News

Land Grabbing Continues Apace in Namibia

October 17, 2012 Residents of the Onayena Constituency in the Oshikoto Region are concerned that some people have started fencing off swathes of land, even though they are not cultivating it. Concerned traditional leaders briefed the Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly, Loide Kasingo, during her recent familiarisation visit to the Oshikoto Region. They suggested […]

Amnesty International deplores Roma Gypsy resettlements in Serbia

October 17, 2012 Amnesty International on Wednesday sharply criticised Serbian authorities for forcibly resettling Roma Gypsies in the capital Belgrade earlier this year and called for legislation banning such evictions. “The mass forced eviction demonstrates the need for legislative changes in Serbia. The authorities need to urgently adopt a law which prohibits forced evictions and […]

Poverty Worsens As Flood Renders 42 Million Nigerians Homeless

October 17, 2012 As the world marks International Day for the Eradication of Poverty today, flood which has been ravaging many states of the country since August has worsened the incidence of poverty in Nigeria, the world’s largest black nation. Currently, the flood, which has affected five of the six geo-political zones of the country, […]

Forced migration in the 21st century: urbanised and unending

October 16, 2012 More than 70 million people have been uprooted across the world, and an increasing number will never go home More than 70 million people have been forced to leave their homes because of conflict, political upheaval and disasters, as well as by climate change and development projects, and are now living as […]

New topic in our virtual platform!

“Security of tenure” will be the theme of the next reports produced by the Special Rapporteur on the right to adequate housing. Considering that, the Rapporteur decided to create a new topic of discussion in the virtual platform. Contribute to the debate!

UN Special Rapporteur, Raquel Rolnik, talks about right to housing and mega-events

Professor Raquel Rolnik talks about mega sports events, like the World Cup and the Olympics, and their impacts on human rights.

Land Grabs Leave Tribes Hungry on World Food Day in Ethiopia

October 15, 2012 Violent land grabs in Ethiopia’s Lower Omo Valley are displacing tribes and preventing them from cultivating their land, leaving thousands of people hungry and ‘waiting to die’. As the world prepares to raise awareness of the issues behind poverty and hunger on October 16 (World Food Day), Ethiopia continues to jeopardize the […]

Scores of Roma left homeless in forced eviction near Paris

October 15, 2012 Around 150 Roma – including some 60 children – have been left homeless outside Paris after being forcibly evicted and having their homes bulldozed on Monday morning, Amnesty International said. The forced eviction in Noisy-le-Grand, in the department of Seine-Saint-Denis east of the capital, is the latest in a string of similar […]

In China, rise in forced evictions fuelling discontent, says Amnesty International

Violent forced evictions in China are on the rise as local authorities seek to offset huge debts by seizing and then selling off land in suspect deals with property developers, Amnesty International said as it urged government action. In a new 85-page report, Amnesty International highlights how forced evictions – a longstanding cause of discontent within China – have increased significantly in the past two years in order to clear the way for developments.

Amnesty: China forced evictions in ‘significant rise’

Forced evictions in China have risen significantly in recent years as local officials sell off land to property developers, Amnesty International says. Many cases involve violence and harassment, in what the group called “a gross violation of human rights”. Pressure on local officials to meet economic goals and vested interests were behind the coercion, it said.
In the BBC link, it’s possible to watch a video about the forced evictions.