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Squatting

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For other uses, see squat.
The Chien Rouge in Lausanne, a squat held in the old hospital.

Squatting is the act of occupying an abandoned or unoccupied space or building that the squatter does not own, rent or otherwise have permission to use. Squatting is significantly more common in urban areas than rural areas, especially when urban decay occurs. According to author Robert Neuwirth, there may be as many as one billion squatters globally, or about one of every seven people.[1]


Overview

Graffiti found in Málaga, Spain of the international squatter's symbol.

In many of the world's poorer countries there are extensive slums or shanty towns, typically built on the edges of major cities and consisting almost entirely of self-constructed housing built on terrain seized and occupied illegally. Whilst these settlements may in time grow to become both legalised and indistinguishable from normal residential neighbourhoods, they start off as squats with minimal basic infrastructure. Thus, there is no sewage system, drinking water must be bought from vendors or carried from a nearby tap and if there is electricity, it is stolen from a passing cable.

To squat in many countries is in itself a crime; in others it is only seen as a civil conflict between the owner and the occupants. Property law and the state have traditionally favored the property owner. However, in many cases where squatters had de facto ownership, laws have been changed to legitimize their status. Squatters often claim rights over the spaces they have squatted by virtue of occupation, rather than ownership; in this sense, squatting is similar to (and potentially a necessary condition of) adverse possession, by which a possessor of real property without title may eventually gain legal title to the real property.

Colin Ward states that "Squatting is the oldest mode of tenure in the world, and we are all descended from squatters. This is as true of the Queen [of the United Kingdom] with her 176,000 acres as it is of the 54 per cent of householders in Britain who are owner-occupiers. They are all the ultimate recipients of stolen land, for to regard our planet as a commodity offends every conceivable principle of natural rights."[2]

Besides being residences, some squats are used as social centres or host give-away shops, pirate radio stations and cafés. In Spanish-speaking countries squatters receive several names, like okupas in Spain or Argentina (from the verb ocupar meaning "to occupy"), or paracaidistas in Mexico (meaning "paratroopers", because they "parachute" themselves at unoccupied land). In Argentina there was even a popular TV show under that name. Eventually, okupas tend to form tiny but solid communities.

Africa

There are large squatter communities in Kenya such as Kibera in Nairobi. A BBC News report described it as follows: "The first thing that hits you here is this rich stench of almost 1 million people living in this ditch - in mud huts, with no sewage pipes, no roads, no water, no toilet, in fact, with no services of any kind."[3]

An estimated 1,000 people live in the Grande Hotel Beira in Mozambique.

In South Africa, squatters tend to live in informal settlements or squatter camps on the outskirts of the larger cities, often but not always near townships. In 1994 when Nelson Mandela was elected President it was estimated that of South Africa's 44 million inhabitants, 7.7 million lived in these settlements.[4] The number has grown rapidly in the post-apartheid era. Many buildings, particularly in the inner-city of Johannesburg have also been occupied by squatters. Property owners or government authorities can usually evict squatters after following certain legal procedures. In Durban there has been sustained conflict between the city council and a shack dwellers' movement known as Abahlali baseMjondolo.

Asia

India

Street dwellers in Mumbai

In Mumbai, there are an estimated 10 to 12 million inhabitants and six million of them are squatters. The squatters live in a variety of ways. Some possess two or three storey homes built out of brick and concrete which they have inhabited for years. Geeta Nagar is a squatter village based beside the Indian Navy compound at Colaba. Squatter Colony in Malad East has existed since 1962 and now people living there pay a rent to the city council of 100 rupees a month. Dharavi is a community of one million squatters. The stores and factories situated there are mainly illegal and so are unregulated, but it is suggested that they do over $1 million in business every day.[5]

Other squatters live in shacks, situated literally on a pavement next to the road, with very few possessions.

Activists such as Jockin Arputham are working for better living conditions for slum dwellers.

Australia

In Australian history, "squatter" referred to those who occupied large tracts of Crown Land in order to graze livestock.  The subject is covered in a separate article: Squatting (pastoral).

