Property rights are human rights, which not only give people legal and social recognition of their assets, but form an intrinsic part of maintaining a free society, according to a new report from the Institute of Race Relations (IRR)
The report, A True ‘Human Right’: Why Property Rights are Indispensable, notes that the right of people to own and use property is recognised by multiple philosophical, religious and cultural traditions. Influential countervailing arguments, however, have held that property rights can and do operate as a means to perpetuate economic injustice – seen thus, property rights would be a hindrance to the realisation of other rights.
The IRR points out that debates between these positions have existed for hundreds of years, not least among the various delegations during the drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The same arguments were held in South Africa in the drafting of the 1996 Constitution.
In a statement announcing the release of the report, the IRR said: ‘As one scholar put it: “That the human right to own property is still not deeply entrenched in international human rights law is perhaps because many people see it as a right of the rich.”’
‘The IRR’s report, however, defends the understanding of property rights (or the right of people to hold property) as a human right, no less than any other. Looking specifically at the African context, we see a fairly robust statistical relationship between property rights and civil and political liberties in the continent’s countries – although it is not entirely clear what the nature of any cause-and-effect relationship is.’
The report presents a number of case studies, with a focus on Africa – including South Africa, Zimbabwe, the erstwhile Zaire, Uganda and Egypt – to demonstrate how repression and human rights abuses often targeted the property rights of victims.
It also examines the thorny issue of what should be done to enhance property rights and the ability of people to accumulate property itself. This is not always a straightforward matter, in the context of weak administrative systems. The report looks at some possible solutions to this.
The report calls for recognition of property rights as a human right, whose violation is a serious matter.