Abstract

This contribution highlights an emerging principle in human rights jurisprudence: that development should not result in historically disadvantaged and vulnerable communities being forced to relocate from areas where they have deep roots, as a result of development projects from which they are excluded due to their socio-economic circumstances. This “right to remain” is the affirmative assertion that spatial justice requires not only the redistribution of land and resources, but the protection of people’s existing connections to place, community, and livelihood. Spatial justice further requires that our physical spaces, our cities, our towns, and our rural lands must be developed and shared in a manner that is fundamentally equal and fair, and that actively heals our historical divisions. A transformative approach to housing rights, therefore, requires a housing framework that is attentive not only to the provision of shelter, but also to the conditions under which individuals and communities can remain in the urban spaces they inhabit, thereby protecting human dignity. Furthermore, the courts must ensure that in their jurisprudence the principles of spatial justice are applied when substantive justice requires it.