News

PRESS RELEASE – Brazil: regression in Quilombo communities’ rights could breach international laws, says UN expert

Published in Wednesday May 26th, 2010 In News

GENEVA – The UN Special Rapporteur on the right to adequate housing, Raquel Rolnik, said Wednesday that a decline in the rights afforded to communities founded by former slaves to control and benefit from their traditional lands may infringe Brazil’s international human rights obligations.

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Homeowners

Published in Friday May 21st, 2010 In News

“It’s like I’m a doctor,” said Mr. Laubinger, an agent here for big lenders. “People ask me how much time they have left.”

Hardly any. Legally, they have already lost ownership. If they do not respond to the carrot the lenders offer — as much as $5,000 in cash in exchange for leaving the house in good order — he employs the stick: the county sheriff, who evicts them.

Israel continues colonization

Published in Wednesday May 19th, 2010 In News

Notícia disponível apenas em inglês:

International opposition to Israel’s settler colony construction has become
increasingly outspoken, with the Quartet Road Map as the main diplomatic
reference. Since the start of 2009, the Israeli government and state agencies
have escalated in word and deed their defiance of calls to respect the
ban against colonization, wanton destruction and dispossession. The following
dossier of recent media reports, official statements and relevant documents
tracks developments in the bureaus and on the ground through 2009-10.

Entries are chronological, with historical documents linked in their context.
Please scroll to bottom for latest developmentsHLRN

International opposition to Israel’s settler colony construction has become
increasingly outspoken, with the Quartet Road Map as the main diplomatic
reference. Since the start of 2009, the Israeli government and state agencies
have escalated in word and deed their defiance of calls to respect the
ban against colonization, wanton destruction and dispossession. The following
dossier of recent media reports, official statements and relevant documents
tracks developments in the bureaus and on the ground through 2009-10.

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Portugal Brought Before European Tribunal for Roma Housing Situation

Published in Wednesday May 19th, 2010 In News

Notícia disponível apenas em inglês:

Budapest, Lisbon, Strasbourg, 7 May 2010:On 23 April 2010, the
European Committee of Social Rights (ECSR) registered a collective complaint
filed by the European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC) against Portugal concerning
the housing situation of Roma in the country. On the basis of field research,
documentation and continuous monitoring in Portugal over the last five
years, the ERRC submitted that Portugal has failed to meet its human rights
obligations under the Revised European Social Charter (RESC).  

Budapest, Lisbon, Strasbourg, 7 May 2010:On 23 April 2010, the
European Committee of Social Rights (ECSR) registered a collective complaint
filed by the European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC) against Portugal concerning
the housing situation of Roma in the country. On the basis of field research,
documentation and continuous monitoring in Portugal over the last five
years, the ERRC submitted that Portugal has failed to meet its human rights
obligations under the Revised European Social Charter (RESC).

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Inhabitants Together, a World Assembly in 2011 to Gain the Right to Live

Published in Monday May 17th, 2010 In News

Habitantes do mundo unidos pelo direito à cidade! Assim termina a Chamada
aprovada pela plenária do Fórum Social Urbano do Rio de Janeiro, resumindo
o sentimento profundo que animou a participação de milhares de pessoas,
líderes sociais, organizações de moradores, locatários, sem teto, cooperativas,
comunidades, em dezenas de encontros , seminários, oficinas que têm animado
este espaço unitário.

Deixando de lado a perseguição dos ritmos e das lógicas mercantis do Fórum
Urbano Mundial, este primeiro FUS escolheu abrir as portas para a eficiência
das sequências , especialmente, engajando todo mundo no processo de construção
da Assembléia Mundial dos Habitantes (AMH), indispensável valor acrescentado
participativo que nos fará ganhar o combate.

By Nicolas Sossass

Inhabitants of the world united for the right to the city!This was determined
in the Call, approved by the plenary Urban Social Forum of Rio, summarizing
the deep sense which invigorated the participation of thousands of people,
social leaders, inhabitants organizations, tenants, homeless, cooperatives
and communities in dozens of meetings, seminars and workshops which brought
this unitary space to life.

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Save Dale Farm Gypsy and Traveller community Bulletin – Zero Evictions

Published in Friday April 30th, 2010 In News

The Dale Farm Housing Association (DFHA) presents the 1st edition 2010 of the bulletin ‘SAVE DALE FARM’, which was designed and edited with the assistance of the Essex Human Rights Clinic.

The bulletin informs about the historical context of the Gypsy and Traveller communities of Dale Farm, UK, and the planned eviction that threatens their life and culture. The bulletin outlines the national and international legal contexts and presents steps taken by DFHA to prevent a forced eviction. It envisages to raise awareness and establish a network of monitoring organisations, and asks for active support.

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PRESS RELEASE – Olympic Games/World Cup: the impact of mega-events on the right to adequate housing

Published in Monday March 8th, 2010 In News

GENEVA – “Olympic Games, World Cup, Winter Games and other events of this nature offer great opportunities to reorganize the urban space,” said the UN Special Rapporteur on the right to adequate housing, Raquel Rolnik, this Monday 8 March, during the presentation of her annual report* to the Human Rights Council in Geneva.

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PRESS RELEASE – Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing assesses impact of “Mega Events” on right to housing

Published in Thursday March 4th, 2010 In News

GENEVA – The UN Special Rapporteur on adequate housing, Raquel Rolnik, will share with the press her report on the impact of “mega-events” in the realization of the right to adequate housing on Monday 8 March at a press conference at the UN Headquarters in Geneva.

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PRESS RELEASE – Warning on dire situation of New Delhi’s homeless persons – UN expert on adequate housing

Published in Tuesday January 19th, 2010 In News

GENEVA (19 January 2010 ) – The UN Special Rapporteur on the right to adequate housing, Ms. Raquel Rolnik, expressed her concern about the homeless persons that have died from cold recently in New Delhi and the risk to the lives of many others given the harsh weather and insufficient adequate shelters.

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PRESS RELEASE – Millions lack access to affordable and adequate housing in the U.S.

Published in Sunday November 8th, 2009 In News

WASHINGTON D.C. (8 November 2009) – The UN Special Rapporteur on adequate housing, Raquel Rolnik, warned at the end of her official visit to the United States of America that, “Millions of people in the U.S. are spending high percentages of their income to make their monthly rent and mortgage payment, face foreclosure or eviction, and live in overcrowded and substandard conditions.”

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