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How the people of Manggahan Floodway assert their rights every step of the way

Written by CO Multiversity
Sunday, 07 February 2010 18:02
There is too much double talk in the Executive Order to vacate the so-called danger areas. While there are plans for constructing an economic housing project in the so-called danger areas, the drive from the side of government to make the urban poor do a “voluntary” dismantling of their own homes with Calauan, Laguna as the relocation site, is all at once a response to housing the poor that has never been well thought of. For tax payers to be treated with little seriousness when their long-term well-being is at stake is the lowest level of service that a government can do to its poor citizens. Take for instance this scene at City Hall. The meeting was supposed to be a local inter-agency committee meeting where the voices of the residents affected by a particular government plan had to be listened to. But in this instance, people from the LGU, including people from the Human Rights Commission were telling the people that the local inter-agency committee is composed of representatives of government agencies concerned with housing. The people had to assert their rights as stipulated in the Local Government Code: That they are a stakeholder in the Local Inter-Agency Committee. Information is power. Organized effort is power. If the people of Manggahan Floodway didn’t act in an organized manner in asserting their rights every step of the way, they would have joined the ranks of those who could be easily cowed and ignored. Another instance when the residents of Manggahan Floodway tackled an issue related to the threat of demolition from the local government was the manner they got the Manila Water to reconnect the water connection of the families whose water service was cut. The Manila Water’s argument for disconnecting the water facility was because they (the people) would be demolished anyway. Again, the power of information and organization took a front seat. The people mobilized to Manila Water to question why the topic of demolition which is not within Manila Water’s mandate needed to be used against the people. With an understanding of the flow of authority of the Manila Water and Sewerage System to its concessionaires, the people were able to sort out their issue with Manila Water.The water service was reconnected after the mobilization to Manila Water.
Last Updated on Sunday, 07 February 2010 18:33

Something to learn from US First Lady Michelle Obama

Written by Webmaster

Sunday, 17 January 2010 03:02

Here's a portion of the interview of US First Lady Michelle Obama recently:

"My great-great-great-grandmother was actually a slave. We're still very connected to slavery in a way that's very powerful. . . . That's my grandfather's grandmother. That's not very far away. I could have known that woman."

We need to turn theories into practice and assumptions into understanding, she said. "We need to keep having conversations until we get it right."

Please follow the link below for the whole story from Washington Post.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/01/13/AR2010011302861.html

Community issues are not end in themselves.

Written by Webmaster
Tuesday, 12 January 2010 04:04
Community Organizing and the Training of Community Organizers as the mission of CO Multiversity is revisited every year. The year that just passed was a witness to CO Multiversity's review of its relevance in society. We asked ourselves hard questions like: a) What difference did we make in the areas where we work? Would people be doing what they are still doing now even without us? b) What mindset have changed in favor of pro-multi-stakeholdership as opposed to sectarianism because of our organization's presence? c) What ideals of CO Multiversity have we held on as opposed to " having squandered those ideals?" d) Will people stop to say, "Ah, the COM approach to social transformation effort" is something to embrace. Why? e) "Walk the Talk" - What does this mean to us community organizers? What values and attitudes do we have that can be parallel to the integrity expected of "Caesar's wife" as told and retold by world history? Now it's 2010. We are connecting the new road to the old road. Will we build a better road or just retain the same potholes? This is the big question to us as individuals and as members of the COM community of organizers.
Last Updated on Wednesday, 13 January 2010 02:37

Ten Ways to Become a Sacred Activist

Written by Andrew Harvey
Saturday, 02 January 2010 08:17
While at the threshold of year 2010, individual activists - that includes us - are enthusiastic about starting the year right. What have gone wrong the year that just passed, we tell ourselves "Let's make things right this time." Here's an instructive material from beliefnet.com. Surely the thoughts from this link will be helpful: http://www.beliefnet.com/Holistic-Living/2009/11/Sacred-Activist.aspx How to Give Back from the Heart By Andrew Harvey With so many crises facing our planet--from extreme poverty to environmental depletion to our often hurried, disconnected pace of life--the future can seem bleak. And many of us feel discouraged and overwhelmed about our ability to make a difference. The most visible world activists are often "fighting for peace," an ironic position that doesn't really reach the roots of our planetary problems. But one movement, "sacred activism," an approach in the spirit of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Mahatma Gandhi, engages our compassion so that action comes from love. Author and teacher Andrew Harvey has written a book about this phenomenon, offering sage wisdom and practical tools for positive personal and planetary transformation. He suggests trying these ten things to start to align yourself "with the power and hope of sacred activism." The first six invite you into deep, nourishing connection with your spirit; the last four will help you express the compassion and joy this connection awakens in you in action.
Last Updated on Saturday, 02 January 2010 08:26