Surprisingly, in a developing country like Bangladesh, where a large number of citizens live in poverty, the political interfaces of the poor are hardly discussed. To explore the dynamics of urban poor politics, we conducted a qualitative study in the context of urban Dhaka. The study examined the positioning of the urban poor based on tenurial vulnerability, economic concentration, limited social networking, non-violent mentality, and private provision of common services. Findings show that the absence of formalising services result in private rent collection, revenue deprivation of the government, and resource wastage. It was also evident that the urban poor are not the primary force for competitive political development.
Researchers: Mohammad Sirajul Islam
Partners: Power and Participation Research Centre (PPRC)
Timeline: April- October 2016
Status: Completed
Contact: Mohammad Sirajul Islam; sirajul@bracu.ac.bd
Context
The influence of politics can be felt more strongly in poor people’s lives than any other socio-economic group. The wealthier people seek to solve their problems by their own individual efforts or with the aid of the government or non-government entities. Meanwhile, the poor tackle their problems through political parties. Yet, very few references of urban poor’s interfaces with politics are observed in the context of Bangladesh.
Objectives
The objective of this study was to find out what constitutes the politics of urban poor and how they get engaged in politics.
This study is relevant to SDG 16 (Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions), particularly to promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels.
Method
To gain an in-depth understanding of the poor’s interfaces with politics in Dhaka, we followed an inductive approach. We administered a semi-structured questionnaire through key informant interviews (KIIs) and focus group discussions (FGDs). Based on settlement type, population size, and geographic and administrative location, we selected three locations for data collection: Korail, Meradia, and Dhalpur City Palli. Respondents were identified purposively but through a snowballing approach.
Findings and Recommendations
From our study findings, it emerged that slum-dwellers who have been living in the city for a long period are interested in becoming voters. Conversely, those who have a permanent settlement in the village are likely to cast votes in their respective villages because of their rural connection and unfamiliarity in the city. The urban poor also give more importance to their daily wages than participation in political mobilisation. We have also found that the overall slum environment has undergone several power transitions: from the control of neighbouring political musclemen to self-rule to the control of the ruling party’s supporters. Currently, due to the ruling party’s absolute control over clubs, market committees, and conflict resolution, political party competition in slums is very narrow. Slum-dwellers’ access to utility services, therefore, is not linked to their political identity; but to their affiliation with the ruling party. It was also interesting to find out that densely populated settlements and their awareness of the repercussion about the consequences of violence result in a relatively non-violent slum environment and anti-violence mindset.
