IntroductionThe legal status of the right to adequate housing is grounded in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and several international human rights treaties. The general comments of UN treaty bodies provide an official interpretation of the rights and obligations enshrined in these international human rights treaties. Show
International humanitarian and international criminal law prohibits as well certain violations of the right to adequate housing. The right to adequate housing has also been specified in regional human rights law, UN Declarations adopted by the UN General Assembly and International Labour Standards. Based on these human rights norms, the Special Rapporteur on the right to adequate housing and other UN human rights experts have developed specific guidelines on development-based evictions, on security of tenure and for the implementation of the right to adequate housing. UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS (1948)
International human rights treatiesCONVENTION ON THE ELIMINATION OF ALL FORMS OF RACIAL DISCRIMINATION (1965)
INTERNATIONAL COVENANT ON ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL RIGHTS (1966)
INTERNATIONAL COVENANT ON CIVIL AND POLITICAL RIGHTS (1966)
CONVENTION ON THE ELIMINATION OF ALL FORMS OF DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN (1979)
INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION ON THE PROTECTION OF THE RIGHTS OF ALL MIGRANT WORKERS AND MEMBERS OF THEIR FAMILIES (1990)
CONVENTION ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD (1989)
CONVENTION ON THE RIGHTS OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES (2008)
General Comments by human rights treaty bodiesThe general comments of the UN Committees established to monitor compliance of States with international human rights treaties provide an interpretation of the scope meaning of the particular rights enshrined in human rights treaties. Below are summaries and excerpts from key paragraphs. Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights General comments No.4 on the right to adequate housing and No.7 on forced evictions provide a more detailed understanding of the right to adequate housing under international human rights law. General Comment No. 3 clarifies what it means that economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to adequate housing, are subject to progressive realization. General Comment No. 9 underlines that States have to provide effectives remedies for violations of the right to adequate housing, including access to justice before courts. General Comment No. 20 sets out State obligations in relation to non-discrimination of the right to adequate housing and other economic, social and cultural rights and General Comment No. 21 specifies State obligations towards business enterprises to ensure their respect for economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to adequate housing. General Comment No. 4: The right to adequate housing (art.11 (1))
General Comment No. 7: The right to adequate housing: forced evictions (art.11 (1))
General Comment No. 3: The nature of State parties obligations (art. 2 (1)).
General Comment No. 9: The domestic application of the Covenant
General Comment No 20: Non-discrimination in economic, social and cultural rights (art.2 (2))
General Comment No. 24:on State obligations under the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in the context of business activities Human Rights Committee The Human Rights Committee has elaborated on housing related obligations of States in relation to the right to life and the protection of privacy, family, home and correspondence. General Comment No. 36: Article 6 right to life
General Comment No. 16: Article 17 right to be protected against interference with privacy, family, home or correspondence
General Comment No. 19: Article 23 protection of family
Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination General Recommendation No. 19 on Article 3 (racial segregation and apartheid) 1. The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination calls the attention of States parties to the wording of article 3, by which States parties undertake to prevent, prohibit and eradicate all practices of racial segregation and apartheid in territories under their jurisdiction. The reference to apartheid may have been directed exclusively to South Africa, but the article as adopted prohibits all forms of racial segregation in all countries. 2. The Committee believes that the obligation to eradicate all practices of this nature includes the obligation to eradicate the consequences of such practices undertaken or tolerated by previous Governments in the State or imposed by forces outside the State. 3. The Committee observes that while conditions of complete or partial racial segregation may in some countries have been created by governmental policies, a condition of partial segregation may also arise as an unintended by-product of the actions of private persons. In many cities residential patterns are influenced by group differences in income, which are sometimes combined with differences of race, colour, descent and national or ethnic origin, so that inhabitants can be stigmatized and individuals suffer a form of discrimination in which racial grounds are mixed with other grounds. 4. The Committee therefore affirms that a condition of racial segregation can also arise without any initiative or direct involvement by the public authorities. It invites States parties to monitor all trends which can give rise to racial segregation, to work for the eradication of any negative consequences that ensue, and to describe any such action in their periodic reports. General Recommendation No. 22 on article 5 (refugees and displaced persons) The Committee […] General Recommendation No. 23 on the rights of indigenous peoples
General Recommendation No. 27 on discrimination against Roma
Committee on the Rights of the Child The Committee on the Rights of the Child elaborated a detailed general comment on children in street situation
Para. 49 states that “States shall take appropriate measures to assist parents and others responsible for the child to implement this right and shall in case of need
provide material assistance and support programmes, particularly with regard to nutrition, clothing and housing”. Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women General Recommendation on article 16 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (Economic consequences of marriage, family relations and their dissolution)
General Recommendation No. 33 on women’s access to justice
General Recommendation No. 35 on gender-based violence
(ii) Providing appropriate and
accessible protective mechanisms to prevent further or potential violence, without the precondition that victims/survivors initiate legal action, including through removal of communication barriers for victims with disabilities. Mechanisms should include immediate risk assessment and protection comprising a wide range of effective measures and, where appropriate, the issuance and monitoring of eviction, protection, restraining or emergency barring orders against alleged perpetrators, including
adequate sanctions for noncompliance. […] Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities General Comment No. 2 on article 9: accessibility
General Comment No. 5 on the right to independent living 16. In the present general comment the following definitions apply: (a) Independent living. Independent living/living independently means that individuals with disabilities are provided with all necessary means to enable them to exercise choice and control over their lives and make all decisions concerning their lives. Personal autonomy and self-determination are fundamental to independent living, including access to transport, information, communication and personal assistance, place of residence, daily routine, habits, decent employment, personal relationships, clothing, nutrition, hygiene and health care, religious activities, cultural activities and sexual and reproductive rights. These activities are linked to the development of a person’s identity and personality: where we live and with whom, what we eat, whether we like to sleep in or go to bed late at night, be inside or outdoors, have a tablecloth and candles on the table, have pets or listen to music. Such actions and decisions constitute who we are. Independent living is an essential part of the individual’s autonomy and freedom and does not necessarily mean living alone. It should also not be interpreted solely as the ability to carry out daily activities by oneself. Rather, it should be regarded as the freedom to choose and control, in line with the respect for inherent dignity and individual autonomy as enshrined in article 3 (a) of the Convention. Independence as a form of personal autonomy means that the person with disability is not deprived of the opportunity of choice and control regarding personal lifestyle and daily activities; (b) Being included in the community. The right to be included in the community relates to the principle of full and effective inclusion and participation in society as enshrined in, among others, article 3 (c) of the Convention. It includes living a full social life and having access to all services offered to the public and to support services offered to persons with disabilities to enable them to be fully included and participate in all spheres of social life. These services can relate, among others, to housing, transport, shopping, education, employment, recreational activities and all other facilities and services offered to the public, including social media. The right also includes having access to all measures and events of political and cultural life in the community, among others, public meetings, sports events, cultural and religious festivals and any other activity in which the person with disability wishes to participate; (c) Independent living arrangements. Both independent living and being included in the community refer to life settings outside residential institutions of all kinds. It is not “just” about living in a particular building or setting; it is, first and foremost, about not losing personal choice and autonomy as a result of the imposition of certain life and living arrangements. Neither large-scale institutions with more than a hundred residents nor smaller group homes with five to eight individuals, nor even individual homes can be called independent living arrangements if they have other defining elements of institutions or institutionalization. Although institutionalized settings can differ in size, name and set-up, there are certain defining elements, such as obligatory sharing of assistants with others and no or limited influence over whom one has to accept assistance from; isolation and segregation from independent life within the community; lack of control over day-to-day decisions; lack of choice over whom to live with; rigidity of routine irrespective of personal will and preferences; identical activities in the same place for a group of persons under a certain authority; a paternalistic approach in service provision; supervision of living arrangements; and usually also a disproportion in the number of persons with disabilities living in the same environment. Institutional settings may offer persons with disabilities a certain degree of choice and control; however, these choices are limited to specific areas of life and do not change the segregating character of institutions. Policies of deinstitutionalization therefore require implementation of structural reforms which go beyond the closure of institutional settings. Large or small group homes are especially dangerous for children, for whom there is no substitute for the need to grow up with a family. “Family-like” institutions are still institutions and are no substitute for care by a family; (d) Personal assistance. Personal assistance refers to person-directed/“user”-led human support available to a person with disability and is a tool for independent living […] 20. Article 19 explicitly refers to all persons with disabilities. Neither the full or partial deprivation of any “degree” of legal capacity nor the level of support required may be invoked to deny or limit the right to independence and independent living in the community to persons with disabilities. 21. When persons with disabilities are assessed as requiring a high level of personal service, States parties often consider institutions as the only solution, especially when personal services are considered to be “too costly” or the person with disabilities is considered to be “unable” to live outside an institutional setting. Persons with intellectual disabilities, especially those with complex communication requirements, among others, are often assessed as being unable to live outside institutional settings. Such reasoning is contrary to article 19, which extends the right to live independently and be included in the community to all persons with disabilities, regardless of their level of intellectual capacity, self-functioning or support requirements. […] 24. To choose and decide how, where and with whom to live is the central idea of the right to live independently and be included in the community. Individual choice, therefore, is not limited to the place of residence but includes all aspects of a person’s living arrangements: the daily schedule and routine as well as the way of life and lifestyle of a person, covering the private and public spheres, every day and in the long term. 25. Often, persons with disabilities cannot exercise choice because there is a lack of options to choose from. This is the case, for instance, where informal support by the family is the only option, where support is unavailable outside of institutions, where housing is inaccessible or support is not provided in the community, and where support is provided only within specified forms of residence such as group homes or institutions. […] 28. Individualized support services must be considered a right rather than a form of medical, social or charity care. For many persons with disabilities, access to a range of individualized support services is a precondition for independent living within the community. Persons with disabilities have the right to choose services and service providers according to their individual requirements and personal preferences, and individualized support should be flexible enough to adapt to the requirements of the “users” and not the other way around. This places an obligation on States parties to ensure that there are sufficient numbers of qualified specialists able to identify practical solutions to the barriers to living independently within the community in accordance with the requirements and preferences of the individual. […] 32. Services and facilities mentioned in this section of the article [19 (c)] are non-disability specific support services and facilities for the general population in the community. They cover a wide range of services, such as housing, public libraries, hospitals, schools, transport, shops, markets, museums, the Internet, social media and similar facilities and services. These must be available, universally accessible, acceptable and adaptable for all persons with disabilities within the community. […] 34. In terms of material scope, article 19 covers access to safe and adequate housing, individual services and community facilities and services. Access to housing means having the option to live in the community on an equal basis with others. Article 19 is not properly implemented if housing is only provided in specifically designed areas and arranged in a way that persons with disabilities have to live in the same building, complex or neighbourhood. Accessible housing providing accommodation to persons with disabilities, whether they live alone or as a part of a family, must be available in sufficient number, within all areas of the community, to provide the right of persons with disabilities to choose and the possibility to do so. To this end, barrier-free new residential construction and the barrier-free retrofitting of existing residential structures are required. In addition, housing must be affordable to persons with disabilities. […] 37. The right to equal support services corresponds with the duty to ensure the participation and involvement of persons with disabilities in processes related to facilities and services in the community, ensuring that they are responsive to specific requirements, are gender and age sensitive, and that they are available to allow for the spontaneous participation of persons with disabilities within the community. For children, the core of the right to live independently and be included in the community entails a right to grow up in a family. 38. The Committee finds it important to identify core elements of article 19 in order to ensure
that the realization of a standardized minimum support level sufficient to allow the exercise of the right to live independently and be included in the community is carried out by every State party. States parties should ensure that the core elements of article 19 are always respected, particularly in times of financial or economic crisis. These core elements are: […] 46. States parties are under an immediate obligation to eliminate discrimination against individuals or groups of persons with disabilities and to guarantee their equal right to living independently and participation in the community. This requires States parties to repeal or reform policies, laws and practices that prevent persons with disabilities from, for example, choosing their place of residence, securing affordable and accessible housing, renting accommodation or accessing such general mainstream facilities and services as their independence would require. The duty to provide reasonable accommodation (art. 5 (3)) is also not subject to progressive realization. 47. The obligation to respect requires States parties to refrain from directly or indirectly interfering with or in any way limiting the individual exercise of the right to live independently and be included in the community. States parties should not limit or deny anyone’s access to living independently in the community, including through laws which directly or indirectly restrict the options of persons with disabilities to choose their place of residence or where, how and with whom to live, or their autonomy. States parties should reform laws that impede the exercise of the rights enshrined in article 19. […] 49. To respect the rights of persons with disabilities under article 19 means that States parties need to phase out institutionalization. No new institutions may be built by States parties, nor may old institutions be renovated beyond the most urgent measures necessary to safeguard residents’ physical safety. Institutions should not be extended, new residents should not enter when others leave and “satellite” living arrangements that branch out from institutions, i.e., those that have the appearance of individual living (apartments or single homes) but revolve around institutions, should not be established. 54. The obligation to fulfil requires States to promote, facilitate and provide appropriate legislative, administrative, budgetary, judicial, programmatic,
promotional and other measures to ensure the full realization of the right to live independently and be included in the community as enshrined in the Convention. The obligation to fulfil also requires States parties to take measures to eradicate practical barriers to the full realization of the right to live independently and be included in the community, such as inaccessible housing, limited access to disability support services, inaccessible facilities, goods and services in the community and
