Global Report on Human Settlements 2007 - PoA-ISS

Policy responses to tenure insecurity
153
Box 6.22 The Advisory Group on Forced Evictions (AGFE)
The Advisory Group on Forced Evictions (AGFE) was established
in 2004 following a resolution of UN-Habitat’s Governing Council.
The AGFE reports directly to the executive director of UN-
Habitat, and provides advice on alternatives to forced evictions. In
its first two biannual reports, the AGFE has documented more
than two dozen cases of imminent or ongoing unlawful evictions in
several countries and has successfully engaged in conciliatory activities
to propose alternatives.
During the first four fact-finding and conciliatory missions
undertaken by the AGFE, it was instrumental in developing alternatives
to unlawful evictions:
• In Rome, the authorities set a moratorium on forced
evictions.
• In the Dominican Republic, a commission was established to
discuss the enactment of an eviction law.
• In Curitiba, the AGFE was requested by the municipality to
assess housing rights violations, advise stakeholders on
practices in line with international human rights laws and
standards, and develop an action plan to prevent further
evictions. The AGFE organized a public hearing on unlawful
evictions that put pressure on stakeholders to find alternative
solutions. As a consequence, the local authorities began to
resettle families and provide them with alternative sites and
building materials.
• In Ghana, the AGFE supported the government’s plan to
relocate the Old Fadima slum community, which had been
threatened with forced eviction for a long time, and to build
low-cost housing for them based on the beneficiaries’
consent. The AGFE helped pave the way for the recently
launched intervention of UN-Habitat’s Slum Upgrading Facility
that will enable 1000 poor families to get better housing.
Source: UN-Habitat, 2005d, 2007
towards achieving security of tenure for all have to be seen
in a positive light.
Closely linked to the <strong>Global</strong> Campaign for Secure
Tenure, the Advisory Group on Forced Evictions (AGFE) was
established in 2004. The objective of the AGFE is to monitor
forced evictions and to identify and promote alternatives,
such as in-situ upgrading and other alternative options.
Evictions and relocations, if unavoidable, must be undertaken
in a manner that conforms to international human
rights standards and the United Nations guidelines on development-based
displacement 51 (i.e. such relocation should
only be undertaken following negotiated settlements with
the individuals and communities concerned, and should
include provision of alternative land with long-term security
of tenure). The AGFE is comprised of individuals from civil
society organizations, local authorities, central government
and professionals in developing and developed countries. It
is supported by a network of representatives from organizations
in the fields of human settlement, law, tenure policy
and human rights (see Box 6.22).
Approaching the security of tenure question from a
slightly different perspective, the Commission on Legal
Empowerment of the Poor was established in 2005 and
seeks to promote the extension of formal legal rights and
protections to marginalized groups (see Box 6.23). Its stated
aim is to ‘explore how nations can reduce poverty through
reforms that expand access to legal protection and economic
opportunities for all’. 52 The commission organizes national
and regional consultations all over the world to learn from
the experiences of those who live and work in slums and
settlements, and is thus partnering with grassroots organizations,
governments and institutions. One major goal that has
emerged through these discussions is how to transform the
legal system from an obstacle to an opportunity for poor and
otherwise disempowered communities.
The Cities Alliance is another institution that continues
to promote improved security of tenure conditions
across the world. A global coalition of cities and their development
partners committed to scaling up successful
approaches to poverty reduction, the alliance brings cities
The Commission on
Legal Empowerment
of the Poor … seeks
to promote the
extension of formal
legal rights and
protections to
marginalized groups
Box 6.23 The Commission on Legal Empowerment of the Poor
The Commission on Legal Empowerment of the Poor is the first
global initiative to focus specifically on the link between exclusion,
poverty and law. The commission was launched in September 2005
by a group of developing and industrialized countries, including
Canada, Denmark, Egypt, Finland, Guatemala, Iceland, India, Norway,
Sweden, South Africa, Tanzania and the UK, and has a mandate to
complete its work in 2008.
The commission focuses on four thematic issues: access to
justice and the rule of law; property; labour rights; and entrepreneurship.
Its working methods include:
• compiling an inventory of lessons learned from those governments
that have sought to extend legal protection to the
informal sector;
• generating political support for broad reforms that will ensure
legal inclusion and empowerment;
• exploring reforms that will underpin the broadening of access
to property rights;
• examining which structures can best promote economic
growth;
• identifying ways to support other development approaches;
and
• producing a comprehensive set of practical and adaptable
tools that will guide reforms at the country level.
Source: Commission on Legal Empowerment of the Poor, 2006a, 2006b; www.undp.org/legalempowerment