In a more modern context the term's meaning in Australia, especially in an urban context, is identical to the British usage. In rural areas of Australia, however, the term 'squatter' is still used to describe the owner of a large landholding.

Europe

In many European countries, there are squatted houses and large squatted projects where people live and work. Examples of the latter include an old leper hospital outside Barcelona called Can Masdeu and former military barracks such as Christiania in Denmark and Metelkova in Slovenia. In Italy, there is Bussana Vecchia, a ghost town in Liguria which was abandoned in 1887 following an earthquake and subsequently squatted in the 1960s. In France, there is Collectif la vieille Valette, a self-supporting squat village which has been active since 1991.

Germany

In East Germany, all business and commercial enterprises were owned by the government. After German reunification, many state-run enterprises folded and left vacant buildings behind, many of which were occupied by squatters, some in newly desirable areas of central Berlin such as Mitte and Kreuzberg.

Netherlands

In the Netherlands, if a building is not in use for twelve months and the owner has no pressing need to use it (such as a rental contract starting in the next month), then it can be legally squatted. The only illegal aspect would be forcing an entry, if that was necessary. When a building is squatted it is normal to send the owner a letter and to invite the police to inspect the squat. The police check whether the place is indeed lived in by the squatter — in legal terms this means there must be a bed, a chair, a table and a working lock in the door which the squatter can open and close.

In cities there is often a kraakspreekuur (squatters' conversation hour), at which people planning to squat can get advice from experienced squatters. In Amsterdam, where the squatting community is large, there are three kraakspreekuur sessions in different areas of the city and so-called 'wild' squatting (squatting a building without the help of the local group) is not encouraged.[6]

There are many residential squats in Dutch cities such as Leiden, Rotterdam, Groningen, Nijmegen, Haarlem and Amsterdam. There are also some squats in the countryside such as a squatted village called Ruigoord near to Amsterdam and Fort Pannerden, near Nijmegen. Fort Pannerden (a military fort built in 1869) was evicted on November 8 2006 by a massive police operation which used military machinery and cost one million euros.[7] The squatters then resquatted the fort on November 26 and have since made a deal with the local council which owns the fort.[8][9]

Sometimes squats can become legalised. This is the case with the Poortgebouw in Rotterdam, which was squatted in 1980. In 1982, the inhabitants agreed to pay rent to the city council and they are still living there in 2006.

Well-known squats include the OT301 and ASCII in Amsterdam, the Slaakhuis in Rotterdam and De Blauwe Aanslag in the Hague, which was evicted in 2003.

In June 2006 two ministers from the Dutch government (Sybilla Dekker and Piet Hein Donner) proposed a plan to make squatting illegal.[10] Other ministers, such as Alexander Pechtold, were not in favour of this plan. Representatives of the four largest Dutch cities wrote a letter stating that it would not be in their interest to ban squatting.[11] Squatters nationwide made banners and hung them on their squats in protest.[12]

United Kingdom

The "Square Occupied Social Centre" [1], a squat in Russell Square.

England and Wales

In England and Wales, the term 'squatting' usually refers to occupying an empty house in a city. The owner of the house must go through various legal proceedings before evicting squatters. Squatting is regarded in law as a civil, not a criminal, matter.[13]The squatter legally occupies the house and then the owner must prove in court that they have a right to live in the property and that the squatter does not, whilst the squatter has the opportunity to claim there is not sufficient proof or that the proper legal steps have not been taken.

In order to occupy a house legally, a squatter must have exclusive access to that property, that is, be able to open and lock an entrance. The property should be secure in the same way as a normal residence, with no broken windows or locks.

The legal process of eviction can take a month or longer, perhaps even years. This is what happens when the property is owned by a council or a housing association. Private landlords have been known to use various intimidatory methods to convince a squatter to move out or indeed, to pay squatters to leave.

Local Council planners facing rising court costs when evicting squatters often resort to taking out the plumbing and toilets in empty buildings to deter squatters.

