Nike evicting tramps from Tokyo park

Sophie Team Observers — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 14:55:54 +0200

Images by "IRA_K" in Tokyo.

Nike Japan has bought a run down park in central Tokyo and renamed it the Nike Park. The multinational supplier plans to build a skate park and cafe, introduce an entrance fee, and kick out a group of homeless dwellers who live there in shacks.

Tucked away in the Shibuya Ward business district, Miyashita Park is a bare and shabby park, largely neglected except for minor alterations in 2006. For the 34 homeless people who live there in tarpaulin shacks, Nike Japan's plans to make it into a spotless space for paying customers, doesn't come as good news. Nike has already pledged 150m yen (€1m) in buying the naming rights of the public space (something not unusual in Japan) and will plough another 450m yen (€3m) into renovating the park. But not everyone is pleased with the fancy plans. A group of activists has set up a campaign called "Keep it Miyashita", which argues that, amongst other things, the new development will deprive "people forced to live on the streets" of this "life-saving place".

"Third world conditions" an hour's drive from Hollywood

Julien — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 16:43:28 +0100

An area that was designated for 18 homeless people from California last July became a "city" of tents harbouring around 400 homeless residents from all over the US. A former resident of the refuge explains why hundreds of people are forced to live in "third world conditions", and another tells us that linking the issue to the subprime crisis is just media hype.

As publicity for "Tent City" in Ontario grew, so did its popularity. But with over 400 people sharing two hose pipes and six toilets, the sprawling encampment was at bursting point. Last Thursday the city's mayor Paul Leyon announced that the California-based refuge would be telling 230 of its residents to go back to where they came from. The "clean-up" would introduce fencing and security and a no-pets policy. And on Monday this week, police arrived to check that any non-permit-holders had been transported back to their cities.