Protecting the right to housing in the aftermath of natural disaster: Standards in international human rights law

In 2006, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees reported that an average of 211 million people each year were directly affected by the accumulated impact of natural disasters. This is approximately five times the number of people thought to have been affected by conflict over the past decade. It is commonly expected that, as a result of climate change, population growth and inappropriate urbanisation, the incidence, severity and impact of natural disasters will continue to rise. And yet while the obligations of states in situations of armed conflict have been extensively debated, the applicability of human rights law in the aftermath of natural disaster has not been so widely examined by regional or international human rights bodies. This paper considers the obligations of governments in the aftermath of natural disasters, with a particular focus on the right to housing. The applicability of human rights law (and specifically economic, social and cultural rights) in the aftermath of natural disaster is considered in a general sense, followed by a discussion of the content of the right to housing, and the obligations of governments to respect, protect and fulfil this right in the course of responding to disaster. The question of whether states have an obligation to provide restitution, compensation or other form of reparation to those who have lost homes, land and property by reason of natural disaster is also discussed. The paper draws on examples from the Indian Ocean tsunami (2004), the Pakistan earthquake (2005) and the South Asian floods (2007), and identifies specific elements of government obligations that are of particular importance in ensuring the right to adequate housing in the aftermath of natural disaster. © The Author (2008). Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.