prejudices against persons with disabilities. 57. States parties must adopt a strategy and a concrete plan of action for deinstitutionalization. It should include the duty to implement structural reforms, to improve accessibility for persons with disabilities within the community and to raise awareness among all persons in society about inclusion of persons with disabilities within the community. 58. Deinstitutionalization also requires a systemic transformation, which includes the closure of institutions and the elimination of institutionalizing regulations as part of a comprehensive strategy, along with the establishment of a range of individualized support services, including individualized plans for transition with budgets and time frames as well as inclusive support services. Therefore, a coordinated, cross-government approach which ensures reforms, budgets and appropriate changes of attitude at all levels and sectors of government, including local authorities, is required. 59. Programmes and entitlements to support living independently in the community must cover disability-related costs. Furthermore, ensuring the availability of a sufficient number of accessible and affordable housing units is crucial for deinstitutionalization, including housing for families. It is also important that access to housing not be made conditional upon requirements that reduce the autonomy and independence of persons with disabilities. Buildings and spaces open to the public and all forms of transport must be designed in a way that accommodates the requirements of all persons with disabilities. States parties must take deliberate and immediate steps to reallocate funding towards realizing the right of persons with disabilities to living independently in the community. 60. Disability support services must be available, accessible, affordable, acceptable and adaptable to all persons with disabilities and be sensitive to different living conditions, such as individual or family income, and individual circumstances, such as sex, age, national or ethnic origin and linguistic, religious, sexual and/or gender identity. The human rights model of disability does not allow the exclusion of persons with disabilities for any reason, including the kind and amount of support services required. […] 66. States parties must ensure access to justice and provide legal aid and appropriate legal advice, remedies and support, including through reasonable and procedural accommodation, for persons with disabilities who seek to enforce their right to living independently in the community. […] 78. The rights provided for in article 19 are tied to the obligations of the States parties relating to accessibility (art. 9) because the general accessibility of the whole built environment, transport, information, and communication and related facilities and services open to the public in a community is a precondition for living independently in the community. Article 9 requires the identification and elimination of barriers in buildings open to the public, such as the revision of building and urban planning codes, the inclusion of standards of universal design in a variety of sectors and the establishment of accessibility standards for housing. […] 92. To ensure that persons with disabilities enjoy an adequate standard of living (art. 28), States parties should provide, inter alia, access to support services that enable them to live independently. Therefore, there is an obligation on the part of States parties to ensure access to appropriate and affordable services, devices and other assistance for impairment related requirements, especially for those persons with disabilities who live in poverty. Furthermore, access to public and subsidized housing programmes in the community is required. It is considered contrary to the Convention for persons with disabilities to pay for disability-related expenses by themselves. […] 95. Data and information must be disaggregated systematically (art. 31) by disability across all sectors, including with respect to housing, living arrangements and social protection schemes as well as access to independent living and support and services. The information should allow for regular analyses of how deinstitutionalization and transition to support services in the community have progressed. It is important that indicators reflect the particular circumstances in every State party. 97. The Committee notes that States parties may face challenges at the national level when implementing the right to living independently and being included in the community. However, in line with the normative content and obligations outlined above, States parties should take the following steps to ensure the full implementation of article 19 of the Convention: (a) Repeal all laws that prevent any person with disabilities, regardless of the type of impairment, to choose where and with whom and how to live, including the right not to be confined on the basis of any kind of disability; […] International Humanitarian LawCONVENTION RELATING TO THE STATUS OF REFUGEES (1951)
GENEVA CONVENTION RELATIVE TO THE PROTECTION OF CIVILIAN PERSONS IN TIME OF WAR (1949)
International Criminal LawHuman rights law, including the obligation of States to protect and fulfil the right to adequate housing remain applicable in contexts of armed conflict. In certain circumstances violations of the right to adequate housing, such as arbitrary housing demolitions, forced evictions and forced displacement, attacking civilian objects, pillaging or bombarding of towns, villages, dwellings and buildings may amount to a crime against humanity or to a war crime under international criminal law. It should be noted that crime of deportation or forcible transfer of population as a crime of humanity can as well be committed when the threshold of an armed conflict has not been reached. ROME STATE OF THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT Article 7 Crimes against humanity
Article 8 War crimes
(iv) Extensive destruction and appropriation of
property, not justified by military necessity and carried out unlawfully and wantonly; […]
(ii) Intentionally directing attacks against civilian objects, that is, objects which are not military objectives; […] (e) Other serious violations of the laws and customs applicable in armed conflicts not of an international character, within the established framework of international law, namely, any of the following acts: […] INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION ON THE SUPPRESSION AND PUNISHMENT OF THE CRIME OF APARTHEID (1974) Article I Article II Regional Human Rights LawAFRICAN CHARTA ON HUMAN AND PEOPLES RIGHTS (1986) The African Charta, also known as Banjul Charta, does not include an explicit reference to the right to adequate housing, however this right is protected in the African human rights system on the basis of Articles 14 (right to property), 16 (right to health) and 18 (right to family) as set out by the Guidelines and Principles on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights. Excerpts from both documents are reproduced below: Article 12 Article 14 Article 16 Article 18 AFRICAN CHARTER ON THE RIGHTS AND WELFARE OF THE CHILD (1990)
PRINCIPLES AND GUIDELINES ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL RIGHTS IN THE AFRICAN CHARTER ON HUMAN AND PEOPLES’ RIGHTS (2011) adopted on 24 October 2011 by the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights Interpretation Immediate Obligations Regarding the Implementation of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Minimum Core Obligations Obligation to Take Steps Non-discrimination Effective Domestic Remedies 23. In addition, the State must ensure
that persons within its jurisdiction, particularly members of vulnerable and disadvantaged groups, enjoy effective access to quality legal services. Measures to be taken in this regard include the establishment of comprehensive and effective legal aid schemes. Equality Right to Property Vulnerable Groups, Equality and Non-Discrimination Right to Health (Article 16) 67. The minimum core obligations of the right to health include at least the following: […] Vulnerable Groups,
Equality and Non-Discrimination Right to Housing (Articles 14, 16 and 18(1)) Minimum Core Obligations National Plans, Policies and Systems g. Protect the tenure of tenants including by the use of rent control and legal guarantees; Vulnerable Groups, Equality and Non-discrimination r. Ensure that women enjoy equal rights to compensation for violation of their housing rights as men. Single women and widows should be entitled to their own adequate level of compensation; Evictions gg. Ensure the right to resettlement, which includes the right to alternative land of better or equal quality and housing that must satisfy the following criteria for adequacy: accessibility, affordability, habitability, security of tenure, cultural adequacy, suitability of location, and access to essential services such as health and education. This includes the obligation to ensure that resettled persons, groups
and communities are not placed in conflict with their host communities; Right to Social Security (Articles 4, 5, 6, 15; 16; 18(1), (2) and (4) 82. The right to social security imposes, amongst others, the following obligations on States parties to: Minimum Core Obligations Vulnerable Groups, Equality and Non-discrimination Right to Water and Sanitation (Articles 4, 5, 15, 16, 22 and 24) 88. The human right to water entitles
everyone to sufficient, safe, acceptable, physically accessible and affordable water for personal, domestic, and agricultural uses. Water should be treated as a social and cultural good, and not primarily as an economic good. 92. The right to water and sanitation imposes the following obligations, among others, on States parties to: Minimum Core Obligations Vulnerable Groups, Equality and Non Discrimination […] AMERICAN DECLARATION OF THE RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF MAN (1948)
AMERICAN CONVENTION ON HUMAN RIGHTS (1969) The American Convention does not refer explicitly to a right to adequate housing, it incorporates however the rights to life, privacy, protection of the family and property and a provision on the progressive development of economic, social and cultural rights. In its jurisprudence the Inter-American Court on Human Rights has reaffirmed the right to housing by arguing that the right to life (Article 4.1) encompasses the right to enjoy a life with dignity.
INTER-ARMERICAN CONVENTION ON THE PREVENTION, PUNISHMENT AND ERADICATION OF VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN (1994)
INTER-AMERICAN CONVENTION ON THE ELIMINATION OF ALL FORMS OF DISCRIMINATION AGAINST PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES(1999) ARTICLE II The objectives of this Convention are to prevent and eliminate all forms of discrimination against persons with disabilities and to promote their full integration into society. ARTICLE III To achieve the objectives of this Convention, the states parties undertake: 1. To adopt the legislative, social, educational, labor-related, or any other measures needed to eliminate discrimination against persons with disabilities and to promote their
full integration into society, including, but not limited to: b) Measures to ensure that new buildings, vehicles, and facilities constructed or manufactured within their respective territories facilitate transportation, communications, and access by persons with disabilities; c) Measures to eliminate, to the extent possible, architectural, transportation, and communication obstacles to facilitate access and use by persons with disabilities; […] INTER-AMERICAN CONVENTION AGAINST RACISM, RACIAL DISCRIMINATION AND RELATED FORMS OF INTOLERANCE (2013) Article 1 For purposes of this Convention: 1. Racial discrimination shall mean any distinction, exclusion, restriction, or preference, in any area of public or private life, the purpose or effect of which is to nullify or curtail the equal recognition, enjoyment, or exercise of one or more human rights and fundamental freedoms enshrined in the international instruments applicable to the States Parties. Racial discrimination may be based on race, color, lineage, or national or ethnic origin. Article 4 The states undertake to prevent, eliminate, prohibit, and punish, in accordance with their constitutional norms and the provisions of this Convention, all acts and manifestations of racism, racial discrimination, and related forms of intolerance, including: […] vi. Restricting, in an undue or unreasonable manner, the exercise of the individual rights of ownership, administration, and disposal of property of any kind based on any of the criteria set forth in Article 1.1; […] viii. Any discriminatory restriction on the enjoyment of the human rights enshrined in applicable international and regional instruments and in the jurisprudence of international and regional human rights courts, particularly those applicable to minorities or groups that are in vulnerable situations and subject to discrimination; […] xii. Denying access to any social, economic, and cultural rights, based on any of the criteria set forth in Article 1.1 of this Convention; […] xv. The restriction of access to public and private places with access to the public, for the reasons set forth in Article 1.1 of this Convention. Article 7 The States Parties undertake to adopt legislation that clearly defines and prohibits racism, racial discrimination, and related forms of intolerance, applicable to all public authorities as well as to all individuals or natural and legal persons, both in the public and in the private sectors, particularly in the areas of employment; participation in professional organizations; education; training; housing; health; social protection; exercise of economic activity; access to public services and other areas; and to repeal or amend any legislation that constitutes or produces racism, racial discrimination, and related forms of intolerance. INTER-AMERICAN CONVENTION AGAINST ALL FORMS OF DISCRIMINATION AND INTOLERANCE (2013) Article 1 For purposes of this Convention: 1. Discrimination shall mean any distinction, exclusion, restriction, or preference, in any area of public or private life, the purpose or effect of which is to nullify or curtail the equal recognition, enjoyment, or exercise of one or more human rights and fundamental freedoms enshrined in the international instruments applicable to the States Parties. Discrimination may be based on nationality; age; sex; sexual orientation; gender identity and expression; language; religion; cultural identity; political opinions or opinions of any kind; social origin; socioeconomic status; educational level; migrant, refugee, repatriate, stateless or internally displaced status; disability; genetic trait; mental or physical health condition, including infectious-contagious condition and debilitating psychological condition; or any other condition. Article 4 The states undertake to prevent, eliminate, prohibit, and punish, in accordance with their constitutional norms and the provisions of this Convention, all acts and manifestations of discrimination and intolerance, including: […] Article 7 The States Parties undertake to adopt legislation that clearly defines and prohibits discrimination and intolerance, applicable to all public authorities as well as to all individuals or natural and legal persons, both in the public and in the private sectors, particularly in the areas of employment; participation in professional organizations; education; training; housing; health; social protection; exercise of economic activity; access to public services and other areas; and to repeal or amend any legislation that constitutes or produces discrimination and intolerance INTER-AMERICAN CONVENTION ON PROTECTING THE HUMAN RIGHTS OF OLDER PERSONS (2015) Article 7 State Parties to this Convention recognize the right of older persons to make decisions, to determine their life plans, to lead an autonomous and independent life in keeping with their traditions and beliefs on an equal basis, and to be afforded access to mechanisms enabling them to exercise their rights. States Parties shall adopt programs, policies, or actions to facilitate and promote full enjoyment of those rights by older persons, facilitating their self-fulfillment, the strengthening of all families, their family and social ties, and their affective relationships. In particular, they shall ensure: […] b) That older persons have the opportunity, on an equal basis with others, to choose their place of residence and where and with whom they live, and are not obliged to live in a particular living arrangement. c) That older persons progressively have access to a range of in-home, residential, and other community-support services, including personal assistance necessary to support living and inclusion in the community and to prevent their isolation or segregation from the community. […] Article 12 Older persons have the right to a comprehensive system of care that protects and promotes their health, provides social services coverage, food and nutrition security, water, clothing, and housing, and promotes the ability of older persons to stay in their own home and maintain their independence and autonomy, should they so decide. […] In order to ensure that older persons can effectively enjoy their human rights when receiving long-term care, States Parties undertake to: […] c) Establish an appropriate regulatory framework on the operations of long-term care services that allows the situation of older persons to be assessed and supervised, as well as the adoption of measures to: […] ii. Prevent arbitrary or illegal intrusions in their private life, family, home, household unit, or any other sphere in which they are involved, or in their correspondence or any other form of communication. […] Article 15 Older persons have the right to freedom of movement, to choose their residence, and to hold a nationality on an equal basis with other segments of the population, without discrimination on grounds of age. […] Article 16 Older persons are entitled to privacy and intimacy, and neither their private life, family, home, household unit, nor any other environment in which they function, nor their correspondence, nor any other communications shall be the subject of arbitrary or illegal intrusion. Older persons have the right not to have their dignity, honor, and reputation attacked. They are also entitled to privacy in their personal hygiene and other activities, regardless of their environment. Article 24 Older persons have the right to decent and adequate housing and to live in safe, healthy, and accessible environments that can be adapted to their preferences and needs. States Parties shall adopt appropriate measures to promote the full enjoyment of this right and facilitate access for older persons to integrated social and health care services and to home care services that enable them to reside in their own home, should they wish. States Parties shall ensure the right of older persons to decent and adequate housing and shall adopt policies to promote the right to housing and access to land, recognizing the needs of older persons and the priority of allocating to those in situations of vulnerability. Likewise, States Parties shall progressively foster access to home loans and other forms of financing without discrimination, promoting, inter alia, collaboration with the private sector, civil society and other social actors. Such policies should pay particular attention to: a) The need to build or progressively adapt housing solutions, so that they are architecturally suitable and accessible for older persons with disabilities and restricted mobility; b) The specific needs of older persons, particularly those who live alone, by means of rent subsidies, support for housing renovations, and other pertinent measures, within the capacities of States Parties. States Parties shall promote the adoption of expedited procedures for complaints and redress in the event of evictions of older persons and shall adopt the necessary measures to protect them against illegal forced evictions. States Parties shall promote programs to prevent accidents inside and in the vicinity of older persons’ homes. Article 26 Older persons have the right to accessibility to the physical, social, economic, and cultural environment, as well as to personal mobility. In order to ensure accessibility and personal mobility for older persons, so that they may live independently and participate fully in all aspects of life, States Parties shall progressively adopt appropriate measures to ensure for older persons access, on an equal basis with others, to the physical environment, to transportation, to information and communications, including information and communications technologies and systems, and to other facilities and services open or provided to the public, both in urban and in rural areas. These measures, which shall include the identification and elimination of obstacles and barriers to accessibility, shall apply to, inter alia: a. Buildings, roads, transportation, and other indoor and outdoor facilities, including centers of education, housing, medical facilities, and workplaces; […] States Parties shall also take appropriate measures to: a. Develop, promulgate, and monitor the implementation of minimum standards and guidelines for the accessibility of facilities and services open or provided to the public; b. Ensure that public and private entities that offer facilities and services which are open or provided to the public take into account all aspects of accessibility for older persons; c. Provide training for all stakeholders on accessibility issues facing older persons; […] EUROPEAN CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS (1950) The right to housing is not explicitly included in European Convention on Human Rights, however numerous legal norms contained in the European Convention have been relied on by the European Court on Human Rights in cases relating to housing rights, such as the right to life (Article 2), the prohibition of torture or inhuman or degrading treatment (Article 3), the right to respect for private and family life (Article 8), the prohibition of discrimination (Article 14) and the protection of property contained in Protocol 1 to the European Convention.
