Bill Seeks Pre-demolition Conference Before Eviction of Informal Settlers

Expressing grave concern over the violence that sometimes result to loss of lives, a lawmaker has initiated a move to make sure that demolition of dwellings or eviction activities affecting poor families are done in a just and humane manner.

Rep. Jose Christopher Y. Belmonte (6th District, Quezon City) is urging the passage of HB 5266 which prescribes a “mandatory procedure in the conduct of dismantling or eviction activities affecting the underprivileged and homeless families.”

Belmonte noted that Section 10, Article XIII of the 1987 Constitution provides that “Urban and rural poor dwellers shall not be evicted nor their dwellings demolished, except in accordance with law and in a just and humane manner.”

Republic Act 7279 known as the “Urban Development and Housing Act (UDHA) of 1992” stresses that eviction or demolition as a practice shall be discouraged and that certain requirement must first be complied with prior to said activities, he noted.

Under existing laws, Belmonte said that eviction or demolition may only be allowed (a) when persons or entities occupy danger zones, (b) when government infrastructure projects with available funding are about to be implemented, or (c) when there is a court order for eviction and demolition.

“Despite the provisions in the Constitution and the UDHA, violence still erupts during the conduct of evictions and demolitions of informal settler families, leading to instances of severe injuries and sometimes, loss of lives, not only among the ranks of policemen and demolition teams, but especially among the poor and vulnerable dwellers,” Belmonte said.

Moreover, he added, these instances of violence put the country in bad repute in the eyes of the international community as a signatory to various human rights covenants and agreements.

HB 5266, the authors stressed, seeks to institutionalize the conduct of a pre-demolition conference (PDC) or a consultation among all stakeholders and to strengthen the safeguards already provided under Section 28 of the UDHA.

“This measure aims to institutionalize one of the late Secretary Jesse Robredo’s legacies,” Belmonte stressed.

Belmonte recalled that on May 2, 2012, the late DILG Secretary issued a letter to the PNP directing then Chief PNP Nicanor Bartolome that in order to prevent violence from erupting during evictions and demolitions, a protocol must be strictly observed, including the conduct of a pre-demolition conference (PDC) among stakeholders and affected families.

He added that Sec. Robredo, on that same day, wrote Philippine Commission on Urban Poor (PCUP) Chairman Hernani Panganiban, requesting assistance with regard to his directives and indicated the role of PCUP in the implementation of the same.

Under HB 5266, pre-demolition conference must be conducted under the following conditions: 1) The local PNP designated as a full-time staff or personnel in charge of dismantling or eviction activities must be actively participate in the consultation process and their role clearly defined;

2) The following agencies must be represented during the PDC � the DILG, the DSWD, DPWH, NHA, PCUP, the Commission on Human Rights (CHR), the LGUs authorized to dismantle or evict, and various agencies;

3) The PDC shall be presided by the PCUP, which may call on the assistance of other agencies whenever necessary under the circumstances;

4) The details of the conference must be documented or recorded, summarizing the points of the agreements and disagreements arrived at, and copies of these must be provided to all stakeholders present; and

5) the PDC must be conducted not later that seventy-two (72) hours prior to the intended date or dismantling or eviction and in no case shall the conference be held within the same prescriptive period.

The measure also provides for the imposition of appropriate penalties under existing laws or the Revised Penal Code.

Source: House of Representatives Media Relations Service, Public Relations and Information Bureau