Centre on Housing Rights & Evictions

COHRE Report on the N2 Gateway Project

COHRE, the UN affiliated human rights NGO based in Switzerland, has just released a scathing report on the N2 Gateway project. Click here for an archive of entries on Joe Slovo and here and here for an archive of entries on the Symphony Way occupation.

For comment on how the N2 Gateway has effected the lives of poor people in Cape Town, contact:

Ashraf Cassiem at 076 186 1408 (Western Cape Anti-Eviction Campaign)
Kareemah Linneveldt 078 492 0943 (Symphony Way Anti-Eviction Campaign)

COHRE Letter to Dan Plato on the Macassar Village Occupation

Click here to read this letter in pdf.

9 June 2009

The Honourable Mr. Dan Plato
Mayor of Cape Town,
The Mayor’s Office,
City of Cape Town
Cape Town 8001

South Africa

Reference: Violation of housing rights of 60 families in Macassar Village, Cape Town.

Dear Mayor Plato,

The Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions (COHRE) is an international human rights non-governmental organisation based in Geneva, Switzerland, with offices throughout the world. COHRE has consultative status with the United Nations and Observer Status with the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights. COHRE works to promote and protect the right to adequate housing for everyone, everywhere, including preventing or remedying forced evictions.

COHRE Report on Housing Rights in Durban

Submitted by Abahlali_3 on Mon, 2008-10-06 16:52. Centre on Housing Rights & Evictions | COHRE | cohre | Human Rights Report | report

The full text of the report ('Business as Usual') is available in pdf here or on the COHRE website at: http://www.cohre.org/southafrica

COHRE Press Statement

Monday, 6 October 2008

The Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions, based in Geneva, today released a report on housing rights in Durban. While recognizing the efforts of the eThekwini Municipality to build a considerable number of houses each year, the report concludes that the houses being built are often located so far out of town as to make them unviable for many people due to unaffordable transport costs to work, schools, and hospitals. The report also expresses serious concern about the size and quality of the houses that are being built and over the failure to provide adequate levels of basic services to shack dwellers while they wait for formal housing. In some instances levels of basic services in shack settlements are inadequate to the point of being life threatening according to COHRE's research.

COHRE: Letter to Obed Mlaba on evictions in Siyanda

The Honorable Cllr Obed Mlaba
Office of the Mayor of eThekwini
City Hall, West Street
Durban 4001
Republic of South Africa

Re: Forced relocation of shack-dwellers in Siyanda, KwaMashu

Dear Cllr Mlaba,

The Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions (COHRE) is an international human rights non-governmental organisation based in Geneva, Switzerland, with offices throughout the world. COHRE has consultative status with the United Nations and Observer Status with the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights. COHRE works to promote and protect the right to adequate housing for everyone, everywhere, including preventing or remedying forced evictions.

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COHRE statement on Xenophobic Attacks

Submitted by Abahlali_3 on Mon, 2008-06-02 13:41. Centre on Housing Rights & Evictions | COHRE | open letter | xenophobia

**FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - 30 May 2008**

COHRE MEDIA RELEASE

More than 100,000 people forcibly evicted from their homes in South Africa through xenophobic attacks: South African government must act immediately to deal with both the causes and consequences of these recent xenophobic attacks says human rights group

The Geneva-based Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions (COHRE) is deeply concerned at the recent forced eviction of up to 100 000 people from their homes and residential areas in South Africa through xenophobic attacks. COHRE condemns these attacks in the strongest possible terms, and commends the civil society organisations and individuals that have rushed to assist those affected.

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Open Letter to Obed Mlaba and Michael Sutcliffe from COHRE

Click here for PDF version.

3 October 2007
Cllr Obed Mlaba
eThekwini Mayor
Tel: + 27 31 311 2110
Fax: +27 31 311 2111
Email: mayorspa@durban.gov.za

Dr Michael Sutcliffe
eThekwini City Manager
PO Box 1014
Durban 4000
Tel: + 27 31 311 1100
Fax: + 27 31 311 2170

Dear Cllr Mlaba and Dr Sutcliffe,

RE: Urgent housing concerns and recent events in Durban

The Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions (COHRE) is an international human rights non-governmental organisation based in Geneva, Switzerland, with offices throughout the world. COHRE has consultative status with the United Nations and Observer Status with the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights. COHRE works to promote and protect the right to adequate housing for everyone, everywhere, including preventing or remedying forced evictions. In South Africa, COHRE has been monitoring and researching housing rights issues in Johannesburg, Durban, Pietermaritzburg and Cape Town.

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Letter from CALS and COHRE to the South African Government in support of the residents of Joe Slovo settlement

Submitted by abahlali on Wed, 2007-10-03 00:02. CALS | Centre on Housing Rights & Evictions | COHRE | open letter | slovo

(Click on the link below to read the original version of the letter on the letterhead.)

26 September 2007
Dr Lindiwe Sisulu
Minister of Housing
Private Bag X654
Pretoria
0001
Tel: +27 12 421 1309
Fax: +27 12 341 8513
Email: mareldia@housing.gov.za

Dear Minister Sisulu

RE: Relocation of Joe Slovo informal settlement residents

The Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions (COHRE) is an international human rights nongovernmental
organisation based in Geneva, Switzerland, with offices throughout the world.

COHRE has consultative status with the United Nations and Observer Status with the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights. COHRE works to promote and protect the right to adequate housing for everyone, everywhere, including preventing or remedying forced evictions.