas dumpsite in 2010

Urban areas in the Philippines such as Metro Manila, Metro Cebu, and Metro Davao have large informal settlements. The Philippine Statistics Authority defines a squatter, or alternatively "informal dwellers", as "One who settles on the land of another without title or right or without the owner's consent whether in urban or rural areas". [1] Squatting is criminalized by the Urban Development and Housing Act of 1992 (RA 7279), also known as the Lina Law. There have been various attempts to regularize squatter settlements, such as the Zonal Improvement Program and the Community Mortgage Program. In 2018, the Philippine Statistics Authority estimated that out of the country's population of about 106 million, 4.5 million were homeless.

Contents

Overview

The Philippine Statistics Authority has defined a squatter as "One who settles on the land of another without title or right or without the owner's consent whether in urban or rural areas". [1] Local media and journalists refer to squatters euphemistically as "informal settlers." [2] [3]

Out of the country's population of about 106 million, an estimated 4.5 million were homeless according to the Philippine Statistics Authority; of these 3 million were in the capital Manila. [4] [5] Causes of homelessness include poverty and destruction of homes due to natural calamities [6] and climate change. [7]

The growth of homelessness and squatting in urban areas are linked to internal migration from poorer regions. Rural poverty, a major factor in internal migration, has been rooted on various factors, including farmer dispossession and land grabbing, violent suppression of peasant movements, decline of the agricultural sector, and the deterioration of living conditions in rural areas. [8]

Residents of informal settlements tend to experience poor living conditions and may lack access to basic services as water, sanitation, and health care. [9]

History

Squatters build makeshift houses called "barong-barong" on unused land. [10] The occupations increased after World War II as people moved from rural to urban areas. [11] In Cebu City, colonies of squatters emerged after the city was bombed to ruin. By 1974, it was reported that Cebu City had 34 informal settlements and by 1985, it was estimated that there were 232,520 squatters, which had comprised 40% of the city's population. [12] In Davao City, there was a scramble for land previously owned by Japanese people and these occupations were legalized in the 1950s by the government. By 1968, there were an estimated 75,000 squatters living in informal settlements and inner-city slums. [13] At the Port of Manila, land was reclaimed in the 1950s in Tondo and quickly occupied by squatters. By 1968, there were over 20,000 households in the informal settlement. [14] Elsewhere in Manila, parks and military land were occupied. [14] The Zone One Tondo Organization (ZOTO) was set up in 1970 to represent squatter interests in Tondo and campaign for land rights. [15] It inspired other groups and the Ugnayan ng Maralitang Tagalunsod (UMT) was founded in 1976 to campaign for squatters on a national scale. [15] The first mass eviction on record in Manila was in 1951 and the largest took place in late 1963 and early 1964 when 90,000 people were displaced. [16] : 43  By 1978, there were estimated to be two million squatters in Manila, occupying 415 different locations. [16] : 77 

President Ferdinand Marcos announced martial law in December 1972 and by 1975 he had introduced a decree criminalizing squatting in an attempt to stop the expansion of informal settlements. [15] [17] The dictatorship often forcibly relocated squatters to sites 30 or 40 km outside cities. First Lady Imelda Marcos wanted to beautify Manila and therefore evicted thousands of squatters when the city hosted the 1974 Miss Universe Pageant and the 1976 meeting of the IMF and World Bank. [18] She commented in 1982 that "professional squatters [were] plain land-grabbers taking advantage of the compassionate society". [16] : 46  The government attempted to resettle the squatters elsewhere, only for the squatters to return to their homes which were near where they worked, so the Zonal Improvement Program (ZIP) was started in the late 1970s. Slums were then upgraded in situ: The occupations were regularized and supplied with sanitation and electricity. [15] [19] There were squatters at the U.S. Naval Base Subic Bay and the Clark Air Base in the 1980s. [20] In this time, the government began to forcibly resettle squatters again, moving them to places such as Bagong Silang in Caloocan and Payatas in Quezon City. Resistance to evictions fed into the opposition to the Marcos dictatorship and resulted in the 1986 People Power Revolution. [15]

Mural by artist Seb Toussaint in a slum in Manila Freedom-STW.jpg
Mural by artist Seb Toussaint in a slum in Manila

