Luxury Hotel Turns Squatter Settlement

Between 2,000 and 3,000 people have taken over the Grande Hotel in Beira, Mozambique, and turned it into a small community of squatters.

1 minute read

February 11, 2011, 6:00 AM PST

By Nate Berg


The hotel had been abandoned by its owners decades ago, and squatters moved in and reclaimed the building.

"It's now home to between 2,000 and 3,000 people who live in squalid conditions, without running water or electricity. Yet for these people the crumbling building is a self-contained community where they sleep, eat and work.

The once-luxurious lodging is the subject of a movie by Belgian filmmaker Lotte Stoops, which has just had its world premiere at the Rotterdam Film Festival."

Monday, February 7, 2011 in CNN

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