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MANILA, Philippines (AP) - The smoldering garbage dump grew so big over the decades that it became known as "Smokey Mountain." The Philippine government finally closed the notorious 11-story mound in 1995 planning to remove the Manila eyesore and the poor scavengers who lived on it as symbols of the nation's grinding poverty. Officials planned to convert the dump into a showcase of compassion and economic progress by leveling it and building rows of apartments for the more than 2,700 scavenger families who worked its slopes, collecting pieces of metal or plastic to sell. "The government wanted to turn Smokey Mountain from a monument of national shame to international fame," said one project engineer. But like eliminating poverty, which still grips about a third of the Philippines' 74 million people, the government has found eradicating Smokey Mountain a daunting task. See full story |
