World's Youth for Climate Justice (WYCJ) reposted this
The first week of hearings on the International Court of Justice's Advisory Opinion on States' obligations regarding climate change is coming to a close. As we gear up for week two, CIEL prepared a short analysis of four fallacies that major emitting States have put forth: 1. Paris Agreement: 👎 Big polluters claim that the only relevant intl. law defining State obligations on climate change is the UN climate regime, which does not require States to do very much. 👍 The ICJ must look to the entire universe of international law. 2. Human Rights: 👎Big polluters claim that human rights law doesn’t explicitly address climate change and thus doesn’t require States to mitigate emissions or phase out fossil fuels. 👍The idea that a law doesn't apply to climate change unless it explicitly mentions it's absurd on its face. 3. Transboundary harms: 👎 Big polluters claim that the duty to prevent significant transboundary environmental harm does not apply to GHG emissions or climate change. 👍 States have a longstanding obligation under customary international law not to cause significant env. harm to other States. 4. Climate reparations: 👎 Big polluters claim that the issue of legal consequences doesn't even arise because it isn't possible to prove an individual State’s breach of international legal obligations or to link that breach with specific climate harms. 👍 There is no getting around the fundamental principle of law that where there is a breach of duty and injury ensues, there is a corresponding obligation to cease the wrong and repair the harm. 👀What to look for week 2? 👀 In the final days of the ICJ proceedings, regional blocs, country groups, and international organizations will appear, and we expect compelling narratives. At the end the Court will pose questions emerging from the proceedings likely to reveal its key concerns. Anticipated interventions from the UK, the Netherlands, the European Union, and Japan, representing major polluters and fossil financiers, might be important to watch for potential climate-destructive arguments. On the heels of COP 29 which resoundingly failed to deliver climate justice, the ICJ climate advisory proceedings are timely and much-needed to center any discussion regarding climate justice on internationally recognized legal principles rather than on negotiated outcomes representing the lowest common denominator. #AOLetsGo #ClimateJusticeAtTheICJ #HumanRights