Land grabbing, Land Rights and Human Rights: (Re) Setting the Agenda

Seminar organised by Dr Jeremie Gilbert, Centre for Human Rights in Conflict.

Land rights are not typically perceived to be a human rights issue. Legally, land rights usually fall within the categories of land laws, land tenure agreements or planning regulations, but are rarely associated with human rights law. There is also very little interaction between land law and human rights. Internationally, no treaty or declaration specifically refers to a human right to land.

Despite the lack of a coherent conceptual and legal framework at international level, land rights are often a key human rights issue. In many countries, access to land rights and security of tenure constitute the basis for access to food, livelihoods, housing and development for a large percentage of the population, and are an important source of national food security. Without access to land many people find themselves in a situation of great economic insecurity. Access and rights over lands are also frequently stratified on a hierarchical and segregated system where the poorest, less educated, and otherwise disadvantaged do not hold security of land tenure.