Protocol 1 to the European Convention (1952) Article 1 – Protection of property REVISED EUROPEAN SOCIAL CHARTER (1996) Article 15 –The right of persons with disabilities to independence, social integration and participation in the life of the community With a view to ensuring to persons with disabilities, irrespective of age and the nature and origin of their disabilities, the effective exercise of the right to independence, social integration and participation in the life of the community, the Parties undertake, in particular: […] Article 16 – The right of the family to social, legal and economic protection With a view to ensuring the necessary conditions for the full development of the family, which is a fundamental unit of society, the Parties undertake to promote the economic, legal and social protection of family life by such means as social and family benefits, fiscal arrangements, provision of family housing, benefits for the newly married and other appropriate means. Article 23 – The right of elderly persons to social protection With a view to ensuring the effective exercise of the right of elderly persons to social protection, the Parties undertake to adopt or encourage, either directly or in co-operation with public or private organisations, appropriate measures designed in particular: […] to enable elderly persons to choose their life-style freely and to lead independent lives in their familiar surroundings for as long as they wish and are able, by means of: a provision of housing suited to their needs and their state of health or of adequate support for adapting their housing; Article 30 – The right to protection against poverty and social exclusion With a view to ensuring the effective exercise of the right to protection against poverty and social exclusion, the Parties undertake: Article 31 - The right to housing With a view to ensuring the effective exercise of the right to housing, the Parties undertake to take measures designed: 1. to
promote access to housing of an adequate standard; EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON THE LEGAL STATUS OF MIGRANT WORKERS (1977) Article 6 – Information Article 13 – Housing COUNCIL OF EUROPE CONVENTION ON PREVENTING AND COMBATING VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND DOMESTIC VIOLENCE (ISTANBUL CONVENTION) (2011) Article 20 – General support services 1 Parties shall take the necessary legislative or other measures to ensure that victims have access to services facilitating their recovery from violence. These measures should include, when necessary, services such as legal and psychological counselling, financial assistance, housing, education, training and assistance in finding employment. 2 Parties shall take the necessary legislative or other measures to ensure that victims have access to health care and social services and that services are adequately resourced and professionals are trained to assist victims and refer them to the appropriate services. […] Article 23 – Shelters Parties shall take the necessary legislative or other measures to provide for the setting-up of appropriate, easily accessible shelters in sufficient numbers to provide safe accommodation for and to reach out pro-actively to victims, especially women and their children. […] Article 52 – Emergency barring orders Parties shall take the necessary legislative or other measures to ensure that the competent authorities are granted the power to order, in situations of immediate danger, a perpetrator of domestic violence to vacate the residence of the victim or person at risk for a sufficient period of time and to prohibit the perpetrator from entering the residence of or contacting the victim or person at risk. Measures taken pursuant to this article shall give priority to the safety of victims or persons at risk. Article 53 – Restraining or protection orders 1 Parties shall take the necessary legislative or other measures to ensure that appropriate restraining or protection orders are available to victims of all forms of violence covered by the scope of this Convention.
3 Parties shall take the necessary legislative or other measures to ensure that breaches of restraining or protection orders issued pursuant to paragraph 1 shall be subject to effective, proportionate and dissuasive criminal or other legal sanctions. Council of Europe Recommendation Rec(2005)4 of the Committee of Ministers to member states on improving the housing conditions of Roma and Travellers in Europe I. Definitions The term “Roma” used in the present text refers to Roma/Gypsies and Traveller communities and must be interpreted as covering the wide diversity of groups concerned. “Housing” in this Recommendation includes different modes of accommodation, such as houses, caravans, mobile homes or halting sites. The definition provided for by the United Nations Habitat Agenda for “adequate housing”, paragraph 60, should be borne in mind in the context of the present text: “Adequate shelter means more than a roof over one's head. It also means adequate privacy; adequate space; physical accessibility; adequate security; security of tenure; structural stability and durability; adequate lighting, heating and ventilation; adequate basic infrastructure, such as water-supply, sanitation and waste-management facilities; suitable environmental quality and health-related factors; and adequate and accessible location with regard to work and basic facilities: all of which should be available at an affordable cost”. General Comment No. 4 on the right to adequate housing of United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights should also be recalled here. II. General principles Integrated housing policies 1. Member states should ensure that, within the general framework of housing policies, integrated and appropriate housing policies targeting Roma are developed. Member states should also allocate appropriate means for the implementation of the mentioned policies in order to support national poverty reduction policies. Principle of non-discrimination 2. Since Roma continue to be among the most disadvantaged population groups in Europe, national housing policies should seek to address their specific problems as a matter of emergency, and in a non-discriminatory way. Freedom of choice of lifestyle 3. Member states should affirm the right of people to pursue sedentary or nomadic lifestyles, according to their own free choice. All conditions necessary to pursue these lifestyles should be made available to them by the national, regional and local authorities in accordance with the resources available and to the rights of others and within the legal framework relating to building, planning and access to private land. Adequacy and affordability of housing 4. Member states should promote and protect the right to adequate housing for all, as well as ensure equal access to adequate housing for Roma through appropriate, proactive policies, particularly in the area of affordable housing and service delivery. Prevention of exclusion and the creation of ghettos 5. In order to combat the creation of ghettos and segregation of Roma from the majority society, member states should prevent, prohibit and, when needed, revert any nationwide, regional, or local policies or initiatives aimed at ensuring that Roma settle or resettle in inappropriate sites and hazardous areas, or aimed at relegating them to such areas on account of their ethnicity. Participation 6. Member states should, as appropriate, provide Roma communities and organisations with the means to participate in the process of conceiving, designing, implementing and monitoring policies and programmes aimed at improving their housing situation. Partnership 7. Moreover, member states should encourage and promote empowerment and capacity-building on a wider basis among Roma communities by fostering partnerships at local, regional and national levels, as appropriate, in their policies aimed at addressing the housing problems facing Roma. Coordination 8. Member states should ensure that proper coordination is provided in the field of housing between, on the one hand, the relevant national, regional and local authorities and, on the other, the Roma populations and organisations who represent the majority active in this field. Role of regional and local authorities 9. Member states should encourage local authorities to meet their obligations with regard to Roma – in the same way as for any persons with the same legal status – in the area of housing. They should encourage regional and local authorities to ensure that area-based and local development strategies contain concrete and clearly specific sets of objectives targeting Roma communities and their housing needs. III. Legal framework Legal framework for housing rights 10. Member states should develop a comprehensive policy and legal framework related to housing, which is necessary for sedentary and itinerant people (in accordance with the geographical specificity) to exercise their right to adequate housing. Legal framework for related rights 11. Within this framework, member states should develop mechanisms with a view to ensuring the access of Roma to related rights, such as water supply, electricity and other forms of relevant infrastructure, such as education, medical care, social support, etc., as enshrined and articulated in international human rights laws and related standards. Implementation of the legal framework 12. In order to provide equal access to housing, member states should ensure the implementation of the aforementioned legal framework and provide clear guidelines to the relevant authorities with regard to the exercise of housing rights. They should also provide clear guidelines for access to and distribution of housing and services. The need for legal aid 13.Member states should make available to poor people free legal aid, advice and representation related to the denial of housing rights in order to ensure that their ability to protect their rights or seek effective remedy, including judicial redress against denial of housing rights, is not undermined by the lack of legal aid mechanisms. Transparency, good governance and access to information 14. The legal system should ensure transparency and good governance, including the right of Roma to access information related to housing policies and decisions of national and local authorities likely to concern them. Support to NGOs 15. Non-governmental Organisations involved in Roma issues, in particular in the fields of counselling and legal assistance, should be given fair conditions in which to perform their activities and effective support. Member states should also provide for the legal conditions to regulate NGOs’ activities in the field of housing. Monitoring of housing policy implementation 16. Member states should establish appropriate monitoring mechanisms to ensure the implementation of housing policies and practices for Roma. Roma representatives should be involved on an equal footing in any monitoring and evaluation process. Control mechanisms 17. In accordance with the autonomy of regional and local authorities, member states should make use of the legality control mechanism referred to in paragraph 22 to make sure that regional and local authorities’ decisions do not have discriminatory effects on Roma’s access to housing, or in any way impede the enjoyment of their right to adequate housing. IV. Preventing and combating discrimination Adopting anti-discrimination legislation 18. Comprehensive legislation should expressly prohibit direct or indirect discrimination on the grounds of racial and ethnic origin in employment and access to and supply of goods and services which are available to the public including, inter alia, housing, land, property, education, employment, health, social services. Monitoring and review of existing housing legislation 19. Member states, through their relevant authorities, should undertake a systematic review of their housing legislation, policies and practices and remove all provisions or administrative practices that result in direct or indirect discrimination against Roma, regardless of whether this results from action or inaction on the part of state or non-state actors. They should establish adequate mechanisms (for example, parliament, human rights commissions, ombudsmen, and so on) to ensure, and promote, compliance with anti-discrimination laws with regard to housing matters. Such mechanisms should allow for participation of Roma representatives and NGOs at all stages of monitoring. Protection of the rights of Roma women 20. Member states should ensure that anti-discrimination laws prohibit gender-based discrimination, directly or indirectly, in the supply of goods and services, including housing. Member states should also foster housing policies addressing the needs of Roma women, and in particular single mothers, victims of domestic violence and other categories of disadvantaged Roma women; the relevant authorities should ensure that access to social housing is provided to them, taking into consideration their urgent needs. Member states should create mechanisms that protect women’s housing rights from any form of violation. Preventing segregation in environmentally hazardous areas 21. Member states should take measures to combat any forms of segregation on racial grounds in environmentally hazardous areas. This includes investing in the development of safe locations and taking steps to ensure that Roma communities have practical and affordable housing alternatives, so as to discourage settlements in, near or on hazardous areas. Providing effective sanctions 22.Member states should provide for effective, proportionate and dissuasive sanctions on the institutions, agencies, public officials and private persons who violate anti-discrimination laws with regard to housing. Existing remedies should be accessible and well-publicised and appropriate remedies should be available for victims. V. Protection and improvement of existing housing Security of land, housing and property tenure 23. Member states, bearing in mind that the right to housing is a basic human right, should ensure that Roma are protected against unlawful eviction, harassment and other threats regardless of where they are residing. Legalisation of Roma settlements and encampments 24. The public authorities should make every effort to resolve the undefined legal status of Roma settlements as a precondition for further improvements. Where Roma camp illegally, public authorities should use a proportionate response. This may be through negotiation or the use of legal action. However, they should seek, where possible, solutions, which are acceptable for all parties in order to avoid Roma from being excluded from access to services and amenities to which they are entitled as citizens of the state where they live. Access to property 25. Member states, through their relevant authorities, should ensure equal opportunity for Roma to acquire the ownership of the land on which they currently live, and an access to the information on the possibilities of doing so. Adequate alternatives should be provided in situations where this is not possible. Legal protection from unlawful evictions and the procedure for legal evictions 26. Member states should establish a legal framework that conforms with international human rights standards, to ensure effective protection against unlawful forced and collective evictions and to control strictly the circumstances in which legal evictions may be carried out. In the case of lawful evictions, Roma must be provided with appropriate alternative accommodation, if needed, except in cases of force majeure. Legislation should also strictly define the procedures for legal eviction, and such legislation should comply with international human rights standards and principles, including those articulated in General Comment No. 7 on forced evictions of the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural rights. Such measures shall include consultation with the community or individual concerned, reasonable notice, provision of information, a guarantee that the eviction will be carried out in a reasonable manner, effective legal remedies and free or low cost legal assistance for the persons concerned. The alternative housing should not result in further segregation. Provision of adequate services 27. Member states, through their relevant authorities, should provide the same adequate level of services to Roma settlements and camp sites as to other groups of the population, while keeping in mind the need for sustainable solutions. Moreover, authorities should be aware that, beyond the delivery of adequate services, they should act so as to improve the overall quality of life in Roma settlements and camp sites by promoting better management of daily life, that is: area-based administrative, commercial, social and sanitary services, public transportation, refuse disposal, the upkeep of public apartments, buildings or camp sites and their surroundings, adequate management of neighbourhood conflicts and of problems linked to non-payment of rents and services, and so on. VI. Framework for housing policies Policies to promote access to housing 28. The member states should make the improvement of Roma housing conditions one of their priority areas for action. They should promote equal opportunities for Roma as regards access to the private or public property markets, particularly through non-discriminatory policies and criteria for the allocation of housing, and through a legal and political framework that is consistent nationwide and is binding on local authorities, since they have prime responsibility for housing issues. Comprehensive and integrated housing policies 29. Member states, taking into account the potentially synergetic links