- 150 - obligation to promote the right to housing (except perhaps for the non-discrimination element dealt with in the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination). That insistence is legitimate, even if some would question its appropriateness. It is, however, an entirely different matter to deny the existence of one of the internationally recognized human rights and to oppose all reference to it, even in a non-binding recommendation by an international conference. 16. For these reasons, I believe that the Commission on Human Settlements should unequivocally reject any suggestion that the right to adequate housing is not a human right. I would also add that the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights has recently noted (E/1995/L.21, para. 10) that it is essential to ensure "that the general policy framework for the [Habitat II] Conference takes full account of the importance" of the right to adequate housing. While it has occasionally been suggested that such matters should be dealt with only by the Commission on Human Rights and not by bodies such as the Commission on Human Settlements, this is directly contrary to widely accepted views that human rights cannot be quarantined and confined to a very small segment of the overall debate. Neither the Commission on Human Rights nor the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights has any significant operational role or capacity, nor do they have any direct inputs into discussions on housing policy. It is therefore indispensable that this matter be addressed by the Commission on Human Settlements and by Habitat to the fullest appropriate extent. 17. I would be grateful if you could make this letter available to the next Preparatory Committee meeting and to any other pertinent meetings. Yours sincerely, Philip Alston, Chairperson, Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights