Vancouver, British Columbia, June 20, 2006 

Over one hundred people crowded into the networking session hosted by the Commission on Legal Empowerment of the Poor on “Promoting Inclusion, Access and Opportunity in Urban Environments” at the World Urban Forum III. The session featured dialogue among South African Minister of Housing Lindiwe Sisulu, UN Special Ambassador for the Millennium Development Goals Erna Witoelar and Davious Muvindi of the Zimbabwe Homeless People’s Federation, and was moderated by Cate Ambrose, Chief of Advocacy and External Relations.

The room hushed as Davious Muvindi spoke passionately of his personal experience in Zimbabwe—his community of informal settlers was given lease agreements by the government only to be cleared off their land by bulldozers. Today he and his neighbors continue to fight for their legal rights. Witoelar, who also served as Indonesia’s Minister of Human Settlements and Regional Development, spoke of the role civil society can play in channeling the anger and frustration of the disenfranchised into dialogues with political leaders to reach productive outcomes. Minister Lindiwe Sisulu spoke about her collaboration with Slum Dwellers International and her recent trip to Mumbai, where she was been collaborating with Sheela Patel of Slum Dwellers International. In her remarks Sisulu underscored the importance of shared learning between regions, governments and grassroots organizations.

New figures from the United Nations indicate that by 2030 the number of people living in urban slums will double to two billion, with more and more groups living without legal rights and protections, and in fear of eviction and asset seizure. In light of this trend, the Commission’s message about the need to address legal, economic and social exclusion is more acute than ever.

The panel also addressed a diverse array of questions touching on gender-related issues, collective ownership of land and Kenyan slums.