between housing policies and other socially-oriented policies concerning access to welfare, employment, health and education, should encourage public authorities, at all levels, to adopt comprehensive approaches and policies. Participation in the preparation of housing policies 30. Roma should be involved as early as possible in the process of planning and setting up of their future settlement areas or permanent housing units, so as to assess as precisely as possible what their particular needs are, or will be, in the future. Member states should also ensure that Roma residing on their territory – whether sedentary, nomadic or semi-nomadic – are given an appropriate assistance to define their specific needs in terms of housing, as well as access to appropriate welfare and social services (health, education, employment, culture, and so on). The need for adequate housing models 31. Bearing in mind the diversity of national, regional and local situations, member states should provide for adequate housing models, through national legislations, policies or strategies. Provision should also be made for Roma to be able to acquire their own accommodation by different means, forms and methods of access to housing, such as social housing, cooperatives, do-it-yourself housing, public housing, caravans and other innovative forms of housing. All the relevant elements to the housing models mentioned (financial, social and other) should be carefully defined. Housing policy adapted to specific situations 32. Member states should develop and implement programmes and projects that are tailored to the specific situations of the diverse Roma communities. Such programmes and policies should include the building or development of the entire physical and social infrastructure that is needed for adequate and sustainable housing. Providing equipped transit/halting sites 33. Member states should ensure that an adequate number of transit/halting sites are provided to nomadic and semi-nomadic Roma. These transit/halting sites should be adequately equipped with necessary facilities including water, electricity, sanitation and refuse collection. The physical borders or fences should not harm the dignity of the persons and their freedom of movement. Access to health and sanitary services 34. Nomadic or semi-nomadic groups should be provided access to proper and adequate sanitary conditions as well as easier access to existing health infrastructures and services (especially in emergency situations, and as part of preventive health campaigns). Roma who are permanently and legally settled in derelict or unhealthy surroundings should receive assistance in order to improve the sanitary conditions of their homes (help for repairs, assistance in improving their living conditions and environment, measures to allow them better access to short-term loans for acquiring better housing, mediation in their relations with administrations or public services). Role of regional and local authorities 35. Member states should make sure that local and regional authorities meet their obligations with regard to Roma, even when the latter do not reside permanently on a given territory. Local government agencies should be educated in the area of non-discrimination and should be held accountable by the state for discriminatory practices and policies in the field of housing. International relief 36. When they are unable to carry out their obligations in the field of housing, member states should accept international relief assistance for the benefit of Roma. Member states should pay particular attention to international assistance projects or programmes so as to ensure a high level of cooperation, transparency and closer cooperation with local partners. Awareness-raising 37. Member states should launch and encourage local authorities and Non-governmental Organisations active in the field of housing to launch awareness-raising campaigns on the rights of Roma to equal access to the housing market and information campaigns for the Roma communities on their rights to adequate housing. National campaigns on secure tenure promoted by the national committees on implementation of the United Nations Habitat Agenda, as adopted and ratified by member states at the Habitat II Conference, could be an adequate framework for such awareness-raising campaigns. Employment initiatives and construction 38. Member states should encourage employment initiatives at local level inter alia by providing incentives for Roma to participate in the entire process of renovation/construction works of their future homes. This would contribute to improving their economic situation, help to give them better access to funding for their projects, both individual and collective, help to mitigate their feeling of precariousness and rejection, and foster a sense of ownership. This would also provide Roma with new competences that would allow them to explore new vocational avenues and would leave them less vulnerable to unemployment. Statistical data-base and housing policy indicators 39. As a preliminary tool for policy development, in order to better assess the actual situation of disadvantaged categories of persons as regards housing, member states should ensure that the relevant national public authorities gather statistical data on a regular basis in accordance with, and in the spirit of, international and national norms in the field of personal data protection. They should also establish indicators for measuring the achievement of policy objectives over time. Member states which regularly collect Habitat housing indicators should also apply this to Roma housing. VII. Financing of housing Sustainability of financial resources 40. Member states should acknowledge that successful social cohesion policies require proper funding and assistance, continuous commitment and a long-term approach. Moreover, it should be borne in mind that solutions to such a wide array of different issues and problems will necessarily have to be implemented in a flexible manner. Suitable and proper access to funding and to means of fostering stability and security (including, but not restricted to, access to property) are central to any long-term action in this field. Financing housing projects from various sources 41. Member states should ensure that housing-related projects are financed from national public budgets as well as from a variety of sources (private donors and international financial institutions) and be administered through a network of partners, at local, regional, national and transfrontier level. Since the implementing period of housing projects is quite long, these projects should be accurately planned in terms of financing and works so as not to raise false expectations among the populations concerned. In addition, since these are mainly area- and community-based projects, it is of the utmost importance that local networks and partnerships be built and fostered. Integrated funding 42. Since housing projects are part of wider-based, further-reaching policies, member states, through their relevant authorities, should approach the financing of such projects in a comprehensive manner that takes into account aspects such as physical and health infrastructures, social cohesion needs and potential initiatives, culture, education, or employment opportunities. International support for Roma housing 43. Member states should be encouraged to make use of the possibilities, including loans offered by international financial institutions in favour of Roma housing projects. They should also make use of the expertise of international financial institutions that have gained extensive knowledge in managing this kind of integrated project in many parts of the world, among them the Council of Europe Development Bank, whose mandate includes operating in areas such as housing of disadvantaged population groups in Europe so as to promote social cohesion. The World Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, as well as some European Union programmes could also be of particular use in this respect. Access to funding possibilities to acquire housing 44. Member states should develop adequate financial structures that provide for easier access to available sources of funding for housing, in cooperation with international financial institutions if necessary. Member states, through their relevant authorities, should also consider appropriate mechanisms to enable nomadic and semi-nomadic people to acquire caravans or mobile homes through low interest loans or other financial schemes, which do not put them at a disadvantage with regard to possibilities offered to sedentary people. Funding infrastructure and services 45. Member states should ensure that local authorities and financial institutions provide funding for accompanying measures aiming at developing or building basic infrastructures and services and enhancing the quality of life of Roma in general, in order to improve the daily management of settlements or sites and to strengthen the overall social cohesion. Specific budgetary provisions 46. Competent bodies of member states should allocate specific financial means to serve as an incentive for positive action on the part of the responsible authorities, such as development of field work, inclusion of the issue of Roma housing in land-use plans, access to expert advice and mediation for municipalities concerned, and so on. VIII. Housing standards Adequate housing as a basis for all housing standards 47. Member states should regulate and implement in practice, the concept of “adequate housing” as defined in Paragraph 60 of the United Nations Habitat Agenda, and General Comments Nos. 4 and 7 of the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, bearing in mind the human rights dimension, economic conditions both locally and in the country as a whole, and related social and cultural elements. This concept should be defined so as to apply to all citizens, including Roma. The definition of “adequate housing” should form the basis for all other housing standards. Standard for housing location and surroundings 48. Member states, through their relevant authorities, should ensure that Roma housing is located in areas that are fit for habitation or suitable for construction under current legislation, and in ecologically healthy surroundings. Moreover, they should adopt measures that would enable Roma communities to react to unexpected events, such as natural disasters or epidemics, which often disproportionately affect vulnerable groups living in precarious settlements. The existing settlements which cannot be removed from unsuitable locations should be improved by appropriate and constructive environmental measures. Legal standards for public and social services 49. Legal standards applying to public services – water, electricity, street cleaning, sewage systems, refuse disposal, and so on – should equally apply to Roma settlements and camp sites. Public transportation should be a part of area-based facilities. The authorities should also make sure that public services, such as health care facilities, access to education, police stations, post and telecommunication offices, are available in these areas. Authorities should pay specific attention to the physical distance between Roma settlements and camp sites and schools, as it is an important factor in fighting against the creation of ghettos. The need for non-discriminatory security standards 50. The Roma housing environment should not be worse than, or inferior, to the housing areas, settlements and towns of the majority population. The standards used in supplying settlements and building apartments should not discriminate against Roma in any way. Minimum construction standards 51. The quality of the material (built-in and permanently visible parts of the apartments and houses, such as joinery, wall and floor coatings, installations, sanitary fixtures, technical equipment, and so on) depends directly on the economic possibilities of the tenants, on community funds, and ultimately on the economic situation of society as a whole. Member states should therefore ensure that minimum construction standards exist, guaranteeing a healthy life, balanced family relations and proper conditions for children, and good neighbourhood relations. Standards for adaptability and enhancement of housing 52. The apartment surface area should correspond to the number of tenants, while bearing in mind normal human adjustment to the spatial framework. Since families are dynamic – an increasing number of members, changes in economic possibilities and cultural needs, changes in vital needs and the development of aspirations – the architectural and legal solutions should make it possible to follow these dynamics by facilitating extensions to, and improving the interior properties of, apartments. Even when apartments are built with less surface area than average, they should be designed in advance for extension and enhancement. Standards regarding the adaptability of structure and surface size should be introduced, providing the technical possibilities for poor families to start with modest housing that they can expand and enhance later on. CHARTER OF FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS OF THE EUROPEAN UNION
COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION: RACIAL EQUALITY DIRECTIVE (2000/43/EC) of 29 June 2000 This EU directive covers in accordance with its article 3.1 (h) ethnic and racial discrimination in the field of housing and social protection, both in the public and private sector, including by public bodies. GENERAL PROVISIONS Article 1: Purpose The purpose of this Directive is to lay down a framework for combating discrimination on the grounds of racial or ethnic origin, with a view to putting into effect in the Member States the principle of equal treatment. Article 2: Concept of discrimination 1. For the purposes of this Directive, the
principle of equal treatment shall mean that there shall be no direct or indirect discrimination based on racial or ethnic origin. Article 3: Scope 1. Within the limits of the powers conferred upon the Community, this
Directive shall apply to all persons, as regards both the public and private sectors, including public bodies, in relation to: […] REMEDIES AND ENFORCEMENT Article 7: Defence of rights 1. Member States shall ensure that judicial and/or administrative procedures, including where they deem it appropriate conciliation procedures, for the enforcement of obligations under this
Directive are available to all persons who consider themselves wronged by failure to apply the principle of equal treatment to them, even after the relationship in which the discrimination is alleged to have occurred has ended. BODIES FOR THE PROMOTION OF EQUAL TREATMENT Article 13 1. Member States shall designate a
body or bodies for the promotion of equal treatment of all persons without discrimination on the grounds of racial or ethnic origin. These bodies may form part of agencies charged at national level with the defence of human rights or the safeguard of individuals' rights. FINAL PROVISIONS Article 14: Compliance Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that: Article 15: Sanctions Member States shall lay down the rules on sanctions applicable to infringements of the national provisions adopted pursuant to this Directive and shall take all measures necessary to ensure that they are applied. The sanctions, which may comprise the payment of compensation to the victim, must be effective, proportionate and dissuasive. The Member States shall notify those provisions to the Commission by 19 July 2003 at the latest and shall notify it without delay of any subsequent amendment affecting them. Declarations of the United NationsDECLARATION ON THE RIGHT TO DEVELOPMENT (1986)
UNITED NATIONS PRINCIPLES FOR OLDER PERSONS (1991)
DURBAN DECLARATION AND PROGRAMME OF ACTION (2001) DECLARATION 31. We also express our deep concern whenever indicators in the fields of, inter alia, education, employment, health, housing, infant mortality and life expectancy for many peoples show a situation of disadvantage, particularly where the contributing factors include racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia
