Dear friends,
The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received disturbing information from Defend Job Philippines regarding the threats of a demolition drive affecting more than 5500 families, or 30000 people of San Roque, North Triangle, Quezon City. The aforesaid demolition and eviction drive for making way to the implementation of the Vertis North Project under the Quezon City Central Business District will expose the affected citizens to severe hardships while also endangering their livelihood and thereby pushing them into poverty.
CASE NARRATIVE:
The AHRC has learnt that together with the local Government of Quezon City, the National Housing Authority is threatening the residents of San Roque, North Triangle, Quezon City with eviction for making way to the implementation of the Vertis North Project under the Quezon City Central Business District. The residents were served several notices for eviction with last of them coming on May 31, 2013 which gave them a deadline of 30 days for moving out. The notice was issued by the Task Force for the Control, Prevention and Removal of Illegal Structures and Squatting of the Local government of Quezon City and was signed by the Officer in Charge Marlow Jacutin.
The notice marks the culmination of the process that began with the Ayala Land Inc. and National Housing Authority signing a joint venture agreement to develop the land for the Quezon City Central Business District on August 27, 2009. Ayala Land Inc. is supposed to construct forty five (45) towers that would accommodate commercial, condominium, hotels, retail shops and business process outsourcing establishments at a cost of P65 Billion. The project is also known as Vertis North Project. However, the land on which project is supposed to be built is home to around 5500 families who will be dislocated if it is implemented in its present form.
In order to push the project ahead, the company has engaged in massive demolition drives, both by violent means and those under the scheme of voluntary demolition that promises the affected families with a financial assistance worth P5000 and a better life in the relocation site since July 2010. One of the most violent of these demolitions came on September 23, 2010. A demolition contingent consisting of more than 700 members of Philippine National Police, 20 SWAT personnel, 20 soldiers, 4 trucks, 2 police dogs, 2 fire trucks and 2 bulldozer have descended on the community and violently demolished the homes of San Roque residents. The operation was met with stiff resistance with more than 4000 people making a human barricade to defend the community.
The living conditions of those affected by that demolition drive has merely deteriorated. The residents were relocated to two sites namely Kasiglahan Village and Southville 8-B. Both of them being far away from their workplaces, the livelihood and job opportunities of community members were very adversely affected. The relocation to a site lacking basic services has also interfered with the education of their children. Making the situation even worse, it has been documented that the monthly amortization under the usufruct or right to use agreement is soaring from P200 to P800 a month within 30 years
The relocation site in the Kasiglahan Village was later inundated with flood waters during the monsoon rain forcing more families into returning to Metro Manila. Several of them have come back even to their former places in San Roque, North Triangle. The worsening situation of those already displaced makes the fate of those falling prey to it in recent future clear enough. This is why they are collectively resisting against the proposed eviction. The local government, on the other hand has continued to harass the community residents and leaders. To terrorize them into agreeing to demolition and dislocation, it has also slapped criminal charges on the leaders of the September 23 Movement, Kalipunan ng Damayang Mahihirap and ANAKBAYAN merely for their resistance against the demolition and massive displacement.
It is in this light that the Local Government of Quezon City, the National Housing Authority and the Government of the Republic of the Philippines must be reminded that the planned eviction do not merely go against the democratic aspirations that development projects must have a human rights based perspective honouring the needs of those affected by them. Such acts also grossly violate the human rights of the community, particularly that of the right to adequate housing enshrined in Art. 11 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the protection of the home enshrined in Art. 17 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Furthermore, the criminalization against community leaders runs contrary to the internationally recognized human rights mechanisms including the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights Defenders which recognizes the right of each person to promote the realization of human rights and provides protection “of everyone, individually and in association with others, against any violence, threats, retaliation, de facto or de jure adverse discrimination, pressure or any other arbitrary action as a consequence of his or her legitimate exercise of” their rights as Human Rights Defenders.
SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please write to the authorities mentioned below demanding immediate intervention asking them to immediately stop threatening the community with demolition and displacement
.
The AHRC is also writing a separate letter to the Special Rapporteur on adequate housing and the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders seeking their intervention in this case.
To support this case, please click here: SEND APPEAL LETTER
SAMPLE LETTER
Dear ................,
PHILIPPINES: Immediately stop threatening a community with demolition and displacement
Name of the victims: Residents of San Roque, North Triangle, Quezon City
Alleged perpetrators: Authorities in the local Government of Quezon City and the National Housing Authority
Place of incident: San Roque, North Triangle, Quezon City.
I am writing this to you regarding the ongoing demolition drive in San Roque, North Triangle, Quezon City. I have learnt that together with the local Government of Quezon City, the National Housing Authority is threatening the residents of San Roque, North Triangle, Quezon City with eviction for making way to the implementation of the Vertis North Project under the Quezon City Central Business District. The residents were served several notices for eviction with last of them coming on May 31, 2013 which gave them a deadline of 30 days for moving out. The notice was issued by the Task Force for the Control, Prevention and Removal of Illegal Structures and Squatting of the Local government of Quezon City and was signed by the Officer in Charge Marlow Jacutin.
The notice marks the culmination of the process that began with the Ayala Land Inc. and National Housing Authority signing a joint venture agreement to develop the land for the Quezon City Central Business District on August 27, 2009. Ayala Land Inc. is supposed to construct forty five (45) towers that would accommodate commercial, condominium, hotels, retail shops and business process outsourcing establishments at a cost of P65 Billion. The project is also known as Vertis North Project. However, the land on which project is supposed to be built is home to around 5500 families who will be dislocated if it is implemented in its present form.
