The increased realisation of the importance of women’s housing rights has led to major advancements at both national and international levels
In all parts of the world, women’s human rights advocates and housing rights advocates alike have fought to make housing rights laws, policies and standards work for women Not all housing policies – even despite some good intentions – are prowomen
Women and Housing Rights STRATEGIES TO ENFORCE Women’s Housing Rights
Over the past decade, women’s housing rights have increasingly garnered the attention of the international community. Once seen as being issues merely peripheral to human rights concerns, it has become ever clearer that in order for women to realise the full range of their human rights, housing security is -- indeed essential. Without a doubt, advocates all over the world are increasingly recognising that issues such as domestic
violence, disinheritance, women’s health, women’s experience of forced evictions, the impact of the HIV/AIDS pandemic on women and girls, and women’s food security, are all fundamentally and intimately connected to the theme of women’s housing rights. Women’s housing rights are also now understood in a more inclusive way, with the understanding that housing security for a woman implies more than just a roof over her head. Rather, adequate housing consists of basic components, such as the rights to water and sanitation, which are in fact indispensable to women’s daily lives. Perhaps one of the greatest achievements in the field of women’s housing rights advocacy is that activists increasingly view housing rights in conjunction with other human rights, including the rights to water and sanitation, the right to health, the right to information and the right to
full and effective participation. In all regions of the world, advocates have made critical inroads. Globally, despite the increased attention given to women’s housing rights, it remains essential to actually secure these rights in practice. The good news is that international, regional and national systems now have widespread jurisprudence to secure and promote women’s housing, land and property rights. However, gender-based bias grounded on traditional norms that favour men still prevent too many women from enjoying these rights. One of the leading mistakes that lawmakers and government authorities make is to believe that ‘gender neutral’ laws will not, in fact, disadvantage women. The truth, however, is that unless advancing women’s equality becomes a central focal point for the development of housing policy, women’s needs and rights will continue to be marginalised, and their status will remain second-class.