and related intolerance; […] PROGRAMME OF ACTION Africans and people of African descent 8. Urges financial and development institutions and the operational programmes and specialized agencies of the United Nations, in accordance with their regular budgets and the procedures of their governing bodies: […] (c) To develop programmes intended for people of African descent allocating additional investments to health systems, education, housing, electricity, drinking water and environmental control measures and promoting equal opportunities in employment, as well as other affirmative or positive action initiatives; […] Migrant 33. Recommends that host countries of migrants consider the provision of adequate social services, in particular in the areas of health, education and adequate housing, as a matter of priority, in cooperation with the United Nations agencies, the regional organizations and international financial bodies; also requests that these agencies provide an adequate response to requests for such services; Other victims 48. Urges States to recognize the effect that discrimination, marginalization and social exclusion have had and continue to have on many racial groups living in a numerically based minority situation within a State, and to ensure that persons in such groups can exercise, as individual members of such groups, fully and effectively, all human rights and fundamental freedoms without distinction and in full equality before the law, and to take, where applicable, appropriate measures in respect of employment, housing and education with a view to preventing racial discrimination; 49. Urges States to take, where applicable, appropriate measures to prevent racial discrimination against persons belonging to national or ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities in respect of employment, health care, housing, social services and education, and in this context forms of multiple discrimination should be taken into account; […] 81. Urges all States to prohibit discriminatory treatment based on race, colour, descent or national or ethnic origin against foreigners and migrant workers, inter alia, where appropriate, concerning the granting of work visas and work permits, housing, health care and access to justice; Data collection and disaggregation, research and study 92. Urges States to collect, compile, analyse, disseminate and publish reliable statistical data at the national and local levels and undertake all other related measures which are necessary to assess regularly the situation of individuals and groups of individuals who are victims of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance; […] (c) The information should take into account economic and social indicators, including, where appropriate, health and health status, infant and maternal mortality, life expectancy, literacy, education, employment, housing, land ownership, mental and physical health care, water, sanitation, energy and communications services, poverty and average disposable income, in order to elaborate social and economic development policies with a view to closing the existing gaps in social and economic conditions; Action-oriented policies and action plans, including affirmative action to ensure nondiscrimination, in particular as regards access to social services, employment, housing, education, health care, etc. 100. Urges States to establish, on the basis of statistical information, national programmes, including affirmative or positive measures, to promote the access of individuals and groups of individuals who are or may be victims of racial discrimination to basic social services, including primary education, basic health care and adequate housing; UNITED NATIONS DECLARATION ON THE RIGHTS OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLES (2007)
UNITED NATIONS DECLARATION ON THE RIGHTS OF PEASANTS AND OTHER PERSONS WORKING IN RURAL AREAS (2018)
UNITED NATIONS STANDARD MINIMUM RULES FOR THE TREATMENT OF PRISONERS (Nelson Mandela Rules) (2015) On 17 December 2015 the General Assembly adopted a revised version of the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners. The rules contain the following provisions in relation to accommodation and housing of prisoners during and after imprisonment. Separation of categories Accommodation Rule 13 Rule 14 Rule 15 Rule 16 Rule 17 Rule 21 Rule 59 Social relations and aftercare Related recommendations: SENDAI FRAMEWORK FOR DISASTER RISK REDUCTION (2015) The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction was adopted at the Third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction in Sendai, Japan, on 18 March 2015.
2030 AGENDA FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT (2015) The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, includes Sustainable Development Goal 11 to make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.
VANCOUVER DECLARATION ON HUMAN SETTLEMENTS (1976) II. General Principles 1. The improvement of the quality of life of human beings is the first and most important objective of every human settlement policy. These policies must facilitate the rapid and continuous improvement in the quality of life of all people, beginning with the satisfaction of the basic needs of food, shelter, clean water, employment, health, education, training, social security without any discrimination as to race, colour, sex, language, religion, ideology, national or social origin or other cause, in a frame of freedom, dignity and social justice. 2. In striving to achieve this objective, priority must be given to the needs of the most disadvantaged people. […] 5. The establishment of settlements in territories occupied by force is illegal. It is condemned by the international community. However, action still remains to be taken against the establishment of such settlements. 6. The right of free movement and the right of each individual to choose the place of settlement within the domain of his own country should be recognized and safeguarded. […] 13. All persons have the right and the duty to participate, individually and collectively in the elaboration and implementation of policies and programmes of their human settlements. […] 15. The highest priority should be placed on the rehabilitation of expelled and homeless people who have been displaced by natural or man--‐made catastrophes, and especially by the act of foreign aggression. In the latter case, all countries have the duty to fully co--‐operate in order to guarantee that the parties involved allow the return of displaced persons to their homes and to give them the right to possess and enjoy their properties and belongings without interference. […] 17. Every State has the sovereign right to rule and exercise effective control over foreign investments, including transnational corporations – within its national jurisdiction, which affect directly or indirectly the human settlement programmes. III. Guidelines for Action 6. Human settlement policies and programmes should define and strive for progressive minimum standards for an acceptable quality of life. These standards will vary within and between countries, as well as over periods of time, and therefore must be subject to change in accordance with conditions and possibilities. Some standards are most appropriately defined in quantitative terms, thus providing precisely defined targets at the local and national levels. Others must be qualitative, with their achievement subject to felt need. At the same time, social justice and a fair sharing of resources demand the discouragement of excessive consumption. […] 8. Adequate shelter and services are a basic human right which places an obligation on Governments to ensure their attainment by all people, beginning with direct assistance to the least advantaged through guided programmes of self-help and community action. Governments should endeavour to remove all impediments hindering attainment of these goals. Of special importance is the elimination of social and racial segregation, inter alia, through the creation of better balanced communities, which blend different social groups, occupations, housing and amenities 9. Health is an essential element in the development of the individual and one of the goals of human settlement policies should be to improve environmental health conditions and basic health services. 10. Basic human dignity is the right of people, individually and collectively, to participate directly in shaping the policies and programmes affecting their lives. The process of choosing and carrying out a given course of action for human settlement improvement should be designed expressly to fulfil that right. Effective human settlement policies require a continuous co--‐operative relationship between a Government and its people at all levels. It is recommended that national Governments promote programmes that will encourage and assist local authorities to participate to a greater extent in national development. 11. Since a genuine human settlement policy requires the effective participation of the entire population, recourse must therefore be made at all times to technical arrangements permitting the use of all human resources, both skilled and unskilled. The equal participation of women must be guaranteed. These goals must be associated with a global training programme to facilitate the introduction and use of technologies that maximize productive employment. Recommendations for National Action
INSTANBUL DECLARATION ON HUMAN SETTLEMENTS (1996) adopted during the UN Habitat II Conference on 14 June 1996. Below are excerpts of references to human rights, to non-discrimination and the right to adequate housing in the Declaration. 7. As human beings are at the centre of our concern for sustainable development, they are the basis for our actions as in implementing the Habitat Agenda. We recognize the particular needs of women, children and youth for safe, healthy and secure living conditions. We shall intensify our efforts to eradicate poverty and discrimination, to promote and protect all human rights and fundamental freedoms for all, and to provide for basic needs, such as education, nutrition and life-span health care services, and, especially, adequate shelter for all. To this end, we commit ourselves to improving the living conditions in human settlements in ways that are consonant with local needs and realities, and we acknowledge the need to address the global, economic, social and environmental trends to ensure the creation of better living environments for all people. We shall also ensure the full and equal participation of all women and men, and the effective participation of youth, in political, economic and social life. We shall promote full accessibility for people with disabilities, as well as gender equality in policies, programmes and projects for shelter and sustainable human settlements development. We make these commitments with particular reference to the more than one billion people living in absolute poverty and to the members of vulnerable and disadvantaged groups identified in the Habitat Agenda. 8. We reaffirm our commitment to the full and progressive realization of the right to adequate housing as provided for in international instruments. To that end, we shall seek the active participation of our public, private and non-governmental partners at all levels to ensure legal security of tenure, protection from discrimination and equal access to affordable, adequate housing for all persons and their families. 9. We shall work to expand the supply of affordable housing by enabling markets to perform efficiently and in a socially and environmentally responsible manner, enhancing access to land and credit and assisting those who are unable to participate in housing markets. THE HABITAT AGENDA PREAMBLE 3. As to the first theme, a large segment of the world's population lacks shelter and sanitation, particularly in developing countries. We recognize that access to safe and healthy shelter and basic services is essential to a person's physical, psychological, social and economic well-being and should be a fundamental part of our urgent actions for the more than one billion people without decent living conditions. Our objective is to achieve adequate shelter for all, especially the deprived urban and rural poor, through an enabling approach to the development and improvement of shelter that is environmentally sound. […] 11. More people than ever are living in absolute poverty and without adequate shelter. Inadequate shelter and homelessness are growing plights in many countries, threatening standards of health, security and even life itself. Everyone has the right to an adequate standard of living for themselves and their families, including adequate food, clothing, housing, water and sanitation, and to the continuous improvement of living conditions. 12. The rapidly increasing number of displaced persons, including refugees, other displaced persons in need of international protection and internally displaced persons, as a result of natural and human-made disasters in many regions of the world, is aggravating the shelter crisis, highlighting the need for a speedy solution to the problem on a durable basis. 13. The needs of children and youth, particularly with regard to their living environment, have to be taken fully into account. Special attention needs to be paid to the participatory processes dealing with the shaping of cities, towns and neighbourhoods; this is in order to secure the living conditions of children and of youth and to make use of their insight, creativity and thoughts on the environment. Special attention must be paid to the shelter needs of vulnerable children, such as street children, refugee children and children who are victims of sexual exploitation. Parents and other persons legally responsible for children have responsibilities, rights and duties, consistent with the Convention on the Rights of the Child, to address these needs. 14. In shelter and urban development and management policies, particular attention should be given to the needs and participation of indigenous people. These policies should fully respect their identity and culture and provide an appropriate environment that enables them to participate in political, social and economic life. 15. Women have an important role to play in the attainment of sustainable human settlements. Nevertheless, as a result of a number of factors, including the persistent and increasing burden of poverty on women and discrimination against women, women face particular constraints in obtaining adequate shelter and in fully participating in decision-making related to sustainable human settlements. The empowerment of women and their full and equal participation in political, social and economic life, the improvement of health and the eradication of poverty are essential to achieving sustainable human settlements. 16. Encountering disabilities is a part of normal life. Persons with disabilities have not always had the opportunity to participate fully and equally in human settlements development and management, including decision-making, often owing to social, economic, attitudinal and physical barriers, and discrimination. Such barriers should be removed and the needs and concerns of persons with disabilities should be fully integrated into shelter and sustainable human settlement plans and policies to create access for all. 17. Older persons are entitled to lead fulfilling and productive lives and should have opportunities for full participation in their communities and society, and in all decision-making regarding their well-being, especially their shelter needs. Their many contributions to the political, social and economic processes of human settlements should be recognized and valued. Special attention should be given to meeting the evolving housing and mobility needs in order to enable them to continue to lead rewarding lives in their communities. […] GOALS AND PRINCIPLES 22. The objectives of the Habitat Agenda are in full conformity with the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations and international law. 23. While the significance of national and regional particularities and various historical, cultural and religious backgrounds must be borne in mind, it is the duty of all States to promote and protect all human rights and fundamental freedoms, including the right to development. […] 26. We reaffirm and are guided by the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations and we reaffirm our commitment to ensuring the full realization of the human rights set out in international instruments and in particular, in this context, the right to adequate housing as set forth in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and provided for in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, taking into account that the right to adequate housing, as included in the above-mentioned international instruments, shall be realized progressively. We reaffirm that all human rights - civil, cultural, economic, political and social - are universal, indivisible, interdependent and interrelated. We subscribe to the principles and goals set out below to guide us in our actions. 27. Equitable human settlements are those in which all people, without discrimination of any kind as to race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status, have equal access to housing, infrastructure, health services, adequate food and water, education and open spaces. In addition, such human settlements provide equal opportunity for a productive and freely chosen livelihood; equal access to economic resources, including the right to inheritance, the ownership of land and other property, credit, natural resources and appropriate technologies; equal opportunity for personal, spiritual, religious, cultural and social development; equal opportunity for participation in public decision-making; equal rights and obligations with regard to the conservation and use of natural and cultural resources; and equal access to mechanisms to ensure that rights are not violated. The empowerment of women and their full participation on the basis of equality in all spheres of society, whether rural or urban, are fundamental to sustainable human settlements development. […] 36. Human health and quality of life are at the centre of the effort to develop sustainable human settlements. We therefore commit ourselves to promoting and attaining the goals of universal and equal access to quality education, the highest attainable standard of physical, mental and environmental health, and the equal access of all to primary health care, making particular efforts to rectify inequalities relating to social and economic conditions, including housing, without distinction as to race, national origin, gender, age, or disability, respecting and promoting our common and particular cultures. Good health throughout the life-span of every man and woman, good health for every child, and quality education for all are fundamental to ensuring that people of all ages are able to develop their full capacities in health and dignity and to participate fully in the social, economic and political processes of human settlements, thus contributing, inter alia, to the eradication of poverty. Sustainable human settlements depend on the interactive development of policies and concrete actions to provide access to food and nutrition, safe drinking water, sanitation, and universal access to the widest range of primary health-care services, consistent with the report of the International Conference on Population and Development; to eradicate major diseases that take a heavy toll of human lives, particularly childhood diseases; to create safe places to work and live; and to protect the environment. […] 38. In implementing these commitments, special attention should be given to the circumstances and needs of people living in poverty, people who are homeless, women, older people, indigenous people, refugees, displaced persons, persons with disabilities and those belonging to vulnerable and disadvantaged groups. Special consideration should also be given to the needs of migrants. Furthermore, special attention should be given to the specific needs and circumstances of children, particularly street children. A. Adequate shelter for all 39. We reaffirm our commitment to the full and progressive realization of the right to adequate housing, as provided for in international instruments. In this context, we recognize an obligation by Governments to enable people to obtain shelter and to protect and improve dwellings and neighbourhoods. We commit ourselves to the goal of improving living and working conditions on an equitable and sustainable basis, so that everyone will have adequate shelter that is healthy, safe, secure, accessible and affordable and that includes basic services, facilities and amenities, and will enjoy freedom from discrimination in housing and legal security of tenure. We shall implement and promote this objective in a manner fully consistent with human rights standards. 