The Community Mortgage Program was set up in 1992, aiming to help low-income families transition from squatting to affordable housing. By 2001, around 106,000 families had found secure housing in over 800 separate communities. [21] : 54  In 1993, slums in Metro Manila were estimated to contain 2.39 million people, or 30.5 per cent of the area's total population and 706,185 people had been assisted by the ZIP. [19] Impoverished squatters lived on landfill sites such as Smokey Mountain and Payatas dumpsite, working as scavengers. [22] [23]

The urban poor organization Kalipunan ng Damayang Mahihirap (Kadamay, or Federation of Mutual Aid for the Poor) was formed on November 7, 1998, with Carmen "Nanay Mameng" Deunida elected as its first chair. [24] [25]

On January 12, 2000, informal settlers living along Circumferential Road 4 (C-4 Road) in Malabon City were forcibly removed from the area by local policemen, who were conducting a clearing operation to make way for the Camanava Mega-Flood Control project, and squatters who refused to cooperate were temporarily sent to the Malabon police station via dump trucks. Up to 93 squatters and policemen sustained injuries from the operation. [26]

Kadamay carried out the Pandi housing project occupation in March 2017, which is considered a part of the global Occupy movement with its opposition to social and economic inequality. [27] [28] The occupation of over 5,000 housing units built by the National Housing Authority (NHA) in Bulacan was at first condemned by President Rodrigo Duterte and then regularized. [29] [30] The group then attempted to squat NHA property in Rodriguez, Rizal, the following year and in 2019 it picketed the NHA offices in Quezon City. [31] [32]

The number of informal settlers in the Philippines is believed by government officials to have increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. [33]

The Urban Development and Housing Act of 1992 (RA 7279), also known as the Lina Law after its proponent Joey Lina, criminalized squatting yet discouraged evictions except in certain cases, such as when the occupation was carried out by "professional squatters and squatting syndicates". [34] [35] The Marcos decree which had previously outlawed squatting was annulled by the Anti-Squatting Law Repeal Act of 1997 (RA 8368). [17]

The Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor, created on December 8, 1986, through Executive Order No. 82, is tasked to formulate policy and implement programs for the urban poor. [36]

The Community Mortgage Program, set up following the People Power Revolution (EDSA I) of 1988, [21] : 56–7  aims to help low-income families who are squatting find secure tenure by establishing community associations to buy land, set up infrastructure, and build houses. [21]

The Philippine Commission on Human Rights recognizes adequate housing as a basic human right and provides guidance for the humane treatment of informal settlers. [37]

In 2021, the Philippine House of Representatives declared a housing emergency in the country through House Resolution 1677. The resolution called on the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development and other government agencies to address the housing gap by providing housing to the homeless population and to families living in informal settlements. [38] The department estimated the government's housing backlog at 6.5 million units in 2022. [39]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Squatting</span> Unauthorized occupation of property

Squatting is the action of occupying an abandoned or unoccupied area of land or a building, usually residential, that the squatter does not own, rent or otherwise have lawful permission to use. The United Nations estimated in 2003 that there were one billion slum residents and squatters globally. Squatting occurs worldwide and tends to occur when people find empty buildings or land to occupy for housing. It has a long history, broken down by country below.

Historically, squatting occurred in the United States during the California Gold Rush and when colonial European settlers established land rights. There was squatting during the Great Depression in Hoovervilles and also during World War II. Shanty towns returned to the US after the Great Recession (2007–2009) and in the 2010s, there were increasing numbers of people occupying foreclosed homes using fraudulent documents. In some cases, a squatter may be able to obtain ownership of property through adverse possession.

Slums are traditionally described as dense urban settlements, usually displaying characteristics such as crowded and compact housing units, informal delivery of utilities, and unofficial recognition by local government. In the Philippines, residents of slum areas are commonly referred to as "squatters" and have historically been subject to relocation or forced demolition. With a steadily growing metropolitan area, Metro Manila is subject to a densifying population of slum dwellers—a 2014 article states that Manila has an estimated 4 million people living in slums, out of a total population of 21.3 million.

