{"id":116070,"date":"2020-06-26T09:30:05","date_gmt":"2020-06-26T12:30:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fraterinternacional.org\/?p=116070"},"modified":"2020-06-26T09:31:53","modified_gmt":"2020-06-26T12:31:53","slug":"sphere-handbook-shelter-and-settlement-they-are-not-numbers-they-are-human-beings","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fraterinternacional.org\/en\/sphere-handbook-shelter-and-settlement-they-are-not-numbers-they-are-human-beings\/","title":{"rendered":"Sphere Handbook \u2013 Shelter And Settlement: They are not numbers, They are Human beings"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you found yourself obliged to leave your home in a hurry, in the middle of a natural disaster or an armed conflict, where would you seek refuge for yourself and your family? When faced with this question, most people have no doubt: they would take refuge in the home of family or friends. To go to a shelter is not an option that \u00a0enters people\u2019s minds. It is the last choice. But it is a reality for millions of people around the world. Wars, persecution, and natural disasters forced 71 million people to leave their homes, according to data of the\u00a0United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

To obtain a roof to give these people shelter \u2013 even if it is made of canvas \u2013 is one of the main concerns of organizations involved in a humanitarian response. And it is exactly for this reason that the subject of a shelter is one of the pillars of the Sphere Handbook. The subject is dealt with in the section Shelter and Settlement in the course on Training of the Sphere Handbook, carried out by the\u00a0Fraternity \u2013 International Humanitarian Federation (FIHF)<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0since the beginning of May.<\/p>\n

\"Alojamento<\/a><\/p>\n

Although the number of people displaced from their native soil are in the millions, it is not about numbers. These are human beings. It is because it refers to lives, that the humanitarian assistants act in the sense of assuring the highest possible level of dignity and autonomy. Only when all other options are exhausted \u2013 homes of parents, friends, rented houses or government subsidized housing \u2013 does the idea of the refugee shelter come up.<\/p>\n

The Sphere teaches that the shelter must provide protection from rain, cold or excessive heat, from illness, provide dignity and conditions of access to livelihoods. The humanitarian assistance organization,\u00a0Catholic Relief Services (CRS)<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0establishes two general goals in its Rapid Response Cycle, spearheaded by the Sphere: The first, for immediate application, is to protect lives. The second, over a medium and long term, is to rebuild lives.<\/p>\n

The minimum standards defined in the Sphere Handbook express the right to adequate shelter in a humanitarian context, based on the principles, rights, and obligations declared in the Humanitarian Charter, which includes the right to live with dignity, to protection and safety, and the right to receive humanitarian assistance. The Sphere proposes that shelter and settlement must be considered together. \u201cShelter\u201d is the household living space, including the items necessary to support daily activities. \u201cSettlement\u201d is the wider locations where people and community live,\u201d.defines the Handbook.<\/p>\n

The basic principles for achieving those goals are based on community life and technical assistance. In short, the timely response must save lives, and the shelter must be appropriate, support the family, community life, security and livelihoods. The Sphere Handbook lists seven minimum standards that must be followed in humanitarian responses that involve the construction of shelters (see chart). But it is important to emphasize that they are guidelines about what needs to be done. How to do it is something that must be analyzed case-by-case.<\/p>\n\n\t\t