HOMELESSNESS IN MALAYSIA FROM INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

PERSPECTIVE
Nur Athirah Syuhada binti Hasni
Abstract
Homelessness has become a major concern in Malaysia and the government is starting to find
solutions for this issue. From International development law perspective, not having a proper
shelter amounts to poverty. This is also abusement of right to adequate housing. Despite
homelessness being recognized as serious issue to be solved, the right of adequate housing is not
being discussed anywhere in Malaysia. Some of the society are not aware of such right. This
article will discuss the causes and solutions for homelessness and role of government in doing
so.

INTRODUCTION
Poverty reduction has been one of the major components in international development. Poverty
is situation where people lack of basic necessities. Homeless people can be said to be living in
poverty as they have no adequate shelter which is one of the basic necessities that human should
have.
According to estimates, 100 million people worldwide are literally homeless. They have
no shelter: they sleep on pavements, in doorways, in parks or under bridges. Or they sleep in
public buildings like railway or bus stations, or in night shelters set up to provide homeless
people with a bed.
The estimated number of homeless increases to 1,000 million people if we include those
in housing that is "very insecure or temporary, often of poor quality - for instance, squatters who
have found accommodation by illegally occupying someone else's home or land and are under
constant threat of eviction; those living in refugee camps whose home has been destroyed; and
those living in temporary shelters (like the 250,000 pavement dwellers in Bombay)". This is
according to a 1996 report by the UN Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat).
In Malaysia, the population of homeless people in Malaysias capital citysurveyed at
roughly 1,400 persons in 2010cuts across a wide range of ethnicities, ages, abilities, sexual
1

orientations, gender identities, places of origin, and social class backgrounds, among other
things, thereby signifying the complexity of problems underlying the phenomenon.
Malaysia has not ratify any convention or treaties regarding right of adequate housing.
Therefore, the obligation to ensure adequate housing for this homeless people and society as a
whole is self-regulated. We can see that the government only started to care and give attention to
this problem on 2010 when the non-governmental organizations urge them to take action. The
increasing number of homeless people shows that there are many people living in Malaysia live
in poverty where they cannot afford basic necessities like proper shelter. Under international
development law as well as human rights, the government needs not only to solve homelessness
problem in Malaysia but most importantly they must eradicate poverty which is the root cause
for homelessness.
HOME AS BASIC HUMAN RIGHT
Throughout history, international human rights law has focused on the protection of humanity
against poverty1. Franklin D. Roosevelt on 1941 Congress described freedom from want as one
of the four essential human freedoms. His vision strongly influenced the United Nations Charter,
the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and, thus, the whole evolution of modern
international human rights law. All major sources of human rights include provisions protecting
freedom from want by conferring rights on every human being and imposing correlative
obligations on governments. The right to adequate housing is among the rights created by these
instruments2.
The provisions of various international human rights instruments range from those with
broad applicability to homelessness and poverty to specific provisions concerning the right to
adequate housing. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights broadly establishes the rights to
social security and human dignity. Article 22, in particular, confers on every member of society a
1

Joseph Wronka, Human Rights and Social Policy in the 21 st Century: A History of the Idea of Human
Rights and Comparison of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights with United States Federal
and States Constitutions, University Press of America, Lanham, 1992, p 223.
2

Marc-Olivier Herman Fighting Homelessness: Can International Human Rights Law Make A
Difference? [1994] 2(1) Georgetown Journal on Fighting Poverty, p 69.

right to basic economic, social, and cultural entitlements that every state should recognize, serve,
and protect. Food, clothing, housing, medical care, and other social services are listed as
definitive components of the right to a minimum standard of living and dignity. Article 25 calls
upon states to take measures to secure for every individual an adequate standard of living,
particularly in cases of unemployment, sickness, or disability.
The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights is perhaps the most
important international human rights instrument for homeless persons and their advocates. The
Covenant elaborates and restates directly the economic, social, and cultural rights proclaimed in
the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In addition to rights to food and clothing, the
Covenant calls for a right to shelter for all people. Article 11(1) of the Covenant reformulates
Article 25 of the Universal Declaration, declaring that:
The States Parties to the present convention recognize the right of everyone to an
adequate standard of living for himself and his family, including adequate food, clothing,
housing and to continuous improvement of living conditions. The States Parties will take
appropriate steps to ensure the realization of this right, recognizing to this effect the essential
importance of international cooperation based on free consent.
In interpreting the "adequate housing" provision of Article 11(1) of the Covenant, the
Committee identifies seven core components of the right to adequate housing3:
1.

