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    Squatter Migration Dynamics in Davao City

    Uploaded by

    Jason Villa
    ertyergreg

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF or read online from Scribd
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    Squatter Migration Dynamics in Davao City, Philippines’ Kerry Feldman Department of Aavrropoloay University of Alaska, Anchorege ABSTRACT: The number of urban squates in she developing world i meres ABSTRACT peat of he pane! roan populations ten detobing Cor ing tte corsn uncestancig he yams of the urban sauatr Braces co acemrory patter once squats reath af urban sE1NS fete ste of Teas aeeady tnptearant phys reason ne ofom since te late ras include cea 406 ce ore ancormtonte general churacieiz0d as 2 condition wnt orale reneneh has wndeated sat many, so4et ae coronng communes, populated By, vemard MODE an Sta ero eg wo are neverates grates wmprowing & F018) sah are extremely Soe ion ot ye asocstely sucked in any devtioing county esti. 8 roe rauroansmgiatory pater of ready etbiuned savers 2 nee ornate win Bae inate of upward mobANy, O98 2B a aie of squatters sm Daa Cal wich attenors to deme sate susie Sabian rated to rvgraion patterns and adaptive abl 9 cation ee a smu te fr Daven Cay she sauaTet Dom et fn eo sof urban deay Bu of» postive growth potential for Ihe cy Introduction ‘sical tctor in vrban ite todey concer inra-city migration patterns En ee ne the won ate atemps 0 contol the flow of Sore a regent rw pater hough “del fr whom” 62 Peoi n accord wi semposee general encountered in such efforts the de mete. he maban squatter phenomenon. Acity an operationalize erin cosy throug alors ich as zoning procedures ony if the Fact ro regarding land uge quater, by defistion, are those 4 ws! SQUATTER MIGRATION DYNAMICS 125 as Pbm ext eden ine a tat in ede fe | te “iy” comprised of forest ud reaneea h boundaries of ane read gations” proposed forthe squatter problem arene without much de ‘Squatter Locations teveatts Quite often, all have simply been lumped uni heading “squat. , ae dBBroximstaly 17 major squatter settlements of varying sire in {er""and no further attempt at differentiation is made eau ie tie of ur research om January August 1972, FoF aa resent search etfort was aimed at answering the Soa inary squatter sen) eae a in the northern suburban ares, and 3 vial igi Gted 10 the above problems: (1) Are ther ender stew Y are in the futher satus ae sample is composed of 431 households Sal miratory patterns of squatters within the ey vag generat een eiing in both innerety and ohuages North of the pabiacion or ety. sauation mony cotrated with these paners? (3) Can thegeen ccna | ‘trate. The lca names of thee eaten, are utilized in this report Eee eee ota ager env severe trends? No Innercty squatter settlements: “Carpenter 126 URBAN ANTHROPOLOGY Vol. 421, 1p ‘« mote complete picture of the social and demographic factors of squat life in Davao City wit be available when Robert and Beverly Hackenberg of yo University of Colorado publish the results oftheir 19731975 field work, The Present paper owes much to the earlier theoretical formulations of the Hees berg, which grew out of several years of continuous esearch in Davao City Significance of the Problem Savatting is sociocultural phenomenon involving people who migrate to 8 terstorial space not legally theirs. The analysis involved in the proliferation of Sauatting in the Philippines often ignores the phenomenon that once saustie migrants reach an urbin destination, their migratory experience invatably con, finues within the city. No prior concentrated effort has been given to the de covery of migration patterns of Philippine squatters in their urban environ ment.* although there s 8 growing body of literature documenting the problene related to squatter settlements once these invasions have proven successful. The impression given by bewildered government officials in Manila as well a i Davao City is that impoverished squatters seem to move randomly around ay, Settling wherever relative security fram police harassment exists. However, only detailed information on intraurban movements of squatters can adequately val date such a hypothesis of random selectivity. Such information for the Philip. pines has heretofore been lacking, lotraurban migratory data were therefore sought from our sample of 431 households located both within the innercity and suburban arees of Daveo City? As shall be demonstrated from an analysis of these data, erocal sage. economic variables are, in fact, related to the movement