Statistics
In a Nov. 20 statement, the Social Weather Station (SWS) said the prevalence of hunger rose from 13.9 to 16.9 percent in the first three quarters of 2006. Hunger actually worsened tremendously despite GNP growth of recent years, the statement said in reaction to the third quarter statistics that the countrys Gross National Product (GNP) has increased by 5.8 percent. The peso is at its strongest in six years at P49.195 to a dollar.
The independent think tank Ibon Foundation, on the other hand, said the governments poverty threshold set at P33.72 ($0.68) per day per person is incredibly low.
In a statement on July 31, Ibon said the daily cost of living in the National Capital Region (NCR) has reached P666.77 ($13.55) or P366.77 ($7.45) higher than the workers minimum wage of P300 ($6.098). Unemployed workers numbered 4.15 million.
With rising cost of living and low wages in the country, more and more Filipino families are becoming poor. Ibon estimated that almost 83 percent or 8 out of 10 families are poor.
Housing Rights Violator
Aside from battling poverty and hunger, the people of Baseco have yet another pressing concern. They might lose their homes as soon as the privatization of the Manila North Harbor gets underway. Residents here said their community along the shore would be turned into a commercial district similar to that of Baywalk along Manila Bay. In fact, construction was underway when Bulatlat visited the place.
Baseco is only one of seven communities affected by the privatization of the Manila North Harbor. The urban poor group Kadamay (Kalipunan ng Damayang Mahihirap or Mutual Help Association of the Poor) estimated that about 849,000 individuals would be affected by the said government project.
Geneva-based Centre on Housing Rights and Eviction (COHRE) this year named the Philippines as one of three recipients of the Housing Rights Violator Award for their systematic violation of housing rights and continued failure to abide by their international legal obligations. Nigeria and Greece likewise received the dubious distinction.
COHRE said in a statement issued last Dec 5 that 145,000 individuals or 29,000 families from Metro Manila and Bulacan province have been evicted from their homes since early 2005 due to the rehabilitation of the Philippine National Railways, called the North Rail-South Rail Linkage Project. No less than 80,000 families (400,000 individuals) would be evicted and displaced by the project the largest government-initiated displacement of communities in the history of the Philippines.
Meanwhile, 3,000 people have been left homeless in Metro Cebu since September in preparation for the 12th ASEAN Summit to be hosted by the Philippines in January. Forty two families (210 people) were left homeless when their houses situated in front of the Shangri-la Mactan Island Resort and Spa in Mactan Island, were demolished by the police in preparation for the summit.
COHRE also reported that more than 600 homes were also demolished in Mandaue City and Lapu-lapu City since September 2006, also in preparation for the summit. Of the 600 families (3,000 people) rendered homeless by these demolitions, only 100 families were moved to a temporary relocation site. The temporary relocation site has no basic services such as electricity and water.
Each year, COHRE bestows its Housing Rights Violator Awards on three governments or public institutions guilty of particularly serious housing rights violations in the preceding year. COHRE has issued its Violator Awards since 2002.
2006: Davao Today's Year-End Series, Poverty
