|
HLRN-SARP Research
In our experience, action-oriented research enables deeper analysis of housing and land rights issues and facilitates the generation of new rights-defense strategies. The research we engage in also serves as the basis for our training courses and for parallel reports to relevant UN bodies.
Women, Land and Housing
The links between women's rights, housing rights, violence against women and violation of women's rights to adequate housing have become increasingly clear with recent research. Despite this, many organizations that work with affected communities have yet to take full advantage of the advocacy and legal tools available under the HRAH (human right to adequate housing) and women's rights frameworks. We use the economic, social and cultural rights framework to analyze and document the interlinkages between violence against women and women's right to adequate housing. We also assist other organizations in recognizing and utilizing these linkages through our trainings on women's right to land and adequate housing.
Forced Evictions in the Urban Context
With mounting pressure on land in urban areas, local administrative authorities are increasingly looking to shift slums from city centers to the outskirts of the city. This negatively affects the livelihood, health and education of slum dwellers. The land acquired from slum evictions is then used for revenue generating enterprises like shopping complexes, high-rise office buildings or housing colonies for the urban elite. We have consistently stood against such slum relocation and maintained that slums should be upgraded and relocated only if there is an explicit danger to the health and lives of the slum dwellers.
Children and Housing
SARP has a track record of coordinating the development of parallel reports and otherwise contributing to the inclusion of children's right to adequate housing in State reports to the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC). We have also contributed to workshops and training activities on the subject in the cases of Nepal, India and Bhutanese refugees.
Development-induced Displacement
One of the reasons for growing pressure on land and the housing crises in urban centres is the ongoing forced displacement caused by mega development projects. For instance, Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh, India has an entire slum settlement comprising mainly of oustees from the Bargi Dam on the Narmada River. We have supported the anti-large dam struggle in the Narmada valley from its early days. A large number of dams are also planned in India's northeastern region, displacing thousands and also adversely affecting downstream populations.
Housing and Land Rights of Dalits
Caste-based discrimination continues to disenfranchise Dalit communities by limiting their access to housing and land rights. We have worked very closely with groups working on Dalit rights and will continue to support them through training and capacity building workshops.
|
