Government Accountability for Climate Change Recognized in First Ruling
The Swiss government has been ruled by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) to have violated the human rights of the elderly by neglecting climate policies such as greenhouse gas emissions. This is the first time an international court has recognized the responsibility of a specific government regarding climate change.
On the 9th (local time), the ECHR ruled in favor of members of the Swiss environmental group "Older Women for Climate Protection" who filed a lawsuit against the Swiss government, according to the Associated Press.
The environmental group consists of about 2,400 Swiss women aged 64 and older, who claimed that the Swiss government violated their fundamental rights under the European Convention on Human Rights by failing to reduce greenhouse gas emissions enough to limit global warming to 2 degrees Celsius. They particularly argued that elderly women are vulnerable to the effects of climate change. They filed the lawsuit with the ECHR four years ago, in 2020.
The ECHR also agreed that the Swiss government did not make sufficient efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Previously, the ECHR dismissed similar lawsuits filed by a former mayor of France and six Portuguese youths. They had also sued, demanding that European governments take more active measures against climate change.
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