Amnesty report on the impact of Covid-19 restrictions

In May Amnesty International published a new report[1] assessing the impact of pandemic restrictions across the globe: ‘There is no help for our community: The impact of States’ Covid-19 responses on groups affected by unjust criminalization’. The report is based on an online survey of 54 civil society organizations in 28 countries, FEANTSA being one of them.

The report finds that marginalized groups, including those experiencing homelessness, were disproportionately impacted by Covid-19 regulations that exposed them to further discrimination and human rights abuses. The report documents an overly punitive approach to the enforcement of Covid-19 regulations rather than supportive measures to access housing and other essentials. Among other punitive measures, organizations reported the widespread use of fines, arrests, or written warnings to stay away from a public place. Meaning people who lost their livelihoods overnight and people experiencing homelessness were at risk of being criminalized for not adhering to Covid-19 measures and breaching curfews even in contexts where they had nowhere else to go. Many of those most gravely impacted by this punitive approach already had poorer health outcomes because of historical marginalization in the allocation of resources and discrimination in access to healthcare, employment and housing. The report concluded by stating that putting human rights at the heart of government efforts to address public health emergency responses is an obligation and calling for States to end unjust criminalization in order to effectively ensure their protection and advance public health goals. One of Amnesty´s recommendations to States is to ensure the right to adequate housing:

“Ensure that people experiencing homelessness who have been provided with temporary accommodation during the public health crisis are not returned to a situation of homelessness once the emergency wanes. Ensure that, in compliance with the principle of non-retrogression, all positive measures implemented to fulfil the rights of marginalized people during the emergency are retained once the public health situation improves. Protect people from evictions by prohibiting evictions for non-payment of rent, rental arrears, mortgage payment default, and utility payment arrears during the pandemic and for a reasonable period thereafter.”