Deprivation in housing habitability is understood to exist when it fails to provide its occupants with a minimum level of protection from the natural and social environment. This means that the dwelling fails to provide protection against various environmental factors (such as rain or humidity), as well as privacy and comfort for basic biological and social activities (Feres and Mancero, 2001). According to the United Nations (2013) all persons should possess a degree of security of tenure which guarantees legal protection against forced eviction and other threats, and enables them to live in peace and dignity. Unlike the United Nations (2013), which considers security of tenure to be safeguarded by common law, here it is deemed to be protected by civil (written) law only. People occupying dwellings illegally (squats) or living in loaned housing are thus deemed not to have secure tenure. In 2010, the United Nations affirmed the human right to water and sanitation, since both are essential for preventing undernutrition, infectious diseases and maternal and child mortality.