Climate change and human rights Human Rights law as a tool to - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Climate change and human rights

Human Rights law as a tool to address climate change, a long process

• 2004 : Inuit petition
• 2007 : Malé Declaration on the Human

Dimension of Global Climate Change

• 2008 : 1st resolution of the UN Human Rights

council on climate change and human rights

• 2009, 2010 other resolutions
• 2009 : analytical study of the UHCHR

Summary of Climate Change

Main consequences:

• Sea level rise and floodings
• Higher water temperatures
• Increased frequency of hot extremes

and heatwaves

• Increased intensity of tropical cyclones
• Heavy precipitation events
• Higher levels of ground-level ozone in

urban areas

Affected Human Rights

• The right to life : ICCPR, art. 6; CRC, art. 6.*
• The right to adequate food : ICESCR, art. 11; CRC,
• art. 24 (c); CRPD, art. 25 (f) and art. 28 etc... * / Read this
• The right to water : CRPD, art. 28, para. 2 (a); CRC, art. 24,
• para. 2 (c).*
• The right to health : ICERD, art. 5 (e) (iv); CRC, art. 24; etc..*
• The right to adequate housing : ICERD, art. 5 (e) (iii); etc...*
• The right to self-determination : Articles 1 and 55 of the

Charter of the United Nations *

* Legal grounds : IPPC → International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights ; ICESCR → International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights ; CRC → Convention on the rights of the child ; CRPD → Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities ; ICERD → International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination

Vulnerable groups

• Women :

– during natural disasters and during migration – Need to recognise gender-specific vulnerability

• Children :

– particularly children in developing countries – Future of our nations

• Indigenous peoples

– Live in ecosystems climate change-sensitive – Want to make their voice heard about climate

change

Displacement

• Migrations caused by climate changes'

consequences

• 4 main scenarios :

– Weather-related disasters (hurricanes and flooding...) – Gradual environmental deterioration (desertification or

submersion of low-lying island States...)

– Increased disaster risks resulting in relocation of people

from high-risk zones

– Social trouble and violence caused by climate change

NB : The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees advised not to use the terms “climate refugees” or “environmental refugee” which have no basis in international refugee law.

Others implications

• Global security

– 46 countries : 2.7 billion people – Insecurity and violence conflict have

link with human rights

• Implications caused by “responses

measures”

– “adaptation” and “mitigation”

Role of the human rights system in the struggle against global warming

• 2 goals of the HRC : introduction of the HR

concepts inside and outside the UNFCCC

• Special procedures

UN special rapporteurs focused reports on the issue of climate change impact on human rights Difficult to asses the efficiency of these procedures A right-based approach to climate change is needed The extraterritorial dimension of human rights is crucial Deep intergovernmental divergence

• Climate change in the Universal Periodic

Review (UPR)

Body which checks the HR performance of States Used by vulnerable states to evaluate the impact of climate change on HR Effectiveness rather limited

• Inclusion of human rights language in the

Cancun agreement