In early March 2017, thousands of members of the group Kalipunan ng Damayang Mahihirap and other informal settlers illegally occupied an idle housing project of the National Housing Authority (Philippines) (NHA), in Pandi, Bulacan, in the Philippines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Squatting in Nigeria</span> Occupation of unused land or derelict buildings in Nigeria

Squatting in Nigeria refers to a person who is not the owner, taking possession of land or an empty house. Squatters migrate from the countryside to informal settlements in cities such as Abuja, Port Harcourt and in particular Lagos. Lagos had a population of over 14 million people in 2019 and many slums, including Makoko.

Squatting in Slovenia is the occupation of derelict buildings or unused land without the permission of the owner. Housing was illegally built from the 1960s onwards and informal settlements have been set up by Romani people or poor immigrants. In the capital Ljubljana, there is the autonomous zone of Metelkova and the Rog self-managed social centre was evicted in early 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Squatting in Zimbabwe</span>

Squatting in Zimbabwe is the settlement of land or buildings without the permission of the owner. Squatting began under colonialism. After Zimbabwe was created in 1980, peasant farmers and squatters disputed the distribution of land. Informal settlements have developed on the periphery of cities such as Chitungwiza and the capital Harare. In 2005, Operation Murambatsvina evicted an estimated 700,000 people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Squatting in Peru</span> Occupation of unused land or derelict buildings in Peru

Squatting in Peru is the occupation of unused or derelict buildings or land without the permission of the owner. From the 1940s onwards, land invasions created shanty towns which were first called barriadas and later pueblos jóvenes. They were initially repressed, then the government decided upon toleration and by 1998 it was estimated 2.5 million inhabitants were living in this way in the capital Lima. There are also slum tenements in the centre known as solares or tugurios, and a "Wall of Shame" has been built to separate rich and poor areas of the city. During the COVID-19 pandemic, an increase in the occupation of UNESCO World Heritage Sites such as Caral and the Nazca Lines was reported.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Squatting in Namibia</span> Occupation of unused land or derelict buildings without the permission of the owner

Squatting in Namibia is the occupation of unused land or derelict buildings without the permission of the owner. European settlers arrived in the nineteenth century and acquired land, leaving only 38 per cent of land in indigenous hands by 1902. This led to squatting and the Herero Wars, which ended with the Herero and Namaqua genocide. After Namibian independence in 1990, squatting increased as people migrated to the cities and land reform became a goal for those who had participated in the liberation struggle. By 2020, 401,748 people were living in 113 informal settlements across the country. Squatting continues to be regulated by the Squatters Proclamation of 1985; a challenge to this law was dismissed by the High Court in 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Squatting in Ghana</span>

Squatting in Ghana is the occupation of unused land or derelict buildings without the permission of the owner. Informal settlements are found in cities such as Kumasi and the capital Accra. Ashaiman, now a town of 100,000 people, was swelled by squatters. In central Accra, next to Agbogbloshie, the Old Fadama settlement houses an estimated 80,000 people and is subject to a controversial discussion about eviction. The residents have been supported by Amnesty International, the Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions and Shack Dwellers International.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Squatting in Vanuatu</span>

Squatting in the Republic of Vanuatu is the occupation of unused land or derelict buildings without the permission of the owner. After independence in 1980, informal settlements developed in cities such as Luganville and the capital Port Vila. Land in Vanuatu is either custom land owned by indigenous peoples or public land owned by the republic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Squatting in Chile</span> Occupation of unused land or derelict buildings without the permission of the owner

Squatting in Chile is the occupation of unused land or derelict buildings without the permission of the owner. From the 1960s onwards, informal settlements known as callampas were permitted although there were also evictions such as the massacre of Puerto Montt in 1969. In the 1970s, the government of Salvador Allende encouraged occupations, then following the coup d'état, the military junta repressed squatting. Callampas then became known as campamentos.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Squatting in Brazil</span>

Squatting in Brazil is the occupation of unused or derelict buildings or land without the permission of the owner. After attempting to eradicate slums in the 1960s and 1970s, local governments transitioned to a policy of toleration. Cities such as Recife, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo have large informal settlements known as favelas. A more recent phenomenon is the occupation of buildings in city centres by organised groups. In rural areas across the country, the Landless Workers' Movement (MST) arranges large land occupations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Squatting in Iran</span> The occupation of unused land or derelict buildings without the permission of the owner