Legal security of tenure.

According to the Committee, the right to adequate housing implies the guarantee of legal
protection against forced eviction, harassment, and other threats regardless of the legal nature of
the occupant's tenure. The Committee regards forced eviction as prima facie incompatible with
the requirements of the Covenant and justifiable only in the most exceptional circumstances,
and in accordance with the relevant principles of international law. The Committee has yet to
spell out the exceptional circumstances that may justify forced eviction.
2.

Availability of services, materials, and infrastructure.

3

General Comment No. 4: The Right to Adequate Housing (Art. 11(1) of the Covenant),

The Committee also states that adequate housing means housing with access to facilities
essential for the occupants' health, security, comfort, and nutrition. Facilities should include:
potable drinking water; energy for cooking, heating, and lighting; sanitation and washing
facilities; food storage; refuse disposal; and emergency services.
3.

Affordability.

The Committee believes that housing costs relative to income should not be at such a level as
may threaten or compromise the satisfaction of other basic needs. States, therefore, should
provide subsidies and protect tenants against unreasonable rent levels or rent increases.
4.

Habitability.

Adequate housing means adequate space and sufficient protection against inclement weather and
other threats to physical safety or health.
5.

Accessibility.

The Committee regards it as the states parties' obligation to ensure accessibility for
disadvantaged groups such as the elderly, children, the physically and mentally disabled, and
victims of natural disasters.
6.

Location.

The Committee views as inadequate housing built on polluted sites or in close proximity to
pollution sources. It also finds that the location of housing should allow its occupants access to
employment, schools, and other social services.

7.

Culturally adequate.

The Committee believes that adequate housing means that the occupants are allowed the
expression of their cultural identity.
DEFINITION OF HOMELESSNESS
4

Homelessness can be seen as a condition of detachment from society characterized by the lack of
the affiliative bonds that link people into their social structures. Homelessness carries
implications of belonging nowhere rather than simply having nowhere to sleep. A theoretical
definition of homelessness has widened out from embracing only those sleeping rough to include
risk and causality. Broader definitions of homelessness are both more useful for policy and more
contentious. More wide-ranging interpretations of homelessness include those in overcrowded,
insecure or substandard accommodation, those forced into involuntary sharing of shelter, or
those subjected to high levels of noise pollution or infestation.
Definitions of homelessness developed in high-income industrial countries can be viewed
as points on a continuum rather than as discrete categories. All include those who live in
accommodation that does not reach certain standards as well as those with no accommodation at
all. Definitions used elsewhere are more conjectural. In Eastern Europe some countries include
those in sub-standard housing, others do not. Furthermore, there is still a tendency in this region
to classify homeless people as either deserving or undeserving.
In developing countries, some define homelessness as having no land or shelter, while
others include living in sub-standard housing. As in high strategies to combat homelessness in
income industrial countries, people living rough on the streets may be excluded from the
homelessness figures and policy. Many countries have no official concern for homeless people,
even to the extent of denying their existence. Homelessness is described as not having an
acceptable level of housing provision. It would include all states below what may be regarded as
adequate for the reference society. To classify someone as homeless indicates a state in which
something must be done for the victim of such circumstances. In developing countries, it is
proposed to fix the threshold at what an average person would regard as inadequate or
unacceptable.
In Malaysia, there is no official definition of homelessness. Affairs of the homeless are
lumped under the category of displaced and marginalised groups which fall under the broader
umbrella of the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development (MWFCD) with
enforcement duty mandated to the Social Welfare Department (SWD). Currently running of
MWFCD is guided by four major policies, the National Social Policy, National Policy on
Women, National Policy for the Elderly, and National Social Welfare Policy. None of the policies
5