To show that the occupier of the squatted building is in fact in physical possession of the property, squatters often put up a legal warning known as a 'Section 6', a copy of which is often displayed on the front door.[14] Doing so affirms that there are people living there and they have a legal right to be there. It also makes clear that anyone — even the technical owner of the property — who tries to enter the building without permission is committing an offence.

Some properties are still occupied by squatters who have resisted eviction for 20 years. Squatters have a right to claim ownership of a dwelling after 12 years of having lived there if no one else claims it, by adverse possession under common law. In practice this can be difficult, since the squatter must prove in a court of law that he or she has lived in the building continuously for the whole 10 years. For example, St. Agnes Place in London had been lived in for 30 years until 29 November 2005, when Lambeth Council evicted the entire street.[15] The law of adverse possession has been fundamentally altered following the passing of the Land Registration Act 2002. In effect, after 10 years of actual physical possession, a squatter must apply to the Land Registry to have their title recognised as the owner in fee simple. The original owner of the property will receive notification from the Land Registry and will be able to defeat the application by simple objection. Obviously, this will seriously curtail the ability of squatters to claim adverse possession.

In London, a group called the Advisory Service for Squatters runs a volunteer service helping squatters. It publishes the Squatters' Handbook.

The most empty homes in the UK are in Birmingham (17,490), Liverpool (15,692) and Manchester (14,017). The North-West area of England has the most empty homes (135,106), which is close to 5% of its housing. The least empty homes are in South East England and East Anglia, but there are currently thousands of empty homes in London, as house prices are soaring above the level of income that most people earn.[citation needed]

History

In 1649 at Saint George's Hill, Walton on Thames in Surrey, Gerrard Winstanley and others calling themselves The True Levellers occupied disused 'Common' land and cultivated it collectively in the hope that their actions would inspire other poor people to follow their lead. Gerrard Winstanley stated that "the poorest man hath as true a title and just right to the land as the richest man".[16] While the Levellers, later known as the Diggers, were not perhaps the first squatters in England their story illustrates the heritage of squatting as a form of radical direct action.

More recently there was a huge squatting movement involving ex-servicemen and their families following World War II. This involved thousands of people occupying sites as diverse as former military bases and luxury apartment blocks in West London.[17]

Scotland

Squatting is a criminal offence in Scotland, punishable by a fine or even imprisonment. The owner or lawful occupier of the property has the right to eject squatters without notice or applying to the court for an eviction order, although when evicting they cannot do anything that would break the law, for example use violence.[18]

Spain

Squatting became popular in Spain starting in the 1960s and 1970s, due to the shortage of accommodations and the rural exodus. It was revived in the mid-1980s, under the name of okupas, during the Movida, when thousands of illegal occupations were legalized. Influenced by the British Levellers, the movement became quite popular during the 1990s, again due to a crisis of accommodations. Related to the anarchist movement, the okupas also denounce the real estate's market, and create social centers, which carry out various grassroot activities. Autogestion is also a main ideal of the okupas. The first specific law about squatting was passed in 1996, during José María Aznar's presidency, and was the prelude to many expulsions of squats, although the movement is still active now, and participates to various social struggles, including the alter-globalization movement. The Eskalera Karakola was a feminist self-managed squat, which was in the barrio of Lavapiés in Madrid from 1996 to 2005, and participated in the NextGenderation network.

North America

United States of America

In the United States, squatting laws vary from state to state and city to city. For the most part it is rarely tolerated to any degree for long, particularly in cities. Laws based on a contract ownership interpretation of property make it easy for deed holders to evict squatters under loitering or trespassing laws. The situation is more complicated for legal residents who fail to make rent or mortgage payments, but the result is largely the same. Most squatting in the U.S. is dependent on law enforcement and the person legally considered to be owner of the property being unaware of the occupants. Often the most important factors in the longevity of squats in the US are apathy of the owner and the likeliness of neighbors to call police. The most common tactic to accomplish this is not to be seen going in and out, which doesn't always make American squats as sustainable as those in many other countries. This was not always the case, particularly in the era of Westward expansion, wherein the Federal government specifically recognized the rights of squatters. For example, see the Preemption Act of 1841.

