QC squatters get weekend break from demolition

After days of violent confrontations against members of a wrecking team, residents of a neighborhood in Quezon City got a weekend reprieve from demolition after agreeing to tear down their houses voluntarily . Radio dzBB reported the Quezon City court's sheriff gave the residents until Sunday to voluntarily remove their shanties from a lot in Mariana village in New Manila district. The report said the residents had asked authorities not to push through with Friday's demolition, because they would voluntarily dismantle their structures. At least 20 houses in the area are to be demolished. Tension gripped the neighborhood since Wednesday as violence marred the wrecking operation. At least 10 were injured in a confrontation between residents and members of demolition team Wednesday. On Thursday, residents exploded pillboxes to ward off the demolition team secured by police personnel. Early Friday, the residents blocked the streets and set up temporary shelters on the pavement. Many of the families slept on the streets while others slept on the nearby lot, using plywood and galvanized iron sheets as shelter. Many of the families said they have been occupying the contested lot area since the 1950s. However, the demotion operation has been undertaken based on a Quezon City court order. — LBG, GMANews.TV