have direct bearing to houseless and homeless persons implying that thus far this type of
marginalised group have not been receiving much attention4. Thus, homelessness may be defined
in many ways, but is generally understood as the state of not having shelter, or a regular private
space for sleeping, washing, and otherwise conducting ones day-to-day life.
OVERVIEW OF HOMELESSNESS IN MALAYSIA
In Malaysia, it has been said that there are around 1,400 homeless people residing in Kuala
Lumpur area based from the 2010 survey done by the Ministry of Women, Family, and
Community Development (MWFCD). According to survey done by Kuala Lumpur City Council,
the number of homeless people in Kuala Lumpur have increased from 600 in 2014 to at least
2000 people last year. These are people coming from different walks of life different places of
origin, ethnic groups, gender, ages, religions, aptitudes, family backgrounds and with different
life stories5. Even the Organizations working for the homeless welfare in Kuala Lumpur have
reported a rough estimate of 1200 or more for the homeless statistics, hence, execution for a
survey research is required to be able to provide a more accurate and updated data not just for the
government or institutions and organizations working for the homeless but for the public as a
whole6. Nevertheless, some other organizations are never concerned about having homeless data
at all, some organizations have been concerned about the profile and number of the homeless
whom they are providing services, and thus they maintain a database to monitor their
organizational outcomes. With this, they are aware that some of the homeless originate outside

Sharifah Mariam Alhabshi & Alifatul Kamilah Abdul Manan Homelessness in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia:
A case of Agenda Denial [2012] 1(2) International Journal of Social Science Tomorrow, p 1-9.
5

Rayna Ruseko Shimizu "The Anjung Singgah Strategy: Simultaneous Inclusion and Exclusion of
Homelessness in Malaysias Policy Agenda". Paper presented at the Annual meeting of the American Sociological
Association Annual Meeting, Hilton New York and Sheraton New York, New York, NYOnline. [2014]
http://citation.allacademic.com/meta/p650183 _index.htm (5 May 2016)
6

Prescious Ann Santos Oria, Nobaya Ahmad & Hanina Halimatusaadiah Hamsan NGOs and the
Homelessness in Kuala Lumpur : Towards Moralistic Trust [2014] 19 JATI p 119.

Kuala Lumpur and Selangor state; they come from different states of Malaysia as far as Johor
Bahru in the South, Kelantan in the North-east and Sarawak in the East of Peninsular Malaysia.
Based from the participant observations done, it was observed that homeless people come
from different age brackets: most are young adults around 25-40 years old and some old-aged
people around 50 years old above. It is also evident that men outnumber women regardless of the
race they come from whether they are Malay, Chinese, Indian or even non-Malaysians such as
Bangladeshi and Indonesians. Each of the homeless has different personal stories to tell as to
why they end up becoming homeless and these include marriage breakdown for old people,
joblessness, family problems, taken advantaged by other people and even family persecution.
While majority of this population do not have work, some of them work into small-scaled jobs
paid with a meagre salary which pushes them to choose living on the street rather than renting an
inn. Some of them even own gadget such as phone and mp3 players which according to one of
the NGO project directors, the only treasure they may have. Thus, homeless definition in
Malaysian context is not contained or limited to the common misconceptions of people them as
the drug addicts, psychotics, lazy people, dirty ones, jobless, penniless, savage and the like.
Meanwhile, Alhabshi & Manan argued that homeless people receive not a large amount
of attention because there is no clear policy under the Ministry of Women, Family and
Community Development that has direct bearing to the issue of homelessness 7. But in early
2000, homeless began to receive an evident focus when Non-Governmental Organizations in the
city which includes charitable and religious organizations started to make a step in assisting the
homeless specifically on food provision8.
By 2010, the Ministry of Women, Family, and Community Development (MWFCD) had
taken note of homelessness as a burgeoning social issue. Officials from the MWFCD and related
departments and agencies began examining conditions surrounding homelessness in Kuala
7