The United States Homestead Act legally recognized the concept of homesteading and distinguished it from squatting since it gave homesteaders permission to occupy unclaimed lands. Additionally, US states which have a shortage of housing tend to tolerate squatters in property awaiting redevelopment until the developer is ready to begin work; however, at that point the laws tend to be enforced.

Squats used for living in can be divided into two types (although they are not absolutes): So-called "back window squats" (the most common type, in which occupants sneak in and out of the building with the intent of hiding that they live there), and "front door squats" (where the occupants make little or no effort to conceal their comings and goings). Many squats may start out as one or the other and then change over time. Frequently squatters will move in and then later assess how open they can be about their activities before they approach the neighbors; others will not move into a place until they have first met and discussed the idea with the neighbors. The difference between the two types can be signs of vast differences in philosophies of squatting and its purpose, how long the occupants plan to be around, and on the atmosphere of the neighborhood, among many other factors.

Squatters can be young people living in punk houses or low-income or homeless people, as observed in Philadelphia.[19] A group called Homes Not Jails advocates squatting houses to end the problem of homelessness. It has opened "about 500 houses, 95% of which have lasted six months or less. In a few cases, [these] squats have lasted for two, three or even six years."[20] In New York, homeless people squatting in underground spaces such as Freedom Tunnel have come to be known as Mole People. They were the subject of an award-winning documentary called Dark Days. Also in New York there are social centres which began as squats such as C-Squat and ABC No Rio, which was founded in 1980.

Mexico

In Mexico squatters are known as paracaidistas (that is, paratroopers, because they "drop" themselves mostly at unoccupied lands), and it is a common practice in large cities. Since the most valuable real property is located near the downtowns of the cities, the paracaidistas usually establish slums at unoccupied lands at the outskirts of the cities. Since Mexican laws establish that an individual may take legal possession of a property after 5 years of peaceful occupation, many paracaidistas establish themselves with the hope that the legitimate owner will not discover them and expel them before 5 years. Large extensions of many Mexican cities were established originally as squats (for example, Neza City, in Mexico City).

South America

Around many South American cities there are shanty towns. Sometimes the authorities tear the houses down, but often the squatters simply rebuild again. The houses are built out of whatever material can be scavenged from the local area or bought cheaply. As time goes by, the squatters start to form communities and become more established. The houses are rebuilt piece by piece with more durable materials. In some cases, a deal is reached with the authorities and connections for sewage, drinking water, cable television and electricity are made.

In Peru, the name given to the squatter settlements is pueblos jóvenes. In Venezuela, they are called barrios and in Argentina the term used is villa miseria.

Brazil

A favela in Rio de Janiero

In Brazil, these squatter communities are called favelas and a famous example is Rocinha in Rio de Janeiro, estimated to be home of 500,000 people. Favelas are home to the extremely poor of Brazil. They lack much infrastructure and are usually overrun with street children and are not maintained clean. They are equivalent to slums or shantytowns. There are 25 million people living in favelas all over Brazil.[21]

In São Paulo, the largest favela is Heliópolis and there is also a 22 storey squatted highrise building called Prestes Maia.

Former Government Minister Benedita da Silva grew up in the favela of Morro do Chapéu Mangueira. There are also rural squatter movements, such as the Landless Workers' Movement which has an estimated 1.5 million members.

Social centres

In Europe, it is common for buildings to be squatted to be used as social centres. Cafés, bars, libraries, free shops, swaps shops and gyms have all been created, with many squats also holding parties and concerts. Social centres are often a combination of many things that happen in one space with the aim of creating a space for people to meet in a non-commercial setting, whether it be for a party, political workshop, to see a film, have a drink or have breakfast. There are many squatted social centres around the world but they exist mainly in countries where squatting is legal. Examples include Ernst Kirchweger Haus in Austria, the RampART Social Centre in England, OT301 in the Netherlands and Ungdomshuset in Denmark (evicted 1. March and demolished 5. March)

Notable and well known squats

Austria

Brazil

Croatia

Denmark

Germany

Greece

Italy

Lithuania

Mozambique

The Netherlands

Norway

Slovenia

Spain - infousurpa contains info about squats in barcelona.