of squatters throughout the city, indicating thet random selectivity is an inadequate explanation of where households ae located. Regarding security from police harassment, only two of our sample orea, Boongon {sample W = 69 households) and Lanang (sample N = 35 households), faced the threat of immediate eviction at the time of our study. In a third area, Buhangin (sample W = §9 households), the inhabitants undergo periodic contro: tations with the police concerning eviction but a united show of armed strength always proves tao intimidating to police officials and the evietion attempt is di Continued. Thus, 36% of our total household sample was not free from serious forced eviction attempts at the time of our study. The remaining households all live with the knowledge that at any time they might face such a possiblity sing? RO area is totally secure in its hold on the land, Security from eviction attempts is, undoubtedly, a factor in determining the destination of movers, but it doe Rot appear to be the most erucial variable determining the selection of a home oo) SQUATTER MIGRATION DYNAMICS 127 In rejecting the null hypothesis that random selectivity is significantly in: rolved in the movement of squatters throughout the city, another explanation, inl be offered 10 account for one of the Most significant move patterns of the duster population. ‘squatter Suburbanization Hypothesis In deciding upon a location in which to reside in Davao City, the squatter has two general options: an innercity Sum atea or a peripheral suburban area. Fagure 1 presents a diagram of the options. The areas designated as suburban are found along the highway that runs north and south along the coastal shoreline, ‘extending in both of these directions trom the city. The majority of squatter settlements are found north of the city, ‘and our suburban sample was taken fiom these northerly areas. Of our sample of 8 separate squatter areas with 12 distinct squatter enclaves, 2 were from the inner city (Boongon, Carpenter), one was 2 transitional area between the inner-city and the peripheral areas (Obrero) and 5 were suburban enclaves located at varying distances fram the city center {G3jada, Lanang, LepuLapu, Buhangin, and Sasa), The squatter settlement most distant from the city center was Sasa, a relatively small settlement located 18 kilometers from the city center, Lepu-Lapu. Lanang, and Sasa are located very near the arean waters of Osva0 Gulf, with the homes of the Sase residents often built on stilts over the shallow shoreline water. All sampled areas, with the exception of some areas of Bojada and Buhangin, are subject to periodic flooding due to the tropical rains that inundate the city. Both innercity areas, as well as Obrero, Lapu-Lapu, and Lanang, were formerly swamps. In the early 1900s, the entire shoreline of the «ity wat composed primarily of these mangrove swamps. The residents of Lapu: Lapu attempted to resolve their swamp condition by piling several feet of saw: ust over the entire area. Motorized transport through this settlement is virtually impossible much of the year as a result, Still it isa desirable location for upward: Hy mobile squatters, asthe subsequent data will reveal To the casval observer, there appesrs no compelling reason for preferring any of these areas to the exclusion of the others. Each seemingly has its advan: tages and disadvantages. The cramped inner-city slum conditions of Boongon 7d Carpenter nevertheless offer easy access to city jabs, the markets, the cine- ‘ma, and other city-center attractions. The suburban settlements of Bajada and. Buhangin are further removed from the swamp conditions of the shoreline, and the high crime rate of the inner-ity,* but transportation costs to work, to the market, or to visit relatives in the city clnter are severe to poor squatters. The ‘sidents of Lapu:Lapu have the advantag: of living on lots that have been neatly ‘wbdivided, with a yard area available for thildren, but the soggy (or dusty) saw: eh TG SQUATTER MIGRATION OYNaMics 129 futon | at nd” on wich they tee is n verse source of dasomto The Sus stm have beter Sanity condition by dumping then see ea Gul water ner ther homes, but the treat of sang winds an ne se undermining the sits oftheir homes is ever psc oe rrr Fr meer) : : wal he teterch on the LabuLapu sete (nd) ond sugpenea ee a 3 in vate Suburbanzation hypothen” a «means of exeoanng ean £535 Ia processes of squatter relocaton thoughout ecg z rites of te uate suburban hypotheses in drawing ie remuah'he variably which exits mania the soe conor be ed ‘v4 