Sharifah Mariam Alhabshi & Alifatul Kamilah Abdul Manan Homelessness in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia:
A case of Agenda Denial [2012] 1(2) International Journal of Social Science Tomorrow, p 1-9.
8

Rayna Ruseko Shimizu The Anjung Singgah Strategy: Simultaneous Inclusion and Exclusion of
Homelessness in Malaysias Policy Agenda. Paper presented at the Annual meeting of the American Sociological
Association Annual Meeting, Hilton New York and Sheraton New York, New York, NYOnline. [2014]
http://citation.allacademic.com/meta/p650183 _index.htm (5 May 2016)

Lumpur. This resulted in the formation of a special committee to deal with homelessness that,
although not formally constituted, has continued to meet on an ad hoc basis to date 9. From March
6 to May 12, 2010, the Social Welfare Department under the purview of the MWFCD
coordinated a broad-scale survey of homeless persons throughout Kuala Lumpur with the
cooperation of several metropolitan NGOs. 1,387 persons were identified as homeless, and 642
(46.3%) listed a lack of work as the primary contributing factor to their homelessness. Other
factors include low-income (18%), old age (11%), and drug abuse (4%)
Earlier that same year, in January 2010, the federal government announced the start of its
Government Transformation Programme (GTP), which lay down the road map for action
oriented and dynamic initiatives designed to directly and dramatically improve public goods for
Malaysian citizens. Among the GTPs six National Key Result Areas (NKRAs) is Raising the
living standards of low-income households (NKRA-LIH), which has been entrusted in its
entirety to the Minister of Women, Family, and Community Development. One quintessential
objective of the NKRA-LIH is to bring an end to extreme poverty, defined as living on a total
household income of RM 440 per month or less. While homeless persons were not specifically
mentioned as a target group therein, funding from NKRA-LIH was directed to the MWFCD for a
new initiative advanced as a groundbreaking community project. Named Anjung Singgah, the
project marked the federal governments first steps in directly addressing contemporary
homelessness based on a model of assistance and support. The project was touted in the 2011
budget speech by the prime minister, expanded by three facilities (Johor, Kuching, Penang) in
2012. The 2012 GTP 2.0 notes that, due to the rising cost of living, greater emphasis in
supporting the urban poor, particularly the elderly poor and homeless is necessary.
Designed to cater the primary needs of the homeless people, Anjung Singgah serves as a
temporary shelter for the homeless over a period of two weeks before they get reintegrated in the
society. With the help of the volunteers, homeless are provided with various services such as

Rayna Ruseko Shimizu The Anjung Singgah Strategy: Simultaneous Inclusion and Exclusion of
Homelessness in Malaysias Policy Agenda. Paper presented at the Annual meeting of the American Sociological
Association Annual Meeting, Hilton New York and Sheraton New York, New York, NYOnline. [2014]
http://citation.allacademic.com/meta/p650183 _index.htm (5 May 2016)

counselling, food, clothing, medical aids, and job supports through referrals aside from dwelling
in the shelter10.
Government also has recently launched Homeless Transit Home in Jalan Pahang, Kuala
Lumpur. The establishment of that houses more than 90 people, and is equipped with 200 beds,
toilets, prayer rooms and healthcare facilities. The three-storey building has begins its operations
since last February.
CAUSES OF HOMELESSNESS
Poverty
One of the major reasons for homelessness is poverty. Poverty derived from other issues which
includes low wages, unemployment and lack of affordable housing. In Malaysia, the present
minimum wage of RM900 per month, as set under the Minimum Wage Order is a poverty wage
for workers. This is especially for those in urban areas where the cost of living is really high. At
the same time, many workers still earn less than minimum wage due to poor enforcement of the
law. There are still employers out there who pay less than the minimum wage of RM900. This
minimum wage will be increase to RM1000 this July. However, seeing the current cost of living
RM1000 is still considered to be poverty wage. Beside low wages, there are homeless people
unemployed or underemployed 11. Unemployment of this people may cause by various reasons. It
is either they are not able to work because of their physical constraint or they cannot get proper
job for themselves. Some of them are too old to work. Malaysia has no national system for
unemployment assistance despite the fact that many retrenched workers do not receive
compensation through private employment contracts.
Another factor for homelessness is lack of affordable housing. Federal targets for lowcost housing under the Malaysia Plan and PHP have not been in line with demand and
10