A squat in Viladecans (Barcelona)

Switzerland

The Chien Rouge in Lausanne, a squat held in the old hospital

United Kingdom

United States

Notable Squatters

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Squatting.

References

  1. ^ Neuwirth, R (2004) Shadow Cities: A Billion Squatters, A New Urban World, Routledge ISBN 0415933196
  2. ^ "SQUATTING - the real story, Chapter 8: The early squatters". 2006-12-18.
  3. ^ Living amidst the rubbish of Kenya's slum
  4. ^ http://www.sli.unimelb.edu.au/informal/inform_set.html Informal settlements in South Africa
  5. ^ Pages 110-114 Neuwirth, R (2004) Shadow Cities: A Billion Squatters, A New Urban World, Routledge ISBN 0415933196
  6. ^ Wiegand E. (2004) Trespass at Will: Squatting as Direct Action, Human Right & Justified Theft (LiP Magazine)
  7. ^ http://www.nu.nl/news/878312/10/Politie_hervat_ontruiming_Fort_Pannerden.html
  8. ^ http://www.nu.nl/news/900535/10/Fort_Pannerden_voorlopig_niet_ontruimd.html
  9. ^ http://www.indymedia.nl/nl/2006/12/41302.shtml
  10. ^ http://www.nu.nl/news/750453/11/Kraken_wordt_strafbaar.html
  11. ^ http://www.nu.nl/news.jsp?n=742490&c=11
  12. ^ http://www.indymedia.nl/nl/2006/06/36908.shtml
  13. ^ Anonymous, (12th edition, 2004)Squatter's Handbook, Advisory Service for Squatters ISBN 0950776955
  14. ^ The Section 6 Legal Warning
  15. ^ 'Oldest squat' residents evicted
  16. ^ "SQUATTING - the real story, Chapter 8: The early squatters". 2006-12-18.
  17. ^ "SQUATTING - the real story, Chapter 9: The post war squatters". 2006-12-18.
  18. ^ http://scotland.shelter.org.uk/advice/advice-2624.cfm
  19. ^ Conley, Brooke. Claiming Place: Squatter Movements in Berlin and Philadelphia Thesis abstract, Bryn Mawr, 2001
  20. ^ Wiegand E. (2004) Trespass at Will: Squatting as Direct Action, Human Right & Justified Theft (LiP Magazine)
  21. ^ Neuwirth, R (2004) Shadow Cities: A Billion Squatters, A New Urban World, Routledge ISBN 0415933196

Further reading

  • Waterhouse, Richard (2005). The Vision Splendid: A Social and Cultural History of Rural Australia, Fremantle, Curtin University Books
  • War In The Neighborhood – a Graphic Novel about squatting on New York City's Lower East Side in the 1980s by World War 3 Illustrated artist and editor Seth Tobocman published by Autonomedia
  • Corr A. (1999) No Trespassing!: Squatting, Rent Strikes and Land Struggles Worldwide South End Press ISBN 0896085953
  • 949 Market - a 2002 zine by a group of people who squatted an abandoned pool hall in a very public way and created a community center in San Francisco. $2-3 cash to: Lara, 3288 21st St. PMB #79, San Francisco, CA 94110
  • Survival Without Rent - A how to guide from NYC originally printed in 1986
  • Cracking The Movement - Amsterdam squatter history and the movement's relation to the media. Also available online
  • The ELF Squat Experiment An experiment in squatting large buildings.
  • Squat The World a story of 1995 squat evictions in NYC
  • Katsiaficas G. (1999) The Subversion of Politics: European Autonomous Social Movements and the Decolonization of Everyday Life Humanity Books ISBN 1573924415 Also online

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