Speaker
Description
According to the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the ‘Right to Adequate Housing’ means the provision of not just four walls and a roof, but rather the minimum requirement of legal security of tenure, availability of services, affordability, accessibility, habitability, location, and cultural adequacy. The requirement for a house is not limited to the availability of a structurally sound dwelling, but it must also be situated and constructed to provide community members with convenience, amenities, health, and social life.
However, the fact remains that despite the presence of international human rights treaties, rights to adequate housing are globally violated. On the other hand, even after having many rights, especially for the indigenous communities to protect their culture, Indigenous peoples often lack security of tenure and constantly live with the threat of forced eviction from their homes and/or lands. Housing and development policies and programs either discriminate against indigenous peoples directly or have discriminatory effects, as mentioned in the report of UN-HABITAT. The problem for the indigenous people exists both living in rural as well as urban areas. This study focuses on the indigenous or tribal people in the urban areas.
Indigenous communities worldwide often own land but lack adequate housing provisions in urban areas. Government policies, legal frameworks, and urban planning documents frequently omit or marginalize indigenous housing needs, leading to exclusion from development programs, displacement, and inadequate infrastructure. This study uses document analysis to examine national and local government policies, comprehensive plans, and legal frameworks in India, Canada, and Australia, assessing how they address (or fail to address) indigenous housing challenges in urban settings. Through comparative analysis, this study identifies common gaps in policy recognition, participatory planning, and effective implementation. To assess the socio-cultural, economic, and physical aspects of ethnic settlements within urban areas, this study will conduct content analysis of key legal and policy documents. The focus will be on how indigenous or tribal populations are represented or neglected in urban housing policies, land tenure frameworks, and planning guidelines.
The study highlights the absence of clear urban planning frameworks that consider the socio-cultural, economic, and physical needs of indigenous communities. This research contributes to the discourse on equity in urban planning and proposes recommendations for inclusive policymaking to integrate indigenous perspectives into housing strategies.
| Keywords | land rights; participatory planning; equity; marginalization; equity; discrimination; housing policies |
|---|---|
| Best Congress Paper Award | Yes |