Prescious Ann Santos Oria, Nobaya Ahmad & Hanina Halimatusaadiah Hamsan NGOs and the
Homelessness in Kuala Lumpur : Towards Moralistic Trust [2014] 19 JATI p 120.
11

Food not bombs, Policy Sheet : Homelessness in Malaysia [April 2014] http://www.masw.org.my/
images/homeless.pdf (5 May 2016)

construction has not met set targets. While the federal government is taking new steps to improve
the lack of affordable housing through direct provision by introducing PR1MA, present focus is
primarily on ownership, not on rental options that would benefit persons who are unmarried or in
search for immediate housing. In short, this will not help this homeless people12.
Substance Abuse
There is a misconception that all homeless people are in their situation because they were drunks
and therefore brought their situation upon themselves. Inevitably this perception creates a tension
among authorities and the society at large and negatively affects their desire to help assist these
vulnerable people. However exaggerated this stereotype may be there does remain a strong link
between substance abuse and homelessness. Substance abuse is both a cause and consequence of
homelessness. There is a much higher rate of alcohol and drug abuse in the homeless community
than the community at large13.
When substance abuse is not a trigger for homelessness, it often appears later as a result
of the homelessness. This can be for a variety of overlapping reasons. Most obviously is the
desire to numb emotion and physical pain. Since homeless individuals have such traumatic pasts,
many suffer from flashbacks and anxiety they cannot control and alcohol and drugs are used to
cope. Additionally it is entrenched in the culture of the homeless and is used as a bonding tool
and social activity. The priorities of these individuals are on survival, finding adequate food or
shelter for the night. These reasons mean that the motivation to quit drugs or alcohol is low, even
though its absence from their life would be highly advantageous.
Substance abuse seriously impedes upon a homeless individuals ability to make positive
changes in their life. Firstly, substance abuse is demonized and seen as a personal issue, and
therefore the individual is seen as solely responsible for their circumstance. Addiction can cause
individuals to prioritize satisfying their craving above all else. When the individual is housed,
often they are unable to budget properly or even maintain personal hygiene 14. If they are not
12

Food not bombs, Policy Sheet : Homelessness in Malaysia [April 2014] http://www.masw.org.my/
images/homeless.pdf (5 May 2016)
13

Kaitlin Philipps, Homelessness: Causes, Culture and Community Development as a Solution, Pell
Scholars and Senior Theses, Salve Regina University, 2012, p 9.
14

10

adequately supported for their substance abuse upon their housing placement, they often return to
the streets. Additionally their desire for their substance can result in drastic measures such as
crime, once again making authorities reluctant to help.
Mental Illness
Due to the often traumatic circumstances that homeless individuals cope with throughout life, it
is unsurprising that high rates of mental illness are observed in this population. Mental illnesses
are medical conditions that primarily affect the functioning of the mind. It can affect an
individuals mood, emotions and their thought processes. Their ability to function in daily living
is often diminished, reducing their ability to take care of themselves or their living environment.
Mental illness also has a serious effect on an individuals ability to form and maintain
relationships. Issues revolving around the illness can push those closest to the individual away
and often these are the people who would be keeping the mentally ill individual off the streets15.
The most common form of mental illness within the homeless community is depressive
disorders. Depression is a disease that controls an individuals outlook on life and their ability to
deal with circumstances. Depression is characterized by an all encompassing low mood. It causes
low selfesteem, a loss of interest in activities once found enjoyable and has an incapacitating
effect on the individuals ability to relate to others. Often depression can be a trigger for
homelessness or can be created by being homeless 16. One of the strongest sources of depression
among the homeless community was their feelings of isolation and loneliness. Feelings of
isolation and separation from others have a reciprocal relationship with triggers for rooflessness,
such as parental neglect.
POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS FOR HOMELESSNESS

Kaitlin Philipps, Homelessness: Causes, Culture and Community Development as a Solution, Pell Scholars
and Senior Theses, Salve Regina University, 2012, p 9.
15

Kaitlin Philipps, Homelessness: Causes, Culture and Community Development as a Solution, Pell Scholars
and Senior Theses, Salve Regina University, 2012, p 11.
16

Peter Marcuse Neutralizing Homelessness Socialist Review [1988] 1, p 66-67.

