Centro Financiero Confinanzas, widely know as Torre de David (Tower of David) is the worlds tallest slum. This unfinished skyscraper, in Venezuela’s capital city Caracas, has become a monument to the failed system when construction on the tower halted in 1994. The countries banking crisis, a result of deregulated interest rates and lax government supervision, put a stop to the tower being built and to this day it remains unfinished.
As the city struggled with an on-going housing crisis, in need of 2 million additional homes, squatters moved into the tower inhabiting its first 27 floors. Since 2007 the tower has become a home to over 2,500 residents and their businesses. The residents pooled together to raise money for basic services, creating their own electricity grid and water system. The system claims the tower has become a hot bed for crime, drugs and violence but its residents tell a very different story of survival and talk of their homes with pride.
Regardless, all will agree that Torre de David became a symbol of government failure. Opponents of the late Chávez cliamed the government was offering empty promises when it came to housing reforms, stating that previous attempts at reform had only resulted in 10% of the promised houses being built.
“capitalism utilizes housing as a commodity whereas we see it as a right, a fundamental human right. Torre de David is a symbol of what has happened with Venezuelan cities. A sad symbol”
Ricardo Jimenez, Occupation organiser
In 2011 Chávez announced a series of deals with China, Russia and Turkey, amongst other foreign allies. He promised to build 350,000 housing units in Venezuela, within two years. This was in 2011, remarkably 2 years on the house building programme has exceeded it target.
A police helicopter flying over Torre de David. Image credit: JoséMa Orsini
Despite this, half of Caracas’ pollution still lives in slums. There are still 3.7 million households on the national waiting list and the new government, headed by Nicolas Maduro is facing high inflation and food shortages in the country. Although moves have been made in the right direction to deal with the poverty and housing crisis in Venezuela the government still has much to achieve. The Tower of David stands as symbol of failure but also as a symbol of hope for the power of community when institutions fail. Here you see a community working together, ironically living out the fundamental ideals of ‘Chavismo’ – to satisfy human need without privilege.
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