The United Nations Human Rights Committee earlier this month in a landmark decision ruled that climate refugees cannot be forced back to their home, reports The Brisbane Times.
The panel was making a judgment on the case of Ioane Teitiota, who in 2016 was denied his asylum claim as a “climate refugee” by the government of New Zealand. He was deported from New Zealand to Kiribati in September 2015.
Teitiota claimed that the effects of climate change and sea-level rise forced him to migrate from the island of Tarawa in the Republic of Kiribati to New Zealand, citing scarce access to freshwater and land disputes over inhabitable land. He argued that New Zealand had violated his rights to life in deporting him.
The committee upheld the reasoning of the New Zealand immigration tribunal and the courts, though it found that “without robust and national and international efforts, the effects of climate change in receiving states may expose individuals to a violation of their rights under articles 6 or 7 of the Covenant.”
The decision could have a significant impact on future claims.
“The decision sets a global precedent,” said Kate Schuetze, Pacific Researcher at Amnesty International. “It says a state will be in breach of its human rights obligations if it returns someone to a country where – due to the climate crisis – their life is at risk, or in danger of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment.”
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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