Group pushes nat'l moratorium on demolition to avoid violent incidents

A nationwide moratorium on demolition is needed to avoid violent clashes such as the one that took place last Friday at a local community in Davao City where Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio punched a sheriff for enforcing a wrecking order, a labor group said Sunday. "The unfortunate and violent face-off between the mayor and sheriff Abe Andres could have been avoided if there was a national moratorium on demolitions," labor group Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) said in a statement. According to PM Secretary General Judy Ann Miranda, violent confrontations between informal settlers and the demolition teams are normal occurrence during wrecking operations that are enforced either by the court or by the government itself. "In many instances, hapless sheriffs – who have no power to either withhold or press on with the order coming from their bosses – end up getting the ire of angry residents – or in the case in Davao City – a punch in the face from a furious mayor. “As a party of ordinary laborers, we cannot help but sympathize with Sheriff Abe Andres for the humiliating experience he suffered from the hands of Mayor Duterte-Carpio. Yet we also recognize the firm resolve of the mayor in addressing the problem of her constituents in an appropriate manner and to prevent the expected outbreak of violence," Miranda said. In fact, Miranda said, “minus the disposition for brutality, all local government officials should have the kind of social instinct that Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio showed." The PM, together with other groups under the Kampanya para sa Makataong Pamumuhay (KAMP), has been urging the Palace since last year to declare a moratorium on demolitions, evictions and foreclosures on informal settlers while a new comprehensive housing policy is not yet in place. “If the masang Pinoy is really his boss, President Benigno Aquino III should possess the political will of Mayor Sara. The President, in fact, neither needs a fist nor a gun to stop violent demolitions but just a pen for an Executive Order declaring a moratorium," Miranda said. Also, PM cited a recent exchange of words between Makati City Mayor Jejomar Erwin Binay Jr. and Department of Interior and Local Government Secretary (DILG) Jessie Robredo when violent confrontations flared up during the demolition operation at the Laperal compound in Guadalupe district. Mayor Duterte-Carpio faces separate investigations by the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) and the DILG over the punching incident. Several demolition operations had also ended up in violence and resulted in the displacement informal settlers. — Jerbert Briola/LBG, GMA News