40. We further commit ourselves to the objectives of: (a) Ensuring consistency and coordination of macroeconomic and shelter policies and strategies as a social priority within the framework of national development programmes and urban policies in order to support resource mobilization, employment generation, poverty eradication and social integration; (c) Promoting access for all people to safe drinking water, sanitation and other basic services, facilities and amenities, especially for people living in poverty, women and those belonging to vulnerable and disadvantaged groups; (d) Ensuring transparent, comprehensive and accessible systems in transferring land rights and legal security of tenure; (e) Promoting broad, non-discriminatory access to open, efficient, effective and appropriate housing financing for all people, including mobilizing innovative financial and other resources - public and private - for community development; (f) Promoting locally available, appropriate, affordable, safe, efficient and environmentally sound construction methods and technologies in all countries, particularly in developing countries, at the local, national, regional and subregional levels that emphasize optimal use of local human resources and encourage energy-saving methods and are protective of human health; (g) Designing and implementing standards that provide accessibility also to persons with disabilities in accordance with the Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities; (h) Increasing the supply of affordable housing, including through encouraging and promoting affordable home ownership and increasing the supply of affordable rental, communal, cooperative and other housing through partnerships among public, private and community initiatives, creating and promoting market-based incentives while giving due respect to the rights and obligations of both tenants and owners; (i) Promoting the upgrading of existing housing stock through rehabilitation and maintenance and the adequate supply of basic services, facilities and amenities; (j) Eradicating and ensuring legal protection from discrimination in access to shelter and basic services, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status; similar protection should be ensured against discrimination on the grounds of disability or age; (k) Helping the family, in its supporting, educating and nurturing roles, to recognize its important contribution to social integration, and encouraging social and economic policies that are designed to meet the housing needs of families and their individual members, especially the most disadvantaged and vulnerable members, with particular attention to the care of children; (l) Promoting shelter and supporting basic services and facilities for education and health for the homeless, displaced persons, indigenous people, women and children who are survivors of family violence, persons with disabilities, older persons, victims of natural and man-made disasters and people belonging to vulnerable and disadvantaged groups, including temporary shelter and basic services for refugees; (m) Protecting, within the national context, the legal traditional rights of indigenous people to land and other resources, as well as strengthening of land management; (n) Protecting all people from and providing legal protection and redress for forced evictions that are contrary to the law, taking human rights into consideration; when evictions are unavoidable, ensuring, as appropriate, that alternative suitable solutions are provided. […] GLOBAL PLAN OF ACTION: STRATEGIES FOR IMPLEMENTATION B. Adequate shelter for all 1. Introduction 60. Adequate shelter means more than a roof over one's head. It also means adequate privacy; adequate space; physical accessibility; adequate security; security of tenure; structural stability and durability; adequate lighting, heating and ventilation; adequate basic infrastructure, such as water-supply, sanitation and waste-management facilities; suitable environmental quality and health-related factors; and adequate and accessible location with regard to work and basic facilities: all of which should be available at an affordable cost. Adequacy should be determined together with the people concerned, bearing in mind the prospect for gradual development. Adequacy often varies from country to country, since it depends on specific cultural, social, environmental and economic factors. Gender-specific and age-specific factors, such as the exposure of children and women to toxic substances, should be considered in this context. 61. Since the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948, the right to adequate housing has been recognized as an important component of the right to an adequate standard of living. All Governments without exception have a responsibility in the shelter sector, as exemplified by their creation of ministries of housing or agencies, by their allocation of funds for the housing sector and by their policies, programmes and projects. The provision of adequate housing for everyone requires action not only by Governments, but by all sectors of society, including the private sector, non-governmental organizations, communities and local authorities, as well as by partner organizations and entities of the international community. Within the overall context of an enabling approach, Governments should take appropriate action in order to promote, protect and ensure the full and progressive realization of the right to adequate housing. These actions include, but are not limited to: (a) Providing, in the matter of housing, that the law shall prohibit any discrimination and guarantee to all persons equal and effective protection against discrimination on any ground such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status; (b) Providing legal security of tenure and equal access to land for all, including women and those living in poverty, as well as effective protection from forced evictions that are contrary to the law, taking human rights into consideration and bearing in mind that homeless people should not be penalized for their status; (c) Adopting policies aimed at making housing habitable, affordable and accessible, including for those who are unable to secure adequate housing through their own means, by, inter alia: (i) Expanding the supply of affordable housing through appropriate regulatory measures and market incentives; (d) Effective monitoring and evaluation of housing conditions, including the extent of homelessness and inadequate housing, and, in consultation with the affected population, formulating and adopting appropriate housing policies and implementing effective strategies and plans to address those problems. […] 3. Shelter delivery systems (a) Enabling markets to work 72. To ensure market efficiency, Governments at the appropriate levels and consistent with their legal authority should: (a) Assess housing supply and demand on a gender-disaggregated basis and collect, analyse and disseminate information about housing markets and other delivery mechanisms, and encourage the private and non-profit sectors and the media to do the same, while avoiding duplication of efforts; […] (e) Undertake legislative and administrative reforms to give women full and equal access to economic resources, including the right to inheritance and the ownership of land and other property, credit, natural resources and appropriate technologies; […] (b)Facilitating community-based production of housing 73. In many countries, particularly developing countries, more than half the existing housing stock has been built by the owner-occupiers themselves, serving mainly the lower-income population. Self-built housing will continue to play a major role in the provision of housing into the distant future. Many countries are supporting self-built housing by regularizing and upgrading programmes. 74. To support the efforts of people, individually or collectively, to produce shelter, Governments at the appropriate levels should, where appropriate: (a) Promote self-built housing within the context of a comprehensive land-use policy; (b) Integrate and regularize self-built housing, especially through appropriate land registration programmes, as a holistic part of the overall housing and infrastructure system in urban and rural areas, subject to a comprehensive land-use policy; (c) Encourage efforts to improve existing self-built housing through better access to housing resources, including land, finance and building materials; (d) Develop the means and methods to improve the standards of self-built housing; (e) Encourage community-based and non-governmental organizations in their role of assisting and facilitating the production of self-built housing; (f) Facilitate regular dialogue and gender-sensitive participation of the various actors involved in housing production at all levels and stages of decision-making; (g) Mitigate the problems related to spontaneous human settlements through programmes and policies that anticipate unplanned settlements. (c) Ensuring access to land 75. Access to land and legal security of tenure are strategic prerequisites for the provision of adequate shelter for all and for the development of sustainable human settlements affecting both urban and rural areas. It is also one way of breaking the vicious circle of poverty. Every Government must show a commitment to promoting the provision of an adequate supply of land in the context of sustainable land-use policies. While recognizing the existence of different national laws and/or systems of land tenure, Governments at the appropriate levels, including local authorities, should nevertheless strive to remove all possible obstacles that may hamper equitable access to land and ensure that equal rights of women and men related to land and property are protected under the law.[…] 78. To eradicate legal and social barriers to the equal and equitable access to land, especially the access of women, people with disabilities and those belonging to vulnerable groups, Governments at the appropriate levels, in partnership with the private sector, non-governmental organizations, the cooperative sector and community-based organizations, should: (a) Address the cultural, ethnic, religious, social and disability-based causes that result in the creation of barriers that lead to segregation and exclusion, inter alia, by encouraging education and training for peaceful conflict resolution; (b) Promote awareness campaigns, education and enabling practices regarding, in particular, legal rights with respect to tenure, land ownership and inheritance for women, so as to overcome existing barriers; (c) Review legal and regulatory frameworks, adjusting them to the principles and commitments of the Global Plan of Action and ensuring that the equal rights of women and men are clearly specified and enforced; (d) Develop regularization programmes and formulate and implement such programmes and projects in consultation with the concerned population and organized groups, ensuring the full and equal participation of women and taking into account the needs differentiated by gender, age, disability and vulnerability; (e) Support, inter alia, community projects, policies and programmes that aim to remove all barriers to women's access to affordable housing, land and property ownership, economic resources, infrastructure and social services, and ensure the full participation of women in all decision-making processes, with particular regard to women in poverty, especially female heads of households and women who are sole providers for their families; (f) Undertake legislative and administrative reforms to give women full and equal access to economic resources, including the right to inheritance and the ownership of land and other property, credit, natural resources and appropriate technologies; (g) Promote mechanisms for the protection of women who risk losing their homes and properties when their husbands die. 79. To facilitate access to land and security of tenure for all socio-economic groups, Governments at the appropriate levels, including local authorities, should: (a) Adopt an enabling legal and regulatory framework based on an enhanced knowledge, understanding and acceptance of existing practices and land delivery mechanisms so as to stimulate partnerships with the private business and community sectors, specifying recognized types of land tenure and prescribing procedures for the regularization of tenure, where needed; (c) Explore innovative arrangements to enhance the security of tenure, other than full legalization, which may be too costly and time-consuming in certain situations, including access to credit, as appropriate, in the absence of a conventional title to land; (d) Promote measures to ensure that women have equal access to credit for buying, leasing or renting land, and equal protection for the legal security of tenure of such land; (e) Capitalize on the potential contribution of key interested parties in the private formal and informal sectors, and support the engagement of non-governmental organizations, community organizations and the private sector in participatory and collective initiatives and mechanisms appropriate to conflict resolution; (f) Encourage, in particular, the participation of community and non-governmental organizations by: (i) Reviewing and adjusting legal and regulatory frameworks in order to recognize and stimulate the diverse forms of organization of the population
