Half-opening Pandora’s box: review of the Human Rights Committee’s 2020 view on climate refugees

In recent years, climate change is emerging as a major environmental disaster. The impact of such disasters has been the rise in global temperature and flooding of coastal zone communities, frequent droughts and disruptions in rainfall pattern. This has resulted in the increase in the number of environmental refugees. Climate change disasters constitute a major reason for displacement of population than war and persecution. Climate induced migration is a highly complex issue. The status of climate refugees is not recognized in the international framework. The non recognition of these victims in international and national legislations has not only deprived them of their basic human rights but has also raised crucial questions relating to their existence and identity. This paper tries to bring out the lacunae in the present policy and legal framework relating to environmental refugees with reference to the non-refoulement principle. Further, the paper emphasizes on the need to include climate refugees under the term „refugee‟ as laid down in the United Nations Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, 1951and provides suggestions for improving the condition and protection of this hitherto neglected population.

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Rethinking The Refugee Regime: Would A Human Rights-Based Approach To The Issue Of Climate Refugees Produce Just Outcomes?

10.30707/etd2021.20210719070603182524.38 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Gordon Robinson

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

Human Rights Based Approach ◽

Climate Refugees

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Climate Change and Forced Migration

Migraciones internacionales ◽

10.33679/rmi.v1i1.1846 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 ◽

pp. 1-20

Author(s):

Shirley Llain Arenilla ◽

Cindy Hawkins Rada

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Human Rights ◽

Forced Migration ◽

International Human Rights Law ◽

Human Rights Law ◽

International Protection ◽

Nation States ◽

Displaced People ◽

The Relationship ◽

Climate Refugees

The population of environmentally displaced people has increased recently, thus this article aims to address the challenges climate change may impose on Nation-States concerning human rights in relation to forced migration. The relationship between climate change and forced migration will be studied in order to present the problems arising from the allocation of international responsibility among States and the international protection (or the lack thereof) of “Climate Refugees” and stateless persons caused by the disappearance of Nation- States under climate change; solutions will be proposed under the existing International Human Rights Law.

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Human Rights Pathways to Just Sustainabilities

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su11123255 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 11 (12) ◽

pp. 3255

Author(s):

LaDawn Haglund

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

Social Relations ◽

Social Transformation ◽

Power Dynamics ◽

Original Research ◽

Law And Policy ◽

Sustainability Challenges ◽

Sustainable Futures ◽

Sociological View ◽

Climate Refugees

Ecosystem disruptions pose a threat to us all, but are most acutely felt by the vulnerable: climate refugees, those experiencing water and food insecurity, or those displaced by pollution and ecosystem degradation. We struggle to find “solutions,” but they often pale in comparison to the risks we face. Collaborative approaches to sustainability that strive for balance between humans and nature are necessary but insufficient for addressing destabilizing trends. This paper argues that shifting the focus to destructive social relations and imbalances among humans unveils critical insights into to our destructive relationship with nature. A sociological view of human rights—in particular where they meet sustainability challenges—can sharpen this focus, providing guardrails within which to conceptualize, measure, and address systemic sociopolitical dimensions of sustainability challenges. The relative clarity of human rights (compared to the more amorphous “justice”), their increasing institutionalization in law and policy, and their broad legitimacy provides a structure to give “teeth” to transformational efforts stymied by inertia or unyielding power dynamics. Examples from original research and secondary literature demonstrate the utility of human rights as mechanisms of social transformation, setting boundaries for accountability and conflict resolution and laying the ground for building more just and sustainable futures.

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Climate change and displacement: protecting ‘climate refugees’ within a framework of justice and human rights

Journal of Human Rights and the Environment ◽

10.4337/jhre.2020.01.04 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

pp. 86-113 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Sumudu Atapattu

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Human Rights ◽

Task Force ◽

Human Migration ◽

Small Island ◽

Legal Regime ◽

Island States ◽

Ipcc Report ◽

Small Island States ◽

Climate Refugees

One of the far-reaching consequences of climate change relates to the forced displacement of people. Climate-induced migration is a very complex issue. The New York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants noted the varied reasons for migration as being armed conflict, poverty, food insecurity, persecution, terrorism, human rights violations, climate change and natural disasters. Despite the recognition in the very first IPCC report in 1990 that the greatest single impact of climate change could be on human migration, it took climate negotiators over two decades to include displacement in climate documents. This article discusses complexity, scale and displacement scenarios, paying particular attention to the plight of small island states and to the climate-conflict-displacement nexus. It analyses the legal regime applicable to political refugees under international law and the current legal lacuna with regard to climate refugees. It surveys recent developments including the Global Compact on Migration, and the Task Force on Climate Displacement. This article argues that while current human rights law provides some protection, it is insufficient, and that the international community should take urgent action to design a legal regime to protect the rights of climate displacees. This is especially true of inhabitants of small island states who will be forced to move because their states are ‘disappearing’. The article argues that major emitters owe a legal duty to help climate displacees and especially the inhabitants of small island states.

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