Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions 8 N. 2nd Avenue East Suite 208 Duluth, MN 55802 U.S.A. www.cohre.org
01 February 2009 Re:
Threatened Forced Evictions by Basildon District Council Authority
Basildon District Council Authority Essex United Kingdom Dear Basildon District Council Authority, The Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions (COHRE) is an international human rights non-governmental organisation based in Geneva, Switzerland, with offices throughout the world. COHRE has consultative status with the United Nations and works to promote and protect the right to adequate housing for everyone, everywhere, including preventing or remedying forced evictions. The Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions (COHRE) and the Gypsy Council of England have received several reports and are deeply concerned regarding the upcoming proposed forced eviction of Travellers from Dale Farm, near Basildon, UK. Up to 50 families now face being forcibly removed from their homes in the largest Traveller community in the United Kingdom, at Dale Farm in Crays Hill, Essex County. Nearly 1,000 people live on the site, including more than 150 children. The eviction has been demanded by the Basildon Council, which voted to clear a large part of the settlement in May 2005. It said that sections of the site had no planning permission and has subsequently refused all attempts to regularise the situation, preferring the enforcement option. At one point the High Court rejected the decision to evict, claiming that the council was not offering an acceptable alternative location for the Travellers to live. That was overturned by a ruling of the Court of Appeal on 22 January 2009, meaning they will be moved on soon if an appeal to the House of Lords is denied.
Travellers first settled at Dale Farm in the 1960s with the then Labour-run council granted planning permission for 40 families. Since then though, many more have settled and most have no planning permission to be on the land which forms part of the Green Belt. Although the affected families are seeking a judicial remedy for the ruling of the Court, as country founded on principles of justice and human rights, COHRE and the Gypsy Council of England urge the Basildon Council to put a halt to the eviction process and enter on a friendly settlement with the affected parties. The families threatened with forced evictions have no place to go and will end up on the side of the road. The practice of forced evictions represents a gross human rights violation, particularly affecting the right to adequate housing, according to Resolution n. 1993/77 of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights. The General Comment No.. 4 of the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights states that “the instances of forced eviction are prima facie incompatible with the requirements of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) and can only be justified in the most exceptional circumstances, and in accordance with the relevant principles of international law. The UK ratified the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in 1976. As a State party to the ICESCR, it is bound to comply with the State party obligations contained within this international treaty. The forced eviction of the Travellers of Dale Farm by the authorities due to planning permission violations, prima facie violates the Covenant. As particularly egregious violation of international law, forced eviction implicates a variety of fundamental human rights including the right to liberty and security of the person, the right to be free from exile, the right to be free from arbitrary interference with one’s privacy, family and home, the right to freedom of movement and residence, the right to human dignity and the right to an adequate standard of living, including housing. COHRE and the Gypsy Council of England remind the UK that in terms of international human rights law, for forced evictions to be considered as lawful, they may only occur in very “exceptional circumstances” and “all feasible alternative” must be explore. If and only if such “exceptional circumstances” exist and there are no feasible alternatives, can evictions be deemed justified. However, certain requirements must still be adhered to. These are: First, States must ensure, prior to any planned forced evictions, and particularly those involving large groups, that all feasible alternatives are explored in consultation with affected persons, with a view to avoiding, or at least minimizing, the need to use force. Second, forced evictions should not result in rendering individuals homeless or vulnerable to the violation of other human rights. Governments must therefore, ensure that adequate alternative housing is available . . . to affected persons.
Third, in those rare cases where eviction is considered justified, it must be carried out in strict compliance with international human rights law and in accordance with general principles of reasonableness and proportionality. These include, inter alia:
Genuine consultation with those affected; Adequate and reasonable notice for all affected persons prior to the scheduled date of eviction; Information on the proposed evictions, and where applicable, on the alternative purpose for which the land or housing is to be used, to be made available in reasonable time to all those affected; Especially where groups of people are involved, government officials or their representatives to be present during an eviction; All persons carrying out the eviction to be property identified; Evictions not to take place in particularly bad weather or at night unless the affected persons consent otherwise; Provision of legal remedies; and Provision, where possible, of legal aid to persons who are in need of it to seek redress from the courts.
Finally, even if the above three conditions have been met, evictions should not result in rendering individuals homeless or vulnerable to the violation of other human rights. Where those affected are unable to provide for themselves, the UK must take all appropriate measures, to the maximum of its available resources, to ensure that adequate alternative housing, resettlement or access to productive land, as the case may be, is available. In 2002, the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights issued Concluding Observations to the UK and recommended “that the State Party take immediate measures to improve the situation of the large number of families and individuals who live in poor housing conditions…” (E/C.12/1/Add.79, para. 39). In the same view the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination in 2003 expressed concern “about the discrimination faced by Roma/Gypsies/Travellers that is reflected, inter alia, in their higher child mortality rate, exclusion from schools, shorter life expectancy, poor housing conditions, lack of available camping sites, high unemployment rate and limited access to health services” (CERD/C/63/CO/11, para. 23). COHRE and the Gypsy Council of England call upon the government of England to avert the eviction process affecting the Travellers of Dale Farm and provide for appropriate protection and compensation where appropriate. We urge the UK to take affirmative measures to ensure equal opportunities for full enjoyment of the economic, social and cultural rights of Roma/Gypsies/Travellers, and to develop further communication and dialogue with them and central authorities with a view to improving their housing situation.
We look very much for to discussing these matters with you further and continuing to assist the Government in complying in full with international human rights law. Our Ghana-based staff is available to meet with you in order to discuss this urgent matter. Our Geneva staff will also be contacting your consulate in Geneva to request a consultation on these matters and our Litigation and Media Programmes will explore other forms of human rights advocacy as necessary. Thank you very much for your time and consideration. Sincerely, Bret Thiele Attorney at Law Coordinator – ESC Rights Litigation Programme bret@cohre.org Joseph G. Jones Gypsy Council of England joseph@jones.tf info@gypsy-association.com