Squatting in Iran mostly occurs around the major cities, as rural migrants move to urban centres. From the 1950s onwards shanty towns have been set up and inhabitants are known as "koukhnishinan". Following the Iranian Revolution of 1979, squatter settlements increased, with the state sometimes evicting and sometimes legalizing the areas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Squatting in Sudan</span> The occupation of unused land or derelict buildings without the permission of the owner

Squatting in Sudan is defined as the "acquisition and construction of land, within the city boundaries for the purpose of housing in contradiction to Urban Planning and Land laws and building regulations." These informal settlements arose in Khartoum from the 1920s onwards, swelling in the 1960s. By the 1980s, the government was clearing settlements in Khartoum and regularizing them elsewhere. It was estimated that in 2015 that were 200,000 squatters in Khartoum, 180,000 in Nyala, 60,000 in Kassala, 70,000 in Port Sudan and 170,000 in Wad Madani.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Squatting in Bangladesh</span>

Squatting in Bangladesh occurs when squatters make informal settlements known as "bastees" on the periphery of cities such as Chittagong, Dhaka and Khulna. As of 2013, almost 35 per cent of Bangladesh's urban population lived in informal settlements.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Squatting in Nepal</span>

Squatting in Nepal occurs when people live on land or in buildings without the valid land ownership certificate. The number of squatters has increased rapidly since the 1980s, as a result of factors such as internal migration to Kathmandu and civil war. In March 2021, the chairperson of the Commission on Landless Squatters stated that all landless squatters would receive ownership certificates within the following eighteen months.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Squatting in Angola</span> Occupation of unused land or derelict buildings in Angola without permission of owner

Squatting in Angola occurs when displaced peoples occupy informal settlements in coastal cities such as the capital Luanda. The Government of Angola has been criticized by human rights groups for forcibly evicting squatters and not resettling them.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Squatting in Taiwan</span> Illegal occupation of property in Taiwan

Squatting in Taiwan is the occupation of unused land or derelict buildings without the permission of the owner. Squatting was fuelled by migrants from China from the 1950s onwards and in addition cities such as the capital Taipei were swelled by internal migrants from the countryside. In order to create Daan Forest Park, 12,000 squatters were evicted. The informal settlement at Treasure Hill has been recognized as cultural heritage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Squatting in Myanmar</span>

Following the 1962 coup d'état, Myanmar was ruled by a military dictatorship under which squatters were often evicted. In 2016, Aung San Suu Kyi led a civilian government and the first major eviction of squatters took place the following year at Hlegu Township, located northeast of Yangon; these squatters claimed they had bought their land legally.

