Presentation to Shelter NSW seminar, 'Housing dollars, social value', Sydney University, 5 July 2005, by Ruben Amores, KCL President
Kapit-bahayan Housing Co-operative Limited was registered in 1995, and got its first houses in 1997. It currently manages a total of 11 units in Berala, Auburn and Wentworthville - suburbs in Western Sydney. Kapit-bahayan is a Filipino word which literary means: attached houses ((kapit- bahay) hence, neighbourhood. But being a neighbour is more than the proximity of accommodations, it is about sharing of resources, equal co-existence and community living. It is being a brethren or a housemate to all. Just like in a housing cooperative, really!
Neighbourliness is among the many traditional values Filipinos are proud to share to the world - like the People’s Power peaceful revolution of ending despotic rulers and our patriotic love for independence and freedom by establishing the first republic in Asia 107, years ago last month. The coop’s name Kapit-bahayan, therefore, aptly describes, not only the material structures but more importantly, the way our membership behaves and relates. The coop is a living museum of our culture both materially and socially - not the ghettoes that some racist elements of our society gloomily picture public housing estates. The KCL is a realisation of our dream, for an ideal community.
Indeed, this coop is an example of good community living. A showcase of what an organised group of ordinary people can do for themselves, for the community and for others.
The townhouse units being managed by the KCL serves as the foundation that binds all the members and their dependents with a strong sense of belonging, camaraderie and an extensive and always readily available support network. Members and residents including their relatives and friends are attracted to the coop, not only for the family-oriented Philippine atmosphere or the constant and instant parties, but more so because of the loving and sharing relationship that are exemplified in so many of our projects and activities.
Aside from the all-important tasks and functions of the coop in complying with its roles and objectives as a community housing provider, the KCL fulfils many other roles beyond the direct edict of the community housing program. The members are also organised to provide neighbourhood social welfare services such as child caring for neighbourhood kids, sharing information and referrals for job-seeking, assisting in organising big gatherings, providing support to those having domestic or financial difficulties, to those who are suffering a grave illness or in bereavement.
We call this local community support 'Saranay' or giving succor – which entails the collection and giving of financial and material aid for those who are in need of emergency or immediate help. This help is extended not only to coop members and residents, but also to close friends and relatives including those living in our country of origin.
In our culture, the period of bereavement and closure is spent having several nightly prayers. Talk to any KCL member and they will tell you that tenant-members relate closer to each other than to their own blood relatives.
Come to the property during weekend afternoons and you’ll see the younger kids confidently playing in the compound and endearingly calling every older member Tita and Tito. They have so many surrogate aunties and uncles!
The sense of safety and security pervading in coop-managed properties are evident in the way many of the garages are left open during daytime. You are confident that your neighbour will look after your property, your pets and your plants if you are away. The members have agreed to declare the properties as a 'safety house' so that anybody who needs temporary protection from harm can seek shelter.
To help protect the environment, the members underwent a training sponsored by Earthworks to do composting, recycling and organic gardening. This is one of our secrets in having a year-round luscious garden of fruit trees and flowers. Another is, as we have found out to be true also to people, is that plant reciprocates the love, care and attention provided.
Being in a well-organised and continuously functioning coop, it is very easy for the members to initiate any group activity for the coop itself or for the bigger community. Besides the various committee tasks for the coop or the social support system among members and residents, we are also involved in the bigger activities like Clean-up Australia, Plant a Tree Day, People for Better Berala (a citizen initiative), community festivals and functions, local Council consultation fora, etc.
By harnessing the enormous and priceless varied skills and experiences of the members, the general membership becomes a fertile ground for social development. The various state and local awards and commendations KCL receive are testaments that the coop must be doing alright!
It is very easy for coop members to get involved, be in the forefront and lead in the affairs of the bigger community because we join as an organised group. We are very visible in most community activities: managing an information stall at a festival, decorating a stage for a fundraising concert, or simply presenting a cultural number in another ethnic club.
To assist other community organisations, we have been inviting them to hold meetings in our property not only to enjoy the ambience of our lustful gardens and our Filipino hospitality, but more importantly, for them to see how an ideal organisation should be. This gesture also promotes our cooperative and gives recognition to the efforts of all tenant-members.
Because our members are freed from the dehumanising effects of mortgages and other financial worries and pressures associated in purchasing our own houses - our membership have a more tranquil life, more quality time and extra money to be directed for more enjoyable pursuits. They can live more comfortably, have the time available to be involved, or rather to lead also in other associations or engaged in hobbies of their interest.
Being probably the best organised Filipino group in the area, the KCL is recognised as a community sub-centre. The local government of Auburn, Parramatta and Holroyd Councils would invite us to their community-focused meetings, consultations and other functions. In the same manner, the local branches of the Philippine government would conveniently point to us if officials come visiting. Naturally, politicians of all colours and persuasions would be privileged to drop by to say hello and say their spiel during our functions like the AGM or the neighbourhood Christmas program when all the residents of the surrounding houses are invited in the traditional dinner and festivities.
The coop is a laboratory for the development of social awareness and civic conscience. Meetings are fora for sharing news and information, arena for robust debates and discussions and the avenue for problem-solving and decision-making. By presenting opportunities for learning, taking on responsibilities, leading others and being productive - the coop has not only enriched our lives but has also empowered us to have more control in the management of our houses, helping others in an organised manner and in influencing public opinion and political decisions.
For those of us who are not DIY oriented, being trained to change the valve of a dripping faucet, putting in a screw with the use of a power drill or applying a coat of paint to a piece of furniture is a very memorable accomplishment. The work may not be as good as those subcontracted out by a subcontractor of Resitech, but the work is done satisfactorily and on time.
Being a stakeholder, this sense of ownership is extended to the whole cooperative. By being involved in the planning, decision–making, maintenance and other management responsibilities, the tenants share the burden of accountability, solving problems, safeguarding the properties entrusted to us as stewards. As well, each member relishes the self-satisfaction of every small victory, accomplishment, productivity and the recognition of our contribution in the team effort.
You can therefore understand, the joy every tenant–member feels when the coop receives a friendly letter of support, an award of recognition or a funding approval from a program administrator like OCH or a resource body like ARCH.
Being housed in an affordable, comfortable and stable accommodation that you consider as your own home gives you profound peace and satisfaction. Compare this with the high-strung lifestyle in commercial housing development: where many families are physically fragmented and socially disoriented because the mature-age residents havwe to work long hours to keep up with the never-ending mortgages that fuel the undeclared material acquisition race with the neighbours.
Living in a coop housing is enjoying the luxury of a rented accommodation minus the equivalent cost to pay and having the stability and privacy of owning a house without the hustle of maintenance or the pressure of amortisation. You treat the house like your own, yet there are other coop members to help you maintain it. Thus, you enjoy your own private space and personal interests within a supportive environment.
Some coop members would rather do small repairs and gardening than going with their spouses to parties or the theatre! Weekends are mostly coop’s planned and organised activities for meetings, maintenance and repair, gardening or practising classical/ballroom dancing or having an instant bring-a-plate. These are also our very productive bonding and mateship sessions.
Our individualism and privacy are conscientiously respected while maintaining and promoting the group's culture, discipline and identity. While we now have an extensive compilation of rules, policies, by-laws, guidelines and standards, it is the interplay of sub-cultural values (esprit d’corps) of personal and human relationships that naturally bind, maintain and strengthen the cooperative – not by intervening forces from outside.
When we recognise and respect individual rights and freedoms, the practice of a democratic-style of good governance and Christian-living become second nature. Cooperative housing is all these!