The right to adequate housing is more than having a roof over one’s head, it is the right to live in safety and dignity in a decent home. States have an immediate obligation to ensure access to justice for those whose right to housing has been violated, including through failures to adopt reasonable measures for its progressive realization. As noted by the Special Rapporteur in her report on access to justice, violations of the right to housing are as much failures in the administration of justice to ensure meaningful accountability and access to effective remedies as they are failures of housing programmes.
The reckless burning of individual houses by government agents in Gujii Zone of Oromia has created a situation of disparities among victims of such atrocities. Many people have been left homeless in a situation that exprosed them to harsh weather conditions, displacement, emonitional,physical and mental torture.
Legal Background on Rights to Houses
Rights to houses are socio-economic rights which should be released progressively by the government. Adequate houses has been a challenge to many Ethiopians who live in the Oromia region. Article 11 of the United Nation Convention on Social economic rights mandates state parties to recognize the right of everyone to an adequate standard of living for himself and his family, including adequate food, clothing and housing, and to the continuous improvement of living conditions. The States Parties are also mandated to undertake appropriate steps to ensure the realization of these rights. Ethiopia should avoid conducts that would create a foreseeable risk of impairing the enjoyment of the right to housing.
The following elements are included in the fulfillment of rights to adequate housing
- Legal security of tenure: Regardless of the type of tenure, all persons should possess a degree of security of tenure which guarantees legal protection against forced eviction, harassment and other threats;
- Accessibility: Housing is not adequate if the specific needs of disadvantaged and marginalized groups are not taken into account (such as the poor, people facing discrimination; persons with disabilities, victims of natural disasters);
The families affected in Liban and Gumii Eldello Districts of East Guji Zone 2020 alone.
| NO | Houses burnt down | Sub-locations | Numbers of Households displaced |
| 1 | 20 | Oda Dima | 130 |
| 2 | 7 | Deressa | 55 |
| 3 | 101 | Dibe Hola | 525 |
| 4 | 731 | Caffa Hiddi | 791 |
| 5 | 1 | Siminto | 10 |
| 6 | 2 | Bulbul | 12 |
Consequences of such atrocities
A State must ensure access to justice for violations of the right to housing by its agent by establishing group liability regimes, enabling human rights-related class actions and public interest litigation,facilitating access to relevant information and the collection of evidence.