I refer to the Malaysiakini report MB: 'Zero squatters' policy to continue .

It is very disturbing that the Menteri Besar of Selangor Abdul Khalid Ibrahim has stated that his government will stay the course embarked by his predecessor Dr Mohd Khir Toyo to eradicate all ‘squatter’ settlements in the state.

Firstly, I find it a problem that he has used the word ‘squatters’ which carries illegal connotations. The majority of these rural-urban migrants in the 1960s and 70s were encouraged to settle in existing urban settlements or to open new ones.

Most of the land they occupied belonged to the government, but there were also those that were owned by private individuals or companies. The communities were provided with facilities like water, electricity, health and education. In other words, they were - and are - recognised, with almost tacit legal status.

Owing to this and the major role that they have played in developing the cities, the term ‘urban pioneers’ has been favoured and popularised by social activists concerned with their issues. Urban pioneers are contended as licensees who have equity and right of possession of the land they occupy. In many cases, communities were promised land titles or alternative housing by the state government, usually just before elections.

Secondly the ‘zero-squatter policy’ that has been carried out by the Selangor state government over the years has led to the systematic use of forced evictions against urban pioneer communities. Last year the residents of Kampung Rimba Jaya and Kampung Berembang became victims of this policy.

At Kampung Rimba Jaya the Majlis Perbandaran Shah Alam (MPSA), Federal Reserve Unit (FRU) and the police used excessive force to evict the community and arbitrarily arrested 32 community members and activists in the process.

At Kampung Berembang - a 30-year-old settlement situated less than 10km from the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur - around 200 Rela personnel, policemen and local gangsters employed by the developers used excessive force when they evicted some 470 long-time residents from the village and arrested 11 people resisting the eviction.

These are just two out of a whole list of urban pioneer communities in Selangor that have faced the brunt of this policy carried out by the previous state government working hand-in-hand with land developers and law enforcement officials. In many cases, this policy led to the carrying out of evictions despite court injunctions.

Forced evictions have been recognised as a violation of the right to housing and leads to the violation of other rights including the rights to health, to education and to earn a living, the right to privacy and the right not to be subjected to torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

While community relocation may be justifiable in certain circumstances, they should be undertaken only as a last resort with a court order issued according to laws which respect human rights, after consultation with those affected, provision of adequate notice, assurance of adequate alternative accommodation, provision of legal remedies, and where possible provision of legal aid.

While Khalid said that state government will seek to go about the ‘zero squatters policy’ as humanely as possible and engage in dialogue with the communities in question, what is required is a rights-based approach to housing.

What the state government must do is to engage representatives of urban pioneer communities, NGOs, community organisations, people networks such as Jerit (Jaringan Rakyat Tertindas), local councils, developers as well as other key stakeholders and ensure that a comprehensive human rights-based housing policy is put in place. This policy must ensure adequate, affordable and accessible low-cost housing for the poor.

It must ensure that victims of recent forced evictions are provided with assistance, including alternative housing or adequate compensation. It must also set up independent, impartial and competent commissions of inquiry to investigate the way in which forced evictions in Selangor have been carried out and whether they complied with international human rights standards and make recommendations for effective remedies to victims of past forced evictions, including reparations. It must also carry out an inquiry to review the role of police and other law enforcement officials in assisting evictions

Lastly, it must ensure that the Essential (Clearance of Squatters) Regulation of 1969 will not be used by state officials. Legislation must be introduced to include the right to adequate housing and the right not to be forcibly evicted.