German Tenants’ Perspective on Privatization of Housing
Housing is the basis for participation in the political, social and cultural life. And housing creates the conditions for peaceful coexistence of a multi-cultural society in the cities. Therefore, besides accommodation we are also speaking about active neighbourhoods and vital city districts. The market by itself is unable to organize the right to housing. The market is socially and ecologically blind. Public control in housing policy therefore is indispensable. Housing policy is and remains a political task at the level of state and municipalities.
Activities registration for polycentric WSF 2006: deadline is November 30th!
Deadline for registering self organised activities (seminars, workshops, panels, cultural activities and others) for the polycentric WSF 2006 is November 30th, 2005.
Debate on Urban Sustainability
Habitat JAM, an unprecedented online global dialogue on urban sustainability, will be held for 72 hours from 1-3 December, 2005. The online discussion proposes six main forums: improving the live of slum dwellers; environmental sustainability; sustainable access to water; safety and security; finance and governance; and humanity: the future of our cities.
Challenges in Europe
This document prepared by Pascale Thys, from Habitat et Participation, Belgium, is a synthesis of answers to the questions asked to associations in Belgium and France, as well as the results of debates with four European HIC members present at HIC global events of Cairo, september 2005, and the results compiled from a small questionnaire distributed to the Cairo meeting participants (it was required that answers not focus on the social housing privatisation issue)
Setting the Working Group on Globalization and Privatization of Habitat
A workshop in Bochum, Germany and a call for papers to document processes of privatization and globalization of habitat -including land, housing, utilities and the impact of free trade agreements in habitat- are the first steps for the implementation of the HIC Board decision to set of the Working Group.
OHCHR dialogue on treaty body reform
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights is hosting a five-week dialogue on treaty body reform and proposals for a unified standing treaty body
Reconstruction of Earthquake Affected Areas
50% of this housing stock has collapsed and another twenty per cent has been badly damaged, over 500,000 housing units will have to be rebuilt or repaired in a manner that can withstand future earthquakes. A proper re-building of homes is not possible before winter ends. What can be done in the winter months?
Pakistan: World fails to grasp scale of disaster
World body’s relief official says scale of calamity beyond capacity of any country; much more needs to be done: 2,000 villages yet to be reached
Global Fundisation and Mass Privatisation of Housing
Tenants’ rights, jobs, the structure of the neighbourhoods are under pressure. By large steps the traditionally large portion of rental housing within German housing stock gets reduced. However, even the large sales of the last years only build the prelude to a much larger wave of sales and
privatisation, which massively gets influenced by the increasing role international Private Equity Funds
Iraq’s catastrophe after the U.S. occupation
It has been proved to the whole world that the United States-led invasion of Iraq had no legal justification. At its “Social Production of Habitat” workshop and in General Assembly, in Cairo, September 2005, HIC members meet for the first time in the Middle East/North Africa region and learned of the special circumstances that affect habitat and human settlement issues across the region. Among the eloquent reminders was the address by Dr. Hazim Alluhebe, director of the HIC member organization, Human Rights and Immigration Bureau (Baghdad, Iraq). The text of his intervention is reproduced here.
South Asia Earthquake
South Asia tremor must reinforce resolve to work towards development of safe housing standards, Rights Expert says. According to recent estimates, the earthquake has resulted in more than 35,000 deaths and over 50,000 injured in northern Pakistan and India. These estimates are expected to rise with the clearance of debris and rubble from collapsed buildings, often in remote areas. Statement was issued by Miloon Kothari to the Commission on Human Rights.
A Pathetic Scroll of Honour
After the pathetic answer of the UN-Habitat offices, without any substantial agumentation, the friends of UPC answer: We also could not find any reasonable relations between "UN-HABITAT projects of some US$25 million under the post-tsunami reconstruction" with the award for Jakarta, as the tsunami happened in Aceh, Sumatera. After learning from the great effort carried out by UN Habitat on post-tsunami reconstruction, we could come to the conclusion that the scroll of honor should not go to the city of Jakarta but to UN Habitat itself.