A right to the city for South Africa's urban poor

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT : In South Africa, spatial injustice holds profound implications for the democratictransformation of society, the planning and development of inclusive towns andcities, and the realisation of the constitutionally enshrined housing rights ofvulnerable and marginalised urban inhabitants. The post-apartheid state has enactedan extensive housing law framework since 1994 aimed at giving substantive effect tothe right to have access to adequate housing in section 26 of the Constitution. Inpractice, however, the implementation of this framework remains distorted and failsto adequately respond to the country's complex housing crisis. A deep disjuncturealso characterises current approaches to the interpretation and implementation ofthe housing rights of South Africa's urban poor. Addressing these challengesrequires a paradigm capable of contextualising housing rights interpretation andlitigation, while viewing housing policy analysis and implementation through thenormative lens of section 26. This study adopts an interdisciplinary and multifacetedresearch framework informed by history, social theory, international housing law, andSouth African legislation, policy, and jurisprudence. The dissertation investigates thevalue and potential of the right to the city paradigm to develop the substantivecontent of the housing rights of South Africa's urban poor.The right to the city represents a normative framework adept to critically analysingcurrent approaches to the interpretation and implementation of housing rights, inboth international and South African housing law. Utilising this theoretical paradigmcan contribute to a value-based understanding of housing rights, which offerspragmatic solutions to material problems in the areas of housing delivery, urbanplanning, and local governance. This value-based approach also requiresdemocratic institutions, which include the courts, the legislature, and the executive,to collectively contribute to contextualised and participatory housing solutions inSouth Africa. If properly understood and implemented, the right to the city paradigmhas the potential to advance the substantive realisation of housing rights and topromote spatial and social transformation in a manner that is congruent with thetransformative nature of the South Africa Constitution.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University