engaged in the production and management of land, housing and services; 4. Vulnerable groups and people with special needs 93. Vulnerability and disadvantage are often caused by marginalization in and exclusion from the socio-economic mainstream and decision-making processes and the lack of access on an equal basis to resources and opportunities. If vulnerability and disadvantage are to be reduced, there is a need to improve and ensure access by those belonging to vulnerable and disadvantaged groups to shelter, finance, infrastructure, basic social services, safety nets and decision-making processes within national and international enabling environments. It is understood that not all those belonging to vulnerable and disadvantaged groups are vulnerable and disadvantaged at all times. Vulnerability and disadvantage are mainly caused by circumstances, rather than inherent characteristics. Recognizing that vulnerability and disadvantage are affected, inter alia, by conditions in the housing sector and the availability, enforcement and effectiveness of legal protection guaranteeing equal access to resources and opportunities, some members of certain groups are more likely to be vulnerable and experience disadvantage with regard to shelter and human settlements conditions. Those belonging to vulnerable and disadvantaged groups are especially at risk when they have no security of tenure or where they lack basic services or face disproportionately adverse environmental and health impacts, or because they may be excluded, either inadvertently or deliberately, from the housing market and services. 94. Adequate shelter must be recognized as an important component of the particular care and assistance to which children and their families, as well as children living outside or without families, have a right. Special consideration must be given to the needs of children living in difficult circumstances. 95. Inadequate shelter or lack of shelter contributes to a loss of dignity, security and health in the lives of refugees, other displaced persons in need of international protection and internally displaced persons. There is a need to strengthen the support for the international protection of and assistance to refugees, especially refugee women and children, who are particularly vulnerable. 96. To remove barriers and eradicate discrimination in the provision of shelter, Governments at the appropriate levels, including local authorities, should: (a) Review and revise legal, fiscal and regulatory frameworks that act as barriers within the shelter sectors; (b) Support, through legislation, incentives and other means, where appropriate, organizations of vulnerable and disadvantaged groups so that they may promote their interests and become involved in local and national economic, social and political decision-making; (c) Establish laws and regulations aimed at preventing discrimination and barriers and, where such laws and regulations already exist, ensure their enforcement; (d) Work with private sector cooperatives, local communities and other interested parties to raise awareness of the need to eliminate prejudice and discrimination in housing transactions and the provision of services; (e) Consider becoming parties to the relevant instruments of the United Nations system that, inter alia, deal with the specific and special needs of those belonging to vulnerable and disadvantaged groups, such as the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and the Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees, the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, the International Convention on the Rights of the Child and the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families, and abiding by the Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities; (f) Promote systems of public transport that are affordable and accessible in order to make a wider range of housing and jobs available to vulnerable groups; (g) Provide vulnerable and disadvantaged groups with access to information and with opportunities to participate in the local decision-making process on community and shelter issues that will affect them; (h) Provide increased coverage of water supply and sanitation services to ensure that vulnerable and disadvantaged groups have access to adequate quantities of safe water and to hygienic sanitation. 97. To provide for the shelter needs of those belonging to vulnerable groups, Governments at the appropriate levels, including local authorities, in cooperation with all interested parties, as appropriate, should: (a) Provide, where appropriate, targeted and transparent subsidies, social services and various types of safety nets to the most vulnerable groups; (b) Work with the private and non-profit sectors, community-based organizations and other actors to provide adequate shelter for people belonging to vulnerable groups, making special efforts to remove all physical constraints to the independent living of persons with disabilities and of older persons; (c) Strive to provide special living facilities and shelter solutions for people belonging to vulnerable groups, as appropriate, such as shelters for women subjected to violence, or shared living arrangements for persons with mental or physical disabilities; (d) Provide an environment that enables people belonging to vulnerable groups to participate in the social, economic and political life of their community and country. 98. To reduce vulnerability, Governments at the appropriate levels, including local authorities, should: (a) Work with non-governmental organizations and community-based organizations to assist members of vulnerable groups to obtain secure tenure; (b) Protect all people from and provide legal protection and redress for forced evictions that are contrary to the law, taking human rights into consideration; when evictions are unavoidable, ensure that, as appropriate, alternative suitable solutions are provided; (c) Promote and support self-help housing programmes and initiatives; (d) Promote, where appropriate, compliance with and enforcement of all health and environmental laws, especially in low-income areas with vulnerable groups; (e) Facilitate actions aimed at, inter alia, ensuring legal security of tenure, capacity-building and improving access to credit, which, apart from subsidies and other financial instruments, can provide safety nets that reduce vulnerability; (b) Providing legal security of tenure and equal access to land to all people, including women and those living in poverty; and undertaking legislative and administrative reforms to give women full and equal access to economic resources, including the right to inheritance and to ownership of land and other property, credit, natural resources and appropriate technologies; (f) Pursue policies that will provide information to and consultation with vulnerable groups; (g) Facilitate the availability of legal information and assistance to vulnerable groups; (h) Promote the use of tools for disaster prevention, mitigation and preparedness in order to reduce the vulnerability of populations to natural, man-made and technological disasters. […] C. Sustainable human settlements development in an urbanizing world 3. Social development: eradication of poverty, creation of productive employment and social integration 115. Promoting equitable, socially viable and stable human settlements is inextricably linked to eradicating poverty. The concerns of the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty and the International Decade for the Eradication of Poverty are shared by the international community, which also acknowledges the feminization of poverty. Poverty has various manifestations, including homelessness and inadequate housing. The eradication of poverty requires, inter alia, sound macroeconomic policies aimed at creating employment opportunities, equal and universal access to economic opportunities (and special efforts to facilitate such access for the disadvantaged); education and training that will promote sustainable livelihoods through freely chosen productive employment and work; and basic social services, including health facilities. However, there are no universal solutions that can be fairly applied. People living in poverty must be empowered through freely chosen participation in all aspects of political, economic and social life. Other key elements of a poverty eradication strategy include policies geared to reducing inequalities, increasing opportunities, improving and providing, as appropriate, access to resources, employment and income; promoting rural development and measures to improve economic, social and environmental conditions in rural areas; providing social protection for those who cannot support themselves; recognizing the needs and skills of women; developing human resources; improving infrastructure, including communication facilities, and making it more accessible; and promoting domestic policies for meeting the basic needs of all. 116. To promote equal access to and fair and equitable provision of services in human settlements, Governments at the appropriate level, including local authorities, should: (a) Formulate and implement human settlements development policies that ensure equal access to and maintenance of basic services, including those related to the provision of food security; education; employment and livelihood; basic health care services; safe drinking water and sanitation; adequate shelter; and access to open and green spaces, giving priority to the needs and rights of women and children, who often bear the greatest burden of poverty; (b) Where appropriate, redirect public resources to encourage community-based management of services and infrastructure and promote the participation of the private sector and local residents, including people living in poverty, women, people with disabilities, indigenous people and members of disadvantaged groups, in the identification of public service needs, spatial planning and the design, provision and maintenance of urban infrastructure and open and green spaces. 117. To promote social integration, Governments at the appropriate levels, including local authorities, recognizing the importance of volunteer contributions and in close cooperation with non-governmental organizations, community-based organizations, the cooperative sector and public and private foundations, should: (a) Prohibit discriminatory, exclusionary practices related to shelter, employment and access to social and cultural facilities; (b) Offer opportunities and physical space to encourage positive interaction among culturally diverse groups; (c) Involve marginalized and/or disadvantaged groups and individuals in the planning, decision-making, monitoring and assessment related to human settlements development; (d) Encourage, in cooperation with relevant interested parties, including parents with respect to their children's education, the development of school curricula, education programmes and community-based centres aimed at developing understanding and cooperation among members of diverse cultures. […] 119. In order to promote gender-sensitive planning and management of human settlements, Governments at the appropriate levels, including local authorities, in collaboration with women's groups and other interested parties, should: (a) Adopt, where appropriate, by-laws, standards and norms and develop planning guidelines that take into consideration the needs and situations of women and men and girls and boys in relation to human settlements planning, development and decision-making, and in the provision of and access to basic services, including public transportation, health and educational facilities; (b) Consider in the planning process the fact that women are often involved in the informal sector and use their homes for business or market activities; (c) Promote representative structures, while ensuring women's full and equal participation; (d) Develop policy guidelines and programmes that encourage and actively pursue the involvement of women's groups in all aspects of community development related to environmental infrastructure and the provision of basic urban services, and encourage women's own cooperatives, as well as their membership in other cooperatives; (e) Promote changes in attitudes, structures, policies, laws and other practices relating to gender in order to eliminate all obstacles to human dignity and equality in family and society and promote full and equal participation of women and men, including persons with disabilities, in social, economic and political life, including in the formulation, implementation and follow-up of public policies and programmes; (f) Foster economic policies that have a positive impact on the employment and income of women workers in both the formal and informal sectors and adopt specific measures to address women's unemployment, in particular their long-term unemployment; (g) Eliminate legal and customary barriers, where they exist, to women's equal access to and control of land and finance; (h) Promote equal access to all levels of education for girls and women; (i) Establish programmes that address the absolute poverty found among rural women, focusing on their need for adequate shelter and employment; (j) Generate and disseminate gender disaggregated data, while ensuring that such statistics are collected, compiled, analysed and presented by age and sex; set up monitoring mechanisms in government structures; and integrate the results into mainstream policies for sustainable human settlements development; (k) Enhance community awareness of issues facing women living in poverty, the homeless, migrants, refugees, other displaced women in need of international protection, and internally displaced women, especially those issues related to physical and sexual abuse, and design appropriate community responses; (l) Ensure equal access to housing, land and public services in the urban and rural areas in line with the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. D. Capacity-building and institutional development […] 179. Empowerment and participation contribute to democracy and sustainable human settlements development. Policy formulation and implementation by Governments should be guided by the principles of accountability, transparency and broad-based public participation. Accountability and transparency are imperative in order to prevent corruption and ensure that the available resources are used to the benefit of all people. Each Government should ensure the right of all members of its society to take an active part in the affairs of the community in which they live, and ensure and encourage participation in policy-making at all levels. […] 3. Popular participation and civic engagement 182. To encourage and support participation, civic engagement and the fulfilment of governmental responsibilities, national Governments, local authorities and/or civil society organizations should put into effect, at appropriate levels, institutional and legal frameworks that facilitate and enable the broad-based participation of all people and their community organizations in decision-making and in the implementation and monitoring of human settlements strategies, policies and programmes; these institutional and legal frameworks would be specifically aimed at, inter alia: (a) Protecting the human right to hold and express opinions and to seek, receive and impart ideas and information without interference; (b) Facilitating the legal recognition of organized communities and their consolidation; (c) Permitting, facilitating and protecting the formation of independent non-governmental community, local, national and international organizations; (d) Providing full, timely and comprehensible information, without undue financial burden to the applicant; (e) Undertaking civic and human rights education and training programmes, using all forms of the media and education and information campaigns, to promote a civic spirit and an awareness of civil rights and responsibilities and the means of exercising them, of the changing roles of women and men and of issues relating to sustainable human settlements development and the quality of life; (f) Establishing regular and broad-based consultative mechanisms for involving civil society in decision-making in order to reflect the diverse needs of the community; (g) Removing legal barriers to participation in public life by socially marginalized groups and promoting non-discrimination legislation; (h) Establishing agenda-setting participatory mechanisms enabling individuals, families, communities, indigenous people and civil society to play a proactive role in identifying local needs and priorities and formulating new policies, plans and projects; (i) Fostering an understanding of contractual and other relationships with the private and non-governmental sectors to acquire the skills for negotiating effective partnerships for project implementation, development and management that will maximize benefits for all people; (j) Promoting equality and equity, incorporating gender considerations and the full and equal participation of women, and involving vulnerable and disadvantaged groups, including people living in poverty and other low-income groups, through institutional measures to ensure that their interests are represented in policy- and decision-making processes and through such techniques as advocacy training and seminars, including those that develop mediating and consensus-building skills that will facilitate effective networking and alliance formation; (k) Providing access to effective judicial and administrative channels for affected individuals and groups so that they can challenge or seek redress from decisions and actions that are socially and environmentally harmful or violate human rights, including legal mechanisms to ensure that all State bodies, both national and local, and other civil organizations remain accountable for their actions, in accordance with their social, environmental and human rights obligations; (l) Broadening the procedural right of individuals and civil society organizations to take legal action on behalf of affected communities or groups that do not have the resources or skills to take such action themselves; (m) Promoting the representation of intergenerational interests, including those of children and future generations in decision-making processes, while strengthening families; (n) Promoting the full potential of youth as key partners for the achievement of adequate shelter for all and sustainable human settlements through various forms of education, quality training and skill-building, taking into account the diverse abilities, realities and experiences of youth; (o) Facilitating access to decision-making and planning structures and legal services by people living in poverty and other low-income groups through the provision of such facilities as legal aid and free legal advice centres; (p) Strengthening the capacity of local authorities and civil society to review social, economic and environmental policies affecting their communities and to set local priorities and contribute to the setting of local standards for services in such areas as basic education, child care, public health, public safety, drug-abuse awareness and environmental management; (q) Promoting the use of new information technologies and the media, including the local media, to facilitate dialogue, to exchange relevant information, experiences and practices concerning human settlements and to form constructive partnerships among civil society and decision makers. NEW URBAN AGENDA (2016) On 20 October 2016 the UN Habitat III Conference adopted the New Urban Agenda which includes several commitments of States to human rights, equality, non-discrimination, participation and the right to adequate housing. Key references to human rights in the New Urban Agenda can be found at the following link. GENEVA UN CHARTER ON SUSTAINABLE HOUSING (2015) The Geneva UN Charter on Sustainable Housing is a non-legally binding document that aims to support member States as they seek to ensure access to decent, adequate, affordable and healthy housing for all. It was endorsed by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe on 16 April 2015. Chapter 1. Challenges to sustainable housing United Nations Economic Commission for Europe member States note that: 1. Sustainable housing has a key role in the quality of human life. The positive impact of housing can be increased through the application of principles of: environmental protection; economic effectiveness; social inclusion and participation; and cultural adequacy. The development of sustainable housing in the ECE region faces multiple challenges resulting mainly from globalization, demographic changes, climate change and the economic crisis. 