References

  1. 1 2 "Squatter (or informal dwellers)". Philippine Statistics Authority. Archived from the original on December 16, 2021. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
  2. ↑ "From 'Squatters' Into 'Informal Settlers'". Philippine Human Rights Information Center. Pinyahan, Quezon City. September 6, 2014. Archived from the original on November 23, 2018. Retrieved March 2, 2016.
  3. ↑ Shahani, Lila Ramos (April 10, 2012). "Manila's biggest challenge". Views. Rappler . Oranbo, Pasig. Archived from the original on March 1, 2016. Retrieved March 2, 2016.
  4. ↑ Chandran, Rina (March 28, 2018). "Manila's homeless set to move into more empty homes if official handover delayed". Reuters. Archived from the original on October 19, 2021. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
  5. ↑ Fealtman, Erica (July 24, 2020). "The Impact of COVID-19 on Homelessness in the Philippines". Borgen Magazine. Archived from the original on June 27, 2021. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
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  7. ↑ "CCC on World Habitat Day: Enable Sustainable and Climate-Adaptive Systems for Housing Sector". Climate Change Commission. October 5, 2020. Archived from the original on June 24, 2021. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
  8. ↑ Pagaduan-Araullo, Carol (October 7, 2010). "No Titles". Bulatlat. Retrieved February 17, 2023.
  9. ↑ Silverio, Ina Alleco (February 10, 2012). "World Bank funds project to address housing crisis as demolitions continue". Bulatlat. Retrieved April 15, 2023.
  10. ↑ "Manila: National capital, Philippines". Encyclopædia Britannica. Archived from the original on January 18, 2017. Retrieved January 17, 2017.
  11. ↑ Poethig, Richard P. (1969). "The Squatter Community: A dead end or a way up?". Philippine Sociological Review. 17 (3/4): 132–135. ISSN   0031-7810. JSTOR   23892169. Archived from the original on December 17, 2021. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
  12. ↑ Thirkell, Allyson (September 1994). "The informal land market in Cebu City, the Philippines; accessibility, settlement development and residential segregation". A Thesis Submitted for the Degree of Doctor Philosophy at the London School of Economics and Political Science, University of London: 72–73 – via CORE.
  13. ↑ Feldman, Kerry (1975). "Squatter Migration Dynamics in Davao City, Philippines". Urban Anthropology. 4 (2): 123–144. ISSN   0363-2024. JSTOR   40552681. Archived from the original on December 16, 2021. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
  14. 1 2 Jackson, J. C. (1974). "Urban Squatters in Southeast Asia". Geography. 59 (1): 24–30. ISSN   0016-7487. JSTOR   41414282. Archived from the original on December 16, 2021. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
  15. 1 2 3 4 5 Karaos, Anna Marie A. (1993). "Manila's Squatter Movement: A Struggle for Place and Identity". Philippine Sociological Review. 41 (1/4): 71–91. ISSN   0031-7810. JSTOR   23898158. Archived from the original on December 16, 2021. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
  16. 1 2 3 Hardoy, Jorge Enrique; Satterthwaite, David (1989). Squatter citizen: Life in the urban third world. London: Earthscan. ISBN   9781853830204.
  17. 1 2 "Republic Act No. 8368: An act repealing presidential decree no. 772 entitled 'Penalizing squatting and other similar acts'" (PDF). Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC). Archived (PDF) from the original on June 28, 2021. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
  18. ↑ Berner, ErhardJ. (September 2000). "Poverty Alleviation and the Eviction of the Poorest: Towards Urban Land Reform in the Philippines". International Journal of Urban and Regional Research. 24 (3): 554–566. doi: 10.1111/1468-2427.00265 .
  19. 1 2 Aiga, Hirotsugu; Umenai, Takusei (August 1, 2002). "Impact of improvement of water supply on household economy in a squatter area of Manila". Social Science & Medicine. 55 (4): 627–641. doi:10.1016/S0277-9536(01)00192-7. ISSN   0277-9536. PMID   12188468. Archived from the original on December 16, 2021. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
  20. ↑ The DISAM Journal of International Security Assistance Management. DISAM. 1988. p. 60. Archived from the original on December 16, 2021. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
  21. 1 2 3 Mitlin, Diana; Satterthwaite, David (2004). Empowering squatter citizen: Local government, civil society, and urban poverty reduction. London: Earthscan. ISBN   9781844071012.
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  25. ↑ "About Us". Kadamay. February 8, 2023. Retrieved November 28, 2023.
  26. ↑ Raymundo-Claveria, Gardhen (January 13, 2000). "Police clash with squatters; 93 hurt". Manila Standard . Kamahalan Publishing Corp. p. 4. Archived from the original on June 21, 2022. Retrieved June 21, 2022.
  27. ↑ Besana, Steven (February 3, 2020). "Beyond housing: The urban poor occupy movement in PH". People's Coalition on Food Sovereignty. Retrieved October 19, 2021.
  28. ↑ Dizon, Hazel M. (April 2019). "Philippine housing takeover: How the urban poor claimed their right to shelter" (PDF). Radical Housing Journal. 1 (1): 105–129. doi: 10.54825/LDXD9655 .
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  31. ↑ Lucasan, Athena (June 14, 2018). "Kadamay does it again, storm Rizal housing". The Manila Times . PNA. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
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  36. ↑ Medina, Marielle (December 8, 2016). "Did you know: Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Archived from the original on January 5, 2023. Retrieved January 5, 2023.
  37. ↑ "HRA (CHR IV No. A2011-003) On the Right to Adequate Housing and Humane Treatment of Informal Settlers" (PDF). Commission of Human Rights. 2018. Retrieved April 16, 2023.
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  39. ↑ Recuenco, Aaron (August 18, 2022). "Gov't housing backlog now at over 6.5M units". Manila Bulletin. Retrieved February 16, 2023.
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