The UN’s main judicial organization judged that the states had the obligation to protect the environment from greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) and to act with reasonable diligence and cooperation to fulfill this obligation.
This includes the obligation under the Paris Agreement on Climate Change To limit global warming to 1.5 ° C above pre-industrial levels.
The court also ruled that if the States violated these obligations, they engage in legal responsibility and may be required to cease unjustified conduct, to offer guarantees of non-repetition and to repair the whole depending on the circumstances.
“A victory for our planet”
UN Secretary General António Guterres Published a video message welcoming the historic decision, which one day came after its delivery A special address Member States on unstoppable world change towards renewable energies.
“This is a victory for our planet, for climate justice and for the power of young people to make a difference,” he said.
Court reasoning
The court used the commitments of the Member States towards environmental treaties and human rights to justify this decision.
First, Member States are parts to a variety of environmental treaties, including ozone layer treaties, the Biodiversity agreementTHE Kyoto protocolTHE Paris Agreement And many others, which forces them to protect the environment of people in the world and in future generations.
But, also because “a clean, healthy and lasting environment is a prerequisite for the enjoyment of many human rights”, since the Member States are parties to many human rights treaties, including the Universal Declaration of Human RightsThey are required to guarantee the enjoyment of these rights by attacking climate change.
Case context
In September 2021, the state of the Pacific Island of Vanuatu announced that it would request an advisory opinion from the court on climate change. This initiative was inspired by the group of young Pacific Island, the students of the island fighting against climate change, who stressed the need to act to combat climate change, in particular in small island states.
After the country has put pressure on other UN member states to support this initiative at the General Assembly, on March 29, 2023, he adopted a resolution requesting an advisory notice from the Icj On two questions: (1) What are the obligations of states under international law to ensure environmental protection? and (2) What are the legal consequences for states under these obligations when they cause damage to the environment?
THE Charter of the United Nations allows the general assembly or Security advice Ask the ICJ to provide an advisory notice. Even if advisory opinions are not binding, they carry a significant legal and moral authority and help to clarify and develop international law by defining the legal obligations of the States.
This is the greatest case never seen by the ICJ, obvious by the number of written declarations (91) and the states which participated in oral procedures (97).
The “World Court”
The CIJ, known informally under the name of “World Court”, regulates legal disputes between the member states of the United Nations and gives advisory opinions on the legal issues which have been returned to it by the organs and agencies of the UN.
It is one of the six main organs of the UN alongside the General Assembly, the Security Council, of the Economic and social council (ECOSOC), the supervisory council and the secretariat and is the only one not based in New York.
Publicado anteriormente en Almouwatin.