11

Ending homelessness requires more than building more shelters and soup kitchens. Such
emergency measures provide critical survival aid: a meal for the day and a bed for the night. But
shelters and soup kitchens do nothing to address factors which lead to homelessness: the lack of
housing, jobs, and social services. Thus, they are not the answer. Ending homelessness means
going beyond emergency relief to long-term solutions.
Housing
New policies are needed to make more affordable housing available. Supportive housing options
which include social services should be made available for people with mental disabilities or
substance dependencies. The government must ensure sufficient supply of quality housing,
including an array of low-cost and rental options, for families and individuals throughout the
city. To overcome continual problems in the quality and availability of low-cost housing, the
public sector ought to take responsibility for more direct provision, as well as improved
regulation of private sector units17.
Using vacant property should be a top priority. Property in a reasonable state of repair is
the quickest and most cost-effective way to create new housing units. Moreover, federal law
requires that unused and underused federal buildings and land, including office buildings,
hospitals and military housing, be used as facilities to help homeless people. Successful projects
that provide assistance, including housing, job training and day care, are underway in cities
around the country. An executive order to implement existing law vigorously and expansively
could make a substantial difference.
Income
In order to ensure adequate income earned income should be supplemented to make work pay,
job programs should be created for homeless people who are able to work, income assistance
should be provided for people who cannot work, and priority should be given to making sure that
homeless people receive existing assistance for which they are eligible18.
17

Maria Foscarinis & James Scheibel Basic Human Needs: End Homelessness Now [1993] 1 Georgetown
Journal on Fighting Poverty, p 44.
18

Maria Foscarinis & James Scheibel Basic Human Needs: End Homelessness Now [1993] 1 Georgetown
Journal on Fighting Poverty, p 45.

12

Job training programs should be created for homeless people who are able to work. They
should be coupled with job referral or job creation programs, focusing primarily on critical
public needs such as housing renovation and construction and infrastructure repair. These
programs should include support services to provide transportation, access to telephones, bathing
facilities, clothes, and child care.
Besides that, the government needs to enforce, review and improve the Minimum Wage
Order and labor-related laws to ensure all workers receive an adequate minimum wage. Beside
increasing the minimum wage for the workers, the most important thing that they have to ensure
is that the employer comply the Minimum Wage Order 19. The government also must ensure that
the workers have to power to influence regulation of their wages, working conditions, and job
security through the formation of and participation in labor unions.
Services
Social services must be available for homeless people and people at risk of homelessness. They
should include medical and mental health care, substance abuse treatment, and education for
homeless children. All social services should be coordinated with housing and income assistance.
The government should provide health care which includes preventive care, it should help people
who are institutionalized apply for federal disability benefits and food stamps before they are
discharged, and make sure that homeless children are given access to public schools20.
There must be relevant services for each type of problems. For example, there must be
medical and social support for substance abuse like drugs. Broaden access to essential addiction
treatment services by promoting research into addiction and collaborating with public policy and
programs fit client needs. The government also needs to inform and educate the public on
addiction and treatment options. Besides, the capacity of public and private health care providers

19

Food not bombs, Policy Sheet : Homelessness in Malaysia [April 2014] http://www.masw.org.my/
images/homeless.pdf (5 May 2016)
20

Maria Foscarinis & James Scheibel Basic Human Needs: End Homelessness Now [1993] 1
Georgetown Journal on Fighting Poverty, p 45.