2. Housing provision, management and demolition impact the environment; these processes consume resources (land, water, energy and building materials) and produce, for example, greenhouse gas emissions. Reducing this impact requires the engagement of Governments and civil society as well as action by the ECE and other international organizations. Achieving effective housing management, investing in large-scale retrofitting to improve environmental performance and developing financial mechanisms to improve access to housing should be policy priorities. The life-cycle approach in design should be promoted as one way to reduce the impact of this sector on the environment. 3. A degraded urban environment, with air and noise pollution and a lack of green spaces and mobility options, poses health risks. Housing conditions also have a direct effect on the physical and mental health of the population. Poor housing and indoor environments cause, or contribute to, many preventable diseases and injuries such as respiratory, nervous system and cardiovascular diseases and cancer. 4. The 2008 financial and economic crisis underscored the vital role that stable and transparent housing markets play in the economy. As a result of the crisis, some countries have experienced disturbing imbalances in their housing markets with foreclosures, homelessness, excess housing stock and a lack of affordable housing. 5. Poor, disadvantaged and vulnerable populations may lack affordable and adequate housing, face unhealthy and unsafe housing and physical barriers, and/or related discrimination and exclusion. Those living in substandard and informal settlements often lack water, sanitation and other public services. 6. In some cases urbanization has led to urban sprawl. This has had a negative impact on existing settlements and has reduced the land available for other uses. In other cases, urbanization has been uncontrolled, creating and expanding informal settlements, whose residents may lack security of tenure and social and physical infrastructure. 7. Natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods and landslides, as well as human generated disasters, have resulted in large-scale damage to housing across the ECE region and present serious challenges for governments and the region. National policies and planning are often inadequate to prevent and minimize damage from disasters and emergency situations. Affected populations should be provided with adequate temporary housing solutions, if necessary, through international and humanitarian assistance. 8. Climate change has become a tangible reality, with rising global temperatures, flooding, storms and landslides affecting people’s lives and assets and causing economic and social losses. Houses and human settlements need to become resilient to extreme weather events, including those caused by climate change. Chapter 2. Goal, Scope and Principles 9. The Charter is a non-legally binding document. The goal of the Charter is to support member States as they seek to ensure access to decent, adequate, affordable and healthy housing for all, with due attention to reducing the impact of the housing sector on the environment. 10. The scope of the Charter is to improve the sustainability of housing in the ECE region through effective policies and actions at all levels, supported by international cooperation, in order to contribute to sustainable development in the region. 11. The Charter contributes to the implementation of relevant Sustainable Development Goals on Cities and Human Settlements and the implementation of the UN HABITAT Global Housing Strategy Framework. 12. When addressing the challenges outlined in Chapter 1, the following four principles and related rationales form the basis of sustainable housing: (a) Environmental protection; (a) Environmental protection 13. Housing should be planned, constructed and used in a way that minimizes environmental impact and promotes environmental sustainability. This should be addressed through:
(b) Economic effectiveness 14. Housing is, and has been, an influential sector in national economies. Housing should be both a sustainable element in a vibrant economy as well as a sector for meeting people’s needs. This should be addressed through:
(c) Social inclusion and participation 15. Housing policy and debate should be advanced with an enhanced emphasis on engaged and negotiated civic involvement, social inclusiveness, public health, transparency, and a concern for ethical processes. This should be addressed through:
(d) Cultural adequacy 16. Housing policy should take into consideration questions of cultural identity, value, and emotional wellbeing. This should be addressed through: (i) National housing policies that take into account social and territorial peculiarities and support the protection and enhancement of: landscapes; historical heritage; and cultural
heritage; Chapter 3. Key directions of work and measures to promote sustainable housing 17. Member States have the intention to advance in the following four key directions towards sustainable housing: (a) Limit the negative impact of housing on the environment and enhance the energy efficiency of the housing sector; 18. Member States support the following actions: (a) Limit the negative impact of housing on the environment and enhance the energy efficiency of the housing sector by taking measures to: (i) Reduce the carbon footprint of the housing sector by reducing energy use throughout the entire life cycle of buildings, which includes: housing design; material supply and manufacturing; construction; maintenance; refurbishment; and demolition processes; (b) Promote access to housing in the context of sustainable economic development by taking measures to: (i) Ensure access for all to adequate, safe and affordable housing and basic services; (c) Promote decent, adequate, healthy, barrier free and safe housing by taking measures to: (i) Improve access for all to good quality and healthy
housing, reduce homelessness and improve access to barrier-free housing; (d) Promote the continued application of sustainable housing principles by taking measures to: (i)
Gather data on housing, including on homelessness, using common international standards to ensure data comparability between member States; make these data and national statistics publicly available in order to support policy-making, research and economic development; and make use of global and regional data repositories to support the policy-making process; International Labour StandardsINTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANISATION (ILO) CONVENTION NO. 110 CONCERNING CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT OF PLANTATION WORKERS(1958)
INTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANISATION (ILO) CONVENTION NO. 117 CONCERNING BASIC AIMS AND STANDARDS OF SOCIAL POLICY (1962)
INTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANISATION (ILO) CONVENTION NO. 161 CONCERNING OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH SERVICES (1985)
INTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANISATION (ILO) CONVENTION NO. 169 CONCERNING INDIGENOUS AND TRIBAL PEOPLES IN INDEPENDENT COUNTRIES(1989)
INTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANISATION (ILO): DOMESTIC WORKERS CONVENTION (No. 189)
INTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANISATION (ILO) RECOMMENDATION NO. 115 CONCERNING WORKERS' HOUSING (1961) The General Conference of the International Labour Organisation adopted recommendations regarding workers' housing applicable to the housing of manual and non-manual workers and their families, including those who are self-employed and aged, retired or physically handicapped persons.
Under “suggestions concerning methods of application” the following is included:
Guidelines of the World Health OrganizationWHO Housing and Health Guidelines (2018) The WHO Housing and Health Guidelines bring together the most recent evidence to provide practical recommendations to reduce the health burden due to unsafe and substandard housing. Based on a systematic review, the guidelines provide recommendations on:
Full text of the WHO Housing and Health Guidelines and its accompanying studies The right to Healthy Indoor Air (2000) This WHO statement sets out nine principles related to the right to healthy indoor air, derived from fundamental principles in the fields of human rights, biomedical ethics and ecological sustainability.
Full text with commentary. Guiding Principles and GuidelinesGUIDING PRINCIPLES ON INTERNAL DISPLACEMENT (1998) The Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement restate and compile human rights and humanitarian law relevant to internally displaced persons. Read more… Para. 1 states: “These Guiding Principles address the specific needs of internally displaced persons worldwide. They identify rights and guarantees relevant to the protection of persons from forced displacement and to their protection and assistance during displacement as well as during return or resettlement and reintegration.” Principle 5 Principle 6 Principle 7 Principle 8 Principle 9 Principle 14 Principle 15 Principle 17 Principle 18 Principle 21 Principle 28 Principle 29 Principle 30 PRINCIPLES ON HOUSING AND PROPERTY RESTITUTION FOR REFUGEES AND DISPLACED PERSONS (PINHEIRO PRINCIPLES) (2005) 1. Scope and Application 1.1 The Principles on housing and property restitution for refugees and displaced persons articulated herein are designed to assist all relevant actors, national and international, in addressing the
legal and technical issues surrounding housing, land and property restitution in situations where displacement has led to persons being arbitrarily or unlawfully deprived of their former homes, lands, properties or places of habitual residence. 2. The right to housing and property restitution 3. The right to non-discrimination 4. The right to equality between men and women 5. The right
to be protected from displacement 6. The right to privacy and respect for the home 7. The right to peaceful enjoyment of possessions 8. The right to adequate
housing 9. The right to freedom of movement 10. The right to voluntary return in
safety and dignity 11. Compatibility with international human
rights, refugee and humanitarian law and related standards 12. National procedures, institutions and mechanisms 13. Accessibility of restitution claims procedures 14. Adequate consultation and participation in decision-making 15. Housing, land and property records and documentation 16. The rights of tenants and other non-owners 17.
Secondary occupants 18. Legislative measures 19. Prohibition of arbitrary and discriminatory laws 20. Enforcement
of restitution decisions and judgements 21. Compensation 22. Responsibility of the international community 23. Interpretation BASIC PRINCIPLES AND GUIDELINES ON DEVELOPMENT-BASED EVICTIONS AND DISPLACEMENT (2007) These guidelines aim to assist States in developing policies and legislation to prevent forced evictions at the domestic level. They specify human rights obligations of States
GUIDING PRINCIPLES ON EXTREME POVERTY AND HUMAN RIGHTS (2012) III. Foundational principles B. Equal enjoyment of all human rights by persons living in extreme poverty […] D. Rights of the child 33. States must ensure that all children have equal access to basic services, including within the household. At a minimum, children are entitled to a package of basic social services that includes high-quality health care, adequate food, housing, safe drinking water and sanitation and primary education, so that they can grow to their full potential, free of disease, malnutrition, illiteracy and other deprivations. […] V. Specific rights A. Right to life and physical integrity 63. Persons living in poverty are often exposed to both institutional and individual risks of violence and threats to their physical integrity from State agents and private actors, causing them to live in constant fear and insecurity. […] Moreover, poverty is a cause of preventable death, ill-health, high mortality rates and low life expectancy, not only through greater exposure to violence but also material deprivation and its consequences, such as lack of food, safe water and sanitation. 64: States should: […] (b) Develop specific strategies and systems to tackle gender-based violence perpetrated against persons living in poverty, including by providing shelter for women victims of domestic violence; (c) Take all possible measures, to the maximum of their available resources, to ensure that persons living in poverty have access to at least the minimum essential food that is nutritionally adequate and safe, basic shelter, housing and sanitation, and an adequate supply of safe drinking water, so as to prevent diseases and other harmful consequences of material deprivations, including malnutrition, epidemics and maternal and infant mortality. B. Rights to liberty and security of the person 65. Various structural and social factors, including discrimination, cause persons living in poverty to come into contact with the criminal justice system with a disproportionately high frequency. They also encounter considerable obstacles in exiting the system. Consequently, disproportionately high numbers of the poorest and most excluded persons are arrested, detained and imprisoned. […] Fines imposed on persons living in poverty have a disproportionate impact on them, worsen their situation and perpetuate the vicious circle of poverty. Homeless persons in particular are frequently subject to restrictions on their freedom of movement and criminalized for using public space. 66. States should: E. Right to privacy and to protection for home and family 71. Persons living in poverty are more likely to be subject to attacks on their privacy and reputation by State and non-State actors. Such intrusions may be caused by overcrowded housing conditions or the excessive intervention of law enforcement or social services. For example, children from families living in poverty are at greater risk of being removed by the authorities and placed in institutional care. 72. States should: H. Rights to water and sanitation 77. Persons living in poverty are disproportionately affected by limited access to water and adequate sanitation. Unsafe water and lack of access to sanitation are a primary cause of diarrhoeal diseases linked to high levels of child and infant mortality among families living in poverty and restrict the enjoyment of many other rights, including those to health, education, work and privacy, thereby seriously undermining the possibilities of escaping poverty. […] 78. States should: I. Right to adequate housing, security of tenure and prohibition of forced eviction 79. Persons living in poverty often live in inadequate housing conditions, including in slums and informal settlements, with limited or no access to basic services. Overcrowding, insecurity and disproportionate exposure to natural disasters or environmental hazards commonly threaten the life or health of persons living in poverty. Many lack security of tenure and live in constant fear of evictions and expropriation, without the means of upholding their rights in courts. Discrimination in access to housing, lack of affordable housing and speculation in housing and land, in addition to violations perpetrated by private actors, including landlords, real estate agents and financial companies, contribute to the increased vulnerability of persons living in poverty and push them further into destitution or homelessness. Under these circumstances, women in particular experience multiple forms of discrimination and are exposed to abuse and violence. 80. States should: GUIDING PRINCIPLES ON SECURITY OF TENURE FOR THE URBAN POOR (2014) These Guiding principles give guidance on existing human rights standards as they pertain to housing and land tenure. They cover the following topics:
Read more GUIDELINES FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION ON THE RIGHT TO ADEQUATE HOUSING (2020) These Guidelines outline key elements for States, local Governments and others that are needed for the effective implementation of the right to housing. Guideline No. 1. Guarantee the right to housing as a fundamental human right linked to dignity and the right to life Read more Which of the following is an example of involuntary alienation?The most common occurrence of involuntary alienation is when a bank evicts the residents because of unpaid loan balances. In other words, foreclosure is a circumstance where one loses their property due to unpaid debts.
Which is not an example of involuntary alienation?Dedication is a voluntary type of alienation. Adverse possession, a lien foreclosure sale, or a bankruptcy are all examples of involuntary alienation.
Which of the following is an involuntary alienation of property quizlet?Which of the following is an involuntary alienation of property? A grantor does not wish to be responsible for defects in the title that arise from previous owners but will guarantee the title for the time the grantor has the ownership.
Which of the following is a voluntary alienation of the property quizlet?the most common form of voluntary alienation is transfer by deed. the process of transferring real property by deed is known as conveyance.
|
Which of the following actions are not a form of involuntary alienation?
Postagens relacionadas
direito autoral © 2024 cemle Inc.
