Climate inaction by Switzerland violated human rights, rules European Court in case filed by 2,000 women

The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in France, on Tuesday (Apr 9) delivered a landmark ruling and found Switzerland’s failure to adequately tackle the climate crisis a violation of human rights in a case brought by more than 2,000 women. 

About the hearing

The court ruled in favour of a group of elderly women from Switzerland who argued that the Swiss government’s inadequate efforts to combat climate change put them at risk of dying during heatwaves. 

The women, most of whom are in their 70s, argued that their age and gender made them particularly vulnerable to the effects of heatwaves which have become more frequent and are intensifying in recent years due to climate change. 

Also Read | Earth continues to sear as March emerges as 10th consecutive hottest month 

The court in the French city of Strasbourg heard the case against Switzerland’s government which had been accused of not only undermining the health and quality of life of the women but also putting them at risk of dying. 

Court President Siofra O’Leary said the Swiss government had violated the human right to a private and family life as it failed to formulate and implement domestic policies to tackle climate change. 

“This included a failure to quantify, through a carbon budget or otherwise, national greenhouse gas emissions limitations,” O’Leary told the courtroom. 

She also noted that the Swiss government had failed to meet its past greenhouse gas emission reduction targets. The ECtHR also found “critical gaps” in Switzerland’s policies to tackle climate change. 

The judgement marks the first time that the court has ruled on climate litigation. Notably, the court does not allow a right to appeal and their judgement is legally binding. 

‘We still can’t really believe it’

“We still can’t really believe it. We keep asking our lawyers, ‘is that right?’,” said Rosemarie Wydler-Walti, one of the leaders of the Swiss women, KlimaSeniorinnen or Senior Women for Climate Protection, as quoted by the news agency Reuters. 

Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg also joined the campaigners in celebrating at the court. 

The judgement in the case heard by a 17-judge panel at the ECtHR also comes as dozens of courts across the world are hearing climate lawsuits brought by communities against governments which hinge on human rights. 

Also Read | 'China leave': Xi Jinping's effigy trampled upon outside Chinese consulate in Manila

“Regardless of the legal arguments, what these cases do is they remind us of the high importance and urgency which our citizens attach to climate action,” said the European Commission spokesperson after the ruling. 

Court dismisses two other cases

The court dismissed two other cases brought by six Portuguese young people and a former French mayor, both of which largely argued that European governments had failed to tackle climate change quickly enough and that it violated their rights. 

The six Portuguese youths filed a lawsuit against 32 European governments, but had been dismissed by the court saying that the two claims were ruled “inadmissible.”

“It is a betrayal beyond words, and today’s rulings make very clear that the European states have a legal responsibility to take real time action and to protect people, to protect its citizens,” said Thunberg. 

(With inputs from agencies)