Right to adequate housing is at issue in Inter-American Commission on Human Rights hearings

On Friday, March 4, 2005 the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights heard submissions from U.S. and Canadian NGOs on developing a legal framework for considering the right to adequate housing in the Americas, with a focus on Brazil, Canada and the U.S. This is the first time that the Inter-American Commission has agreed to consider this issue in special hearings.

The hearings took place at the Organization of American States in Washington, D.C., and a demonstration was held in advance of the hearing by groups advocating for the right to adequate housing.

Bruce Porter testified at the hearing on behalf of the Charter Committee on Poverty Issues, the Centre for Equality Rights in Accommodation and the National Anti-Poverty Organization.

Commissioners attending the hearing were extremely complimentary about the submissions and expressed a keen interest in following up on the issue of violations of the right to adequate housing. They expressed interest in receiving petitions alleging violations of the right to adequate housing in order to begin to develop case law on this issue.

Although Canada has not ratified the American Convention on Human Rights, it is bound by the American Declaration on the Rights and Duties of Man, which includes reference to the right to housing. Petitions alleging violations of rights in the Declaration can be submitted to the Commission as long as domestic remedies have been exhausted.

The positive response to these submissions suggests that this may be an important avenue of redress for violations of the right to adequate housing in Canada in the future.

For more information see:

• Testimony of Bruce Porter on behalf of the National Anti-Poverty Organization, Centre for Equality Rights in Accommodation and the Charter Committee on Poverty Issues on the right to adequate housing in Canada
• Submissions on the legal framework for the right to adequate housing
• Situation of right to adequate housing in the U.S.
• Photos of presentation and demonstration.