Assurance Affirmed: Essential Homesteading Entitlements Secured for All Citizens
In a bid to address pressing issues such as homelessness, discrimination, and poverty in cities, the focus has shifted towards ensuring the right to adequate housing for all. This fundamental human right, as declared in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948, has been reiterated in various international documents, including the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in 1966.
However, enforcing such rights can be challenging as they form part of a declaration, not hard law. States have a threefold obligation: to respect, protect, and fulfill the right to adequate housing. Yet, the housing market is often viewed as a commodity rather than a human right due to financialization and privatization.
To effectively implement the right to adequate housing, governments are urged to adopt a coordinated approach that includes legal frameworks, institutional structures, inclusive policies, and active collaboration with stakeholders. Key strategies include establishing dedicated housing authorities, fostering multilevel governance, engaging diverse stakeholders, reforming regulatory frameworks, and integrating housing policy with climate adaptation, urban planning, and social services.
For instance, California is creating the California Housing Authority through the Social Housing Act (AB 11) to develop publicly owned, mixed-income social housing that is financially sustainable and affordable at scale. This proactive government role in addressing housing shortages and affordability crises is a step towards realising housing as a fundamental human right.
However, challenges remain. High housing costs and rising rents, especially in regions like California, fuel housing insecurity and homelessness. Many regions face housing shortages due to restrictive zoning, regulatory barriers, and underinvestment in social and affordable housing. Coordinating efforts among governments, civil society, and affected communities can also be complex due to differing priorities, resources, and capacities.
Transforming informal settlements into adequate housing with services, and making existing housing resilient against climate-related emergencies, are ongoing challenges requiring tailored policy and substantial resources. It is crucial to view housing as a basic human need and a fundamental right that cannot be compromised, rather than a good investment opportunity.
An independent monitoring body should be set up to oversee the strategy and its implementation, and governments should be legally obligated to respond to and act upon reports from this body. A clear strategy with concrete goals, a determined time frame, and the use of all available resources is needed to guarantee the right to adequate housing.
Ending homelessness could save a significant amount of money, as argued by public interest lawyer Sczerina Perot. By addressing the systemic and practical barriers to housing access, governments can move closer to realizing housing as a fundamental human right for all citizens.
- The call for implementing the right to adequate housing necessitates policy-and-legislation that encourages a coordinated approach, involving legal frameworks, institutional structures, inclusive policies, and active collaboration with stakeholders.
- To ensure the right to adequate housing for all, it's essential to reevaluate the politics surrounding housing as a commodity, moving towards viewing it as a general-news concern, and recognizing it as a fundamental human right that requires immediate attention and resources.
