Privatizing the Public: Manila's Disappearing Public Spaces
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2022
Abstract
From a city consciously planned as a place of social inclusion; intermingling and exchange; Metro Manila has over the last 100 years developed into its exact opposite: a place of increasing social compartmentalization; segregation; and exclusion. The foundations of modern Manila City were laid out in 1905 by famous American architect and urban planner Daniel Burnham as a showcase of US-American colonial urban planning following the concepts of the then-popular City Beautiful Movement. In sharp contrast to the conservative and moralizing City Beautiful Movement; the approach in neighboring Quezon City was a socialist and practical one: Leisure and well-being were not moral issues but social rights in the form of a healthy and livable environment for the common tao (working-class Filipino). However; in both cases the grand schemes were not fully implemented and the green spaces generously planned for the public today remain massively reduced in size; fragmented; and accidental. Unless a stronger sense of civic mindedness can be forged; be it through public education; mainstream and social media; or others; Manila’s public spaces will continue to disappear in the name of private benefit and profit. This article explores the political; economic; social and historical factors that ultimately led to the failure of both colonial/capitalist and socialist approaches to create a livable city in the tropics.
Recommended Citation
Erik Akpedonu, (2022), Privatizing the Public: Manila's Disappearing Public Spaces. Climate & Energy Review, 2022 Edition, Urban Spaces, Green Spaces, Inclusive Spaces - A Regional Review on the Social-Ecological Transformation of Cities in Asia, 2022, 6-9.
