(e)
Accessibility. Adequate housing must be accessible to those entitled to
it. Disadvantaged groups must be accorded full and sustainable access to adequate
housing resources. Thus, such disadvantaged groups as the elderly, children, the
physically disabled, the terminally ill, HIV-positive individuals, persons with
persistent medical problems, the mentally ill, victims of natural disasters, people
living in disaster-prone areas and other groups should be ensured some degree of
priority consideration in the housing sphere. Both housing law and policy should take
fully into account the special housing needs of these groups. Within many States
parties increasing access to land by landless or impoverished segments of the society
should constitute a central policy goal. Discernible governmental obligations need to
be developed aiming to substantiate the right of all to a secure place to live in peace
and dignity, including access to land as an entitlement;
(f)
Location. Adequate housing must be in a location which allows access
to employment options, health-care services, schools, childcare centres and other
social facilities. This is true both in large cities and in rural areas where the temporal
and financial costs of getting to and from the place of work can place excessive
demands upon the budgets of poor households. Similarly, housing should not be built
on polluted sites nor in immediate proximity to pollution sources that threaten the
right to health of the inhabitants;
(g)
Cultural adequacy. The way housing is constructed, the building
materials used and the policies supporting these must appropriately enable the
expression of cultural identity and diversity of housing. Activities geared towards
development or modernization in the housing sphere should ensure that the cultural
dimensions of housing are not sacrificed, and that, inter alia, modern technological
facilities, as appropriate are also ensured.
9.
As noted above, the right to adequate housing cannot be viewed in isolation
from other human rights contained in the two International Covenants and other
applicable international instruments. Reference has already been made in this regard
to the concept of human dignity and the principle of non-discrimination. In addition,
the full enjoyment of other rights - such as the right to freedom of expression, the
right to freedom of association (such as for tenants and other community-based
groups), the right to freedom of residence and the right to participate in public
decision-making - is indispensable if the right to adequate housing is to be realized
and maintained by all groups in society. Similarly, the right not to be subjected to
arbitrary or unlawful interference with one’s privacy, family, home or correspondence
constitutes a very important dimension in defining the right to adequate housing.
10.
Regardless of the state of development of any country, there are certain steps
which must be taken immediately. As recognized in the Global Strategy for Shelter
and in other international analyses, many of the measures required to promote the
right to housing would only require the abstention by the Government from certain
practices and a commitment to facilitating “self-help” by affected groups. To the
extent that any such steps are considered to be beyond the maximum resources
available to a State party, it is appropriate that a request be made as soon as possible