sauaters. Simply categorizing people on the nominal seat cy squatter versus a? oF ——“—i— aE citron tn Population, The tama of the patng reach : aepotie atten ilies socclapea eppowh, Honor ee, i ro macrea actin saaters where they ae then a socolonen wee z oF ———r—————L FT pe, A A 5 gb OF Sctated by 9 table of random numbers 5 . ag, enue 19 fOmOA, te squat asbubanzaon hypothesis ug g 7 SR tht someting other than chance is operating Ae originally set forth, this 3 g s2 oe folowint imneticed phenomenon in Davao City war sumererey ie having the § é a2 of following characteristics, 7 a3 68 J Present household heads of squatter families arrived in the city as ai tne sana children originally. Their parents were rent eee immigrants, not i Cr © ————— y SF ets rd st titi destinain was the invercny a ee eding adocy ak oC ity | oF a8e “eran elatives inthe vicinity could easly be contac ee Sie eae) es ele teera ne e e Md 10 reside in the slum areas since Peddling and other activities associated rant tttary sector of urban lite could be ek behind. Their higher income wnat enabled them to leave the shun atear aed disperse throughout the city, get avilable squatter sites were found news employment opportunities Ittives could sti be contacted by ese ©f public transportation, which they "Ul now afford 1 ! 1 URBAN ANTHROPOLOGY Vol 42),- 3. The shift in residence could indicate their transition from “urban vik lagers” to urban residents. The peripheral squatter areas reflect what might by teimed squatter suburbanization, evidencing a basic change in style of life for persons raised in the barong-barongs (shacks) of Carpenter, Agdao, Piapi, ang ‘other inner-city slum areas. This phenomenon would represent the “attainment fof what was, for their parents, an impossible dream, Small wonder then that cfforts to dispossess squatters are met with threats of violence” (Hackenberg and Hackenberg n.d.:6). This schema, if validated, would answer the question that had been tants lizing the above-quoted researchers for some time: what is the relationship of earlier to later settements established within the city by immigrants from the Visayan region? As they indicated, “To answer this question is to define the Growth pattern of the city itself” (n.0.:5). The hypothesis as stated above requires a fundamental revision due primar lly to a faulty assumption at its outset: the vast majority of present-day squatter household heads arrived in Davao City as young adults, not as school-age chit dren. The mean age at arrival for the male household heads not born in the city 1s 24.22 years of ag. Filipino children are able to complete high schoo! around 16 oF 17 years of age. ‘The assumption about the fundamental dynamics at work in relocating squatters, however, is not thereby invalidated. Our revised hypothesis posits tha Snnabited by upwarély nobile squatters, 22 denorstrated by: Tr Significant socloveconomie ditterentials betwen subichanites and inner-eity squatters, 1, tners-urean nae patterns. Mull hypotnesse: randoe se insofar as proposed socto-ece™ noaie variables are concerned. (1h tee eubrbanttenstgnttt- wo} i Saha herr et = Component 1 of squatter sub- Intrarurban aigration not a Gated. factor in squatter locational wor, variablity: L_ ON yo) ae inteamarban arated ee, pastcena significaneiy in squatter suburbantsation hypothesis confirmed in both (1) and (11). FIG. 2. Mode! for testing hypothesis, aaman SQUATTER MIGRATION DYNAMICS. i those squatters who have received a better education than their lesseducated fellowsquatters, regardless of where this education was received, are able to command a significantly higher income and use this position of relative advan: tage to migrate to, and maintain residency in, a more desirable suburban squatter area outside of an inner-city squatter slum, even though these inner-city areas serve as primary reception areas for a significant number of squatter immigrants. Figure 2 presents the procedure to be followed in testing this hypothesis. en factors will be examined to substantiate our hypothesis, which states that socioeconomic factors are responsible for present ecological niches, with migra tory patterns reflecting this situation, 1, Education and Individual Squatter Location [A Spearman's rank correlation ‘test between individual household head educational attainment and place of residence indicates that there is a signifi cantly positive relationship between educational level and distance of residence from the inner city. fg = 183, p = 01). For this computation the houstholds from the Buhangin settlements (sam ble W = 59) were omitted since, as can be seen in Table 1, the educational level ofthis group is strangely at variance with the generally higher scores of the other suburban zones. Our data suggests nothing conclusive to account for the pres ence of these people in 4 subuibun area. As can be seen from the subsequent lables concerning income, education, and employment regularity, the Buhangin squatters more closely resemble the inner-city squatters than they do their sub- Uutban counterparts. The Buhangin squatters would seem to be the most pro: “able 1 Education of Household Heeds Mean educations! score cea Grade completed 5s 85. Buhari #2 59 Boongan 69 Obrera?