13

to diagnose and assist patients in managing chronic illness need to be improved 21. Chronic illness
can be far more devastating due to exposure to the elements and irregular or insufficient
nourishment, rest and medical care. Special attention to chronic illness among homeless
populations is required.
ROLE OF GOVERNMENT UNDER INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS
Government obligations vis--vis the right to adequate housing are frequently misunderstood.
They do not mean that the government is required to build housing for the entire population, or
that housing should be provided free of charge to the populace, or even that this right will manifest itself in the same manner in all places at all times. Rather, recognition of the right to housing
by a government or a state means:
i) The state undertakes to endeavor by all appropriate means to ensure that everyone has
access to affordable and acceptable housing.
ii) The state will undertake a series of measures which indicate policy and legislative recognition of each of the constituent aspects of the right to housing.
iii) The state will protect and improve houses and neighborhoods rather than damage or
destroy them.
Through their ratification of human rights treaties, States are required to give effect to
these rights within their jurisdictions22. Under the International Covenant on Economic, Social
and Cultural Rights, States must, at a minimum, show that they are making every possible effort,
within available resources, to better protect and promote this right. Available resources refer to
those existing within a State as well as those available from the international community through
international cooperation and assistance, as outlined in articles 2 (1), 11 and 23 of the Covenant.
Article 3 of the Covenant further obliges each State party to ensure the equal right of men and
women to the enjoyment of the rights set forth in it.
21

Food not bombs, Policy Sheet : Homelessness in Malaysia [April 2014] http://www.masw.org.my/
images/homeless.pdf (5 May 2016)
22

Marc-Olivier Herman Fighting Homelessness: Can International Human Rights Law Make A
Difference? [1994] 2(1) Georgetown Journal on Fighting Poverty, p 61.

14

There is also an immediate obligation to take steps, which should be concrete, deliberate
and targeted, to fulfill the right to adequate housing. Each State should guarantee at least
minimum essential levels of this right. For instance, it should ensure that significant numbers are
not deprived of basic shelter and housing. If a State cannot do so, it must demonstrate that it has
made every effort to use all available resources to satisfy, as a matter of priority, these minimum
essential levels. Likewise, if it adopts a retrogressive measure, i.e., one that weakens the
protection of the right to adequate housing, it will have to demonstrate that it carefully weighed
all the options, considered the overall impact on all human rights of the measure and fully used
all its available resources. As the most feasible measures to implement the right to adequate
housing will vary from State to State, international treaties do not offer set prescriptions23.
However, the foremost practical limitation on the use of international human rights laws
in Malaysia is that the Malaysia is not party to the following major international treaties: the
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the International Convention
on the Rights of the Child, the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Racial Discrimination, and the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Discrimination Against Women. These instruments include provisions that could make a crucial
difference to the homeless in this country if they were justiciable in domestic courts24.

CONCLUSION
Homelessness is one of the major issues in global poverty. A person who has no adequate
housing can be said as living in poverty. Homelessness bears terrible human, social and
economic costs. Unless the administration acts quickly to end homelessness, there is the risk that
these costs will be accepted as tolerable. A vigorous, fast-track strategy is needed to implement
the solutions we have outlined.
23

Marc-Olivier Herman Fighting Homelessness: Can International Human Rights Law Make A
Difference? [1994] 2(1) Georgetown Journal on Fighting Poverty, p 63.
24

Marc-Olivier Herman Fighting Homelessness: Can International Human Rights Law Make A
Difference? [1994] 2(1) Georgetown Journal on Fighting Poverty, p 69.

15

The rights implicated by homelessness are economic, social, and cultural in nature, such
as the right to adequate housing, as well as civil and political in nature, such as the right to life.
These rights are recognized and protected by numerous international human rights instruments.
However, much remains to be done to make international human rights law an effective tool in
the hands of those litigating against homelessness.

16

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Foscarinis, M. & Scheibel, J. 1993. Basic Human Needs: End Homelessness Now. Georgetown
Journal on Fighting Poverty. 1(1) : 44-46.
Herman, M. O. 1994. Fighting Homelessness: Can International Human Rights Law Make A
Difference?. Georgetown Journal on Fighting Poverty. 2(1) : 59-82.
Peter Marcuse. 1988. Neutralizing Homelessness. Socialist Review 1 : 56-67.
Philipps, K. 2012. Homelessness: Causes, Culture and Community Development as a Solution.
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