European Court Rules Swiss Climate Inaction As Violation Of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has ruled in favour of elderly Swiss women who argue that their government is not doing enough to combat climate change.
This comes as one of three mixed judgements, with the high court ruling differently in two other similar cases.
A French mayor, as well as six Portuguese youths also took their cases up to the ECHR, saying that their governments are not doing enough to combat climate change.
Together with five more young people, Santos Oliveira took Portugal and 32 other nations to court, arguing the failure to stop emissions violated their fundamental rights. Their case was thrown out.
A French mayor also fighting for stronger state efforts to combat the climate crisis was also defeated.
However, over 2,000 Swiss members of the Senior Women for Climate Protection emerged victorious in a historic ruling making it the first time an international court ruled on climate change. The court agreed that the government needs to do more to meet its international obligations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
In each case, lawyers argued that the political and civil protections outlined in the European Convention on Human Rights are meaningless if the planet becomes uninhabitable.
Do you agree with the Court’s judgement?
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