World Zero Eviction Days, October 2005

For the right to decent, secure housing
Fifteen percent of the world population is under threat of eviction for a series of reasons: foreign investment in countries with heavy debts, privatizations of the housing sector, deregulation of rented accommodation, ethnic cleansing, wars and occupation, as well as commercial speculation of natural disasters. Although Target 11 of the United Nations Millennium Development Goal 7 aims at improving the living conditions of at least 100 million people by the year 2020, it is a realistic estimate that there will in fact be 700 million more slum dwellers by that date.

The Urban Poor Linkage (UPLINK) in Indonesia demand UN Habitat to withdraw the award to be given to the city of Jakarta

We from Urban Poor Linkage (UPLINK) in Indonesia have learned from Un-Habitat Website that Jakarta as Metropolitan City under the leadership of Sutiyoso will receive an award from UN-Habitat for his achievement in "slums improving and building new infrastructure to create an inclusive, cosmopolitan city".
The award will humiliate urban poor people of Jakarta and other cities in Indonesia.
Under the leadership of Governor Sutiyoso, Jakarta has been transformed into a city of eviction and confiscation against urban poor people. From 2000 to 2005, the city has evicted 63.676 people and is threatening 1,592,011 people who will be affected by several public-private partnerships projects.
We therefore demand UN Habitat to withdraw the award to be given to the city of Jakarta.

The city of Jakarta does not deserve a prize but rather the urgent intervention of the international community to halt evictions

Open letter to UN-Habitat from the International Alliance of Inhabitants
I am stunned to learn that UN-Habitat intends to honor Jakarta Metropolitan City on the occasion of the World Habitat Day 2005 "for successfully improving slums, and building new infrastructure to create an inclusive, cosmopolitan city".
I have no idea what information the awarding committee has gathered, nor the source of such information.

Unfortunately, the real situation is utterly different.
How can UN-Habitat now award a prize to those who are clearly violating Article 11 ICESCR?
How can UN-Habitat now honor those who are contributing to the failure of MDG 7 Target 11?

For these reasons we support the slum dwellers of Jakarta and sustain the protest of their organizations.

I therefore appeal to you not to give an alibi to those who would simplistically just eliminate the slum dwellers rather than improve their living conditions. I ask you to make the right decision not to award the prize to Jakarta Metropolitan City.

Instead, I suggest that you take advantage of your visit to Jakarta to go to the slums and propose to all the parties concerned, including the inhabitants’ organizations, to get round the negotiating table and find now dignified housing solutions for everyone.

UN-AGFE Convenor disagree with the UN-Habitat intention to award the Metropolitan City of Jakarta

I express, my disagreement with the intention of UN Habitat to award the Metropolitan City of Jakarta for its achievement in "slums improving and building new infrastructure to create an inclusive, cosmopolitan city". The UN AGFE has fully documented cases of forced evictions and threat of evictions in Jakarta that explain why the poor communities, as expressed in a recent letter by the Urban Poor Linkage (UPLINK), feel that this award is a humiliation to their effort to find means and ways to live in dignity and improve the security of tenure.