Fines enforced following completed Huaguang demolition leave vulnerable families speechless

Following countless protests and relocations in the wake of demolitions in Huaguang, a mere 20 families remain scattered around the community. These families contain a collection of weak and vulnerable members of society including: the elderly; those with disabilities; low-income families; and those that for a variety of reasons have yet to find a suitable way to relocate, but who also lack the finances to pay a fine of close to US$350,000 which the Ministry of Justice is demanding for unjust enrichment.

Huaguang Community Self-Help Orgnanization (華光自救會) and various student groups have made repeated attempts to highlight the unreasonableness of the Ministry of Justice in fining and forcibly demolishing the homes of weak and vulnerable members of the city. However, the mainstream media coverage of Huaguang Community has not only continually presented social biases like: “illegally built”; “nail house” (to describe a holdout tenant or occupant, likening them to a nail refusing to be hammered down); and “mob”, but also focused on isolated scenes of fierce conflict and images of gaunt-looking local residents. Such limited understanding of the community’s problems and misrepresentation of Huaguang has hindered any possible resolution of the issue.

The fact that the residents have property registration numbers, electricity, water and business permits, demonstrates that for many years the government has given tacit consent to the policy of ‘self-settlement’. It is also clear that from the perspective of urban development, over the years “illegal building” has witnessed a tacit agreement between the government and residents. If Huaguang Community buildings are to be suddenly deemed illegal, then it is surely the joint responsibility of both the government and residents.

The Ministry of Justice’s decision to take on the role of plaintiff, demanding decades of legal costs be paid regardless of whether the residents agree to relocate, is something the vast majority of local residents are simply unable to accept. Last month, the Ministry of Justice notified the last remaining residents of its intention to execute final demolitions from August 27 to 29.

URL:http://www.peopo.org/news/115000

(以下為中文對照)
華光將拆完 罰款仍苦逼！弱勢戶：無語問蒼天

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華光社區歷經數次抗爭和拆遷，目前剩下最後20多戶仍散住社區之中，這些居民包含許多實質弱勢：老年、身心障礙、低收入，或者因各種狀況，到目前仍缺乏適合的移居方案，也無力負擔法務部追討的總和上千萬的不當得利。

華光自救會、學生訪調小組都曾多次試圖突顯，法務部對都市弱勢居民進行強拆、罰款的不合理，但是從主流媒體中曝光的華光社區，卻還是充滿了對「違建」、「釘子戶」、「暴民」的社會成見，或者僅捕捉激烈的衝突場面與弱勢居民的憔悴身影。這些片段對於真正了解華光社區在台灣居住問題上扮演的角色，幫助非常有限。

這些住戶有門牌、有水電、有營業執照，顯示政府多年來默許著這種不成文的「自我安置」政策，從城市發展脈絡的角度來看，「違建」是政府、居民共同的默契，「違建」如果今天違法，那也是政府、居民共同的責任。如今法務部卻搖身一變成為原告，要求居民為過去數十年的生活付出法律代價，就算搬遷都無法了結，讓許多居民至今還是難以接受。上個月，法務部已函文最後的幾戶住家，將於八月27至29日間，進行最後的拆遷。