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The squatters have one day to move out
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The squatters have one day to move out
The extension granted to people squatting houses of the National Housing Development Corporation’s (NHDC) expires tomorrow at midnight. The minister of Housing and Lands, Asraf Dulull, has so decided. Even if most squatters seem willing to cooperate, some say that they will not leave unless a “suitable”solution is found. Several meetings were held between the ministry and the squatters to find a consensus.
The squatter problem started on June 26 with the illegal occupation of 148 NHDC houses in Camp Levieux, and then spread to others in Terre-Rouge, Chebel, Cité La Cure and Pointe-aux-Sables. Whole families, with mattresses under their arms and plastic bags containing candles broke into the houses, which are still not supplied with water and electricity. In the confusion, some individuals damaged some apartments and stole sanitary ware.
Though most squatters accept that they have acted illegally, some families point out their financial difficulties. Some are prepared to make monthly payments if they are given a house. “We know that what we have done is wrong, but we had no choice. I have four children and we live at my brother-in law’s,” says Priscilla, 32.
Meanwhile, the government has “invited” the squatters to register in the Citizens Advice Bureaux (CAB). This initiative, taken jointly with the Trust Fund for the Integration of Vulnerable Groups, explained minister Dulull, should produce “a database on the current dimension of the problem.” To encourage registration, the NHDC explained to the squatters that it was the only way to become eligible for a house. The registration exercise, which ended yesterday, was quite successful as most of the squatters turned up, according to a NHDC spokesperson.
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