™ 59 Lens 79 Sea m4 Bayada 43 72 Baas #1 75 Bojeaa #2 18 Bejeca a 7 Lapu-Lapy \ 83 "Transition sane trom inner cy tw peripheral areas nowt. | | Felden SQUATTER MIGRATION OYNaMICS 133 Income by Location | tyacket of he Pilippine tower cats in an urban setting, The actual ‘monetary Ss ___ Pecag” #aillerental between indivi, ‘hus, was not often overwhelming, but the in: tetera Si aaa ana wih nc Bona te 88 & {its ou hyBothess i acaly ony Sociologia ous concealing whet Srce 3 i iar re | coe. wut bea ugianty sy olen cane esa Tamas Siti nie et te {oundly intriguing group to account for from the viewpoint of the squatter up Utbanieation hypothesis, The socioeconomic data presented here simply down Sxbiain thei oraerce, and other factors must be researched before a satatacon explanation can be offered, inthe Philippines over the past three decades 2 eve. 90% significantly correlated with location, income, ore gen for mento siticence of agen our study was in elation to the ence sien for moving to one's present location. Older men teades significantly to Selecta site because it was near their jb, wi rable 3 becomes apparent why our correlation test reveled np signi: tate rena between age and the other variables selected for nmerngeen ats teas litle difference between the various locetions regards the aver. Pad mean cat it Davao City oftheir residents Seven of our tuele sehen ‘ed mean aval scores somewhat below the total verage of toe 41, but both 4H. Income Differential and Location jlust as the individuals with more formal education are generally found Fauiee the inner-city area, $0 too are those earning a higher monthly income. Table 2 summarizes the mean monthly incomes of male household heads andy total monthly income mean of an entire household, Even with the inclusion of the Buhangin males, the correlation between AGE OF Male Mirani, Age at Arival Davao City. and Yess Artived in Oo tet lest aon Ser Estes | aan ne a i the 01 level Ug = 207) If the Buhangin squatters are omitted thon heat Geena ag Te ies higher rank coeficient of = 228 = ON) swale ot a a ress) cm Another noteworthy pheroménon reveal in Table 2: the males of Ge enter ae more dependent on ther wines and chile for that morte eee {ees ox seas) ion crc cocoa tat amt Soe teulsinicpprwent | Om" sien cco Seca tern thesanolenienerte roy sone | Bt ana sas Condon of Carpenter, though Boorgon mos nearly accuses dong an isnas ran ieee settlements 33 iene t Sa we ML. Interrelatedness of Education and Income ae {955.72 Our ype tats tot eduational eve ia good predetor ofan ie ial economists. Our semplewa, th minal ecepin. heat se ter 134 URBAN ANTHROPOLOGY WON. 9121, 1975 inner y and suburban areas are found among these seven. Thus, the tempo, factor of age is not significantly responsible for where squatter males settle iq the city, nor is the temporal factor of year of arrival in the city, V. The Presence of Relatives Immigrants might consider the presence of relatives an area a prime fa. tor in deciding to reside there. Kinship bonds among Filipinos ae notoriously strong, whether in a sural or an urban setting, Nonetheless, the relationship be tween the presence of male celatives and the various locations was not significant (r, = 080: p, 1.5.) and, thus, cannot explain the locational differences of ow investigation, A few men even stated that they moved 10 their Present location, to get away from relatives V1. Distance from Employment Survival in the urban environment depends, for the most part, upon the employment an individual can secure. For the impoverished labore. its usually necessary for him to find a place to live near his work. oF transportation cost will render his small earnings even smaller. If the Buhangin squatters are omitted from the computation, then a significantly negative correlation results between distance fram employment and distance from the inner

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