In order to push the project ahead, the company has engaged in massive demolition drives, both by violent means and those under the scheme of voluntary demolition that promises the affected families with a financial assistance worth P5000 and a better life in the relocation site since July 2010. One of the most violent of these demolitions came on September 23, 2010. A demolition contingent consisting of more than 700 members of Philippine National Police, 20 SWAT personnel, 20 soldiers, 4 trucks, 2 police dogs, 2 fire trucks and 2 bulldozer have descended on the community and violently demolished the homes of San Roque residents. The operation was met with stiff resistance with more than 4000 people making a human barricade to defend the community.
The living conditions of those affected by that demolition drive has merely deteriorated. The residents were relocated to two sites namely Kasiglahan Village and Southville 8-B. Both of them being far away from their workplaces, the livelihood and job opportunities of community members were very adversely affected. The relocation to a site lacking basic services has also interfered with the education of their children. Making the situation even worse, it has been documented that the monthly amortization under the usufruct or right to use agreement is soaring from P200 to P800 a month within 30 years
The relocation site in the Kasiglahan Village was later inundated with flood waters during the monsoon rain forcing and more families into returning to Metro Manila. Several of them have come back even to their former places in San Roque, North Triangle. The worsening situation of those already displaced makes the fate of those falling prey to it in recent future clear enough. This is why they are collectively resisting against the proposed eviction. The local government, on the other hand has continued to harass the community residents and leaders. To terrorize them into agreeing to demolition and dislocation, it has also slapped criminal charges on the leaders of the September 23 Movement, Kalipunan ng Damayang Mahihirap and ANAKBAYAN merely for their resistance against the demolition and massive displacement.
It is in this light that the Local Government of Quezon City, the National Housing Authority and the Government of the Republic of the Philippines must be reminded that the planned eviction don't merely go against the democratic aspirations that development projects must have a human rights based perspective honouring the needs of those affected by them. They also grossly violate the human rights of the community, particularly that of the right to adequate housing enshrined in Art. 11 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the protection of the home enshrined in Art. 17 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Furthermore, the criminalization against community leaders runs contrary to the internationally recognized human rights mechanisms including the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights Defenders which recognizes the right of each person to promote the realization of human rights and provides protection "of everyone, individually and in association with others, against any violence, threats, retaliation, de facto or de jure adverse discrimination, pressure or any other arbitrary action as a consequence of his or her legitimate exercise of" their rights as human rights defenders.
I, therefore, urge you to,
Ensure that the demolition drive is immediately stopped,
Ensure that the livelihood opportunities of the community members and education of their children is not adversely affected because of the Vertis North Project,
Launch a genuine dialogue with the community members for a building a consensus on a comprehensive development program which can address their as well as those of the whole country.
Ensure that the all criminal charges community members and their leaders for participating in the resistance to demolitions are withdrawn,
Ensure that the either the families relocated to Montalban, Rizal are provided with proper access to basic services and livelihood opportunities or they are rehabilitated to a suitable place.
Sincerely,
............
PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTERS TO:
1. Mr. Benigno Simeon Aquino III
President of the Republic
Malacañang Palace, JP Laurel St., San Miguel
Manila Philippines,
Fax: (+632) 742-1641 / 929-3968
Email: corres@op.gov.ph
2. Hon. Herbert M. Bautista
Mayor , Quezon City,
Address: City Hall, 3rd Floor, High-rise Building, Elliptical Road, Diliman, Quezon City
Telephone: 988-4242 locals 8300 to 8307, 924-3592
Telefax: 921-6750 (fax)
Email: mayor@quezoncity.gov.ph
3. Mr. Tadeo M. Palma
Secretary to the Mayor (Quezon City)
Address: City Hall, 3rd Floor, High-rise Building, Elliptical Road, Diliman, Quezon City
Telephone: 988-4242 locals 7420 / 8308 to 8311
Email: sectothemayor@quezoncity.gov.ph
4. Ms. Loretta Ann Rosales
Commission on Human Rights
SAAC Bldg., Commonwealth Avenue
U.P. Complex, Diliman
Quezon City
PHILIPPINES
Fax: +63 2 929 0102
E-mail: chair.rosales.chr@gmail.com
5. Corazon Juliano-Soliman
Secretary, Department of Social, Welfare and Development
Constitution Hills, Batasan Pambansa Complex,
Quezon City
PHILIPPINES
Tel/Fax: +63 (2) 931-81-91
6. Sec. Joel Rocamora
Lead Convener
National Anti-Poverty Commission
3rd Floor, Agricultural Training Institute Building
Elliptical Road, Diliman
Quezon City
PHILIPPINES
Fax: +63 2 927 9796 / 426 5249
Email: napc.gov@gmail.com
6. Mr. Marlowe Y. Jacutin
Head,
Task Force for the Control, Prevention and Removal of Illegal Structures and Squatting
6th Floor, Civic Center Building A, City Hall Compound
Quezon City
PHILIPPINES
copriss@quezoncity.gov.ph
7.Atty. Leila De Lima
Secretary, Department of Justice
Padre Faura St., Manila
Fax: (+632) 521-1614
Email: soj@doj.gov.ph
8. Atty. Chito m. Cruz
National Housing Authority
General Manager
Elliptical Road, Diliman, 1100, Quezon City
Website: www.nha.gov.ph
Tel. Nos.: 921-7828/922-2460
9. Hon. Hernani B. Panganiban,
Chairman/CEO
Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor
Office of the Chairman
Telefax: 410-46-91
Add: 4th floor, DHC Bldg. 1115 EDSA, Project 7, Quezon City 1105
Email of the Executive Assistant: jaimevarela1015@yahoo.com
Thank you
Hunger Alerts Programme
Right to Food Programme (foodjustice@ahrc.asia)
Asian Human Rights Commission (ua@ahrc.asia)
