Violent Evictions of Squatters in Metro Manila

The Forced Modifications of the Habitus of the Affected Inhabitants

Abstract

  Through the case studies on forced relocations of squatters in Metro Manila, this study raises a new perspective to grasp the class polarization of the urban bottom. Previous studies on squatters in Manila have illustrated the unique existence of labor and life in the areas. Although these studies deepened our understanding on squatters, a pitfall is that they emphasize the commonality rather than the increased diversity in a squatter’s life. Internal tensions and dynamics among squatters have been overlooked. However, the recent trends of the squatter policy, which enforces punishment rather than regulation against the poor, have caused polarization among squatters. This study is an ethnographic account of a violent demolition in a shantytown located at Quezon City. The affected households have suffered an uprooting experience and their new life at the relocation site is miserable due to the mismatch between their habitus fostered in a central squatter and the new context of no miscellaneous labors near mountain area. Forced relocations have further accelerated poverty of the poor. This study discusses polarization of squatters caused by the “war against the poor” policy from the case studies of violent demolitions.