DPA

MANILA ONE man was killed and 36 injured on Monday when squatters in a Manila suburb clashed with police and demolition teams at a market, police said.

The squatters and flea market vendors set up barricades in front of the 98,000- square-metre property in Paranaque city as the demolition teams arrived with the riot squad.

They threw petrol bombs, rocks, glass bottles and other objects, according to Chief Inspector Jenny Tecson, a police spokeswoman.

Police responded with tear gas. Some members of the demolition teams threw rocks back at the protesters.

Four policemen and 32 squatters were injured, while 30 were arrested.

Paranaque Mayor Florencio Bernabe said the demolition of the flea market was part of a project to widen a road to pave the way for a housing project that would benefit some of the squatters.

An estimated 10,000 people live as illegal settlers on the property, he said.

“We needed to clear the flea market because it was already obstructing the road,” Bernabe said.

“We weren’t going to demolish the housing there.

We plan to build temporary housing for these residents before we ask them to leave the property.”