Amnesty International: Climate crisis threatens human rights | world and science

BRASILIA – A report released on Friday (13) by the non-governmental organization (NGO) Amnesty International warned that climate change represents a human rights crisis of unprecedented proportions, threatening the civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights of present and future generations. future. The NGO asserts that this crisis is demonstrating grievances that are rooted in societies and will have disproportionate impacts on different population groups.

“When the effects of climate change affect a country or a community, its side effects can seriously undermine the guarantee of the right to a dignified life, threaten a range of freedoms and, in many cases, even endanger the cultural survival of entire peoples,” says the NGO .

For Amnesty International, viewing the climate crisis as a human rights emergency helps mobilize a broader group of people to demand a response from governments. At the same time, the NGO says that when states do not take adequate measures to prevent harm to human rights caused by climate change, they are violating obligations under international human rights law.

The report cites recent environmental disasters such as heat waves, wildfires, tropical storms and droughts, to warn that the current level of global warming, with an average temperature of 1.1°C above pre-industrial levels, is already having devastating effects. According to Amnesty International, between 2008 and 2018, 20.88 million people annually were forced to leave their countries due to climate-related events, and the problem is likely to worsen if temperatures continue to rise.

“These events, along with the slowing effects of climate change, such as rising sea levels, seriously affect the guarantee of human rights for millions of people,” says the report, which lists a litany of harms, such as the right to food, drinking water and basic sanitation. .

inequality

The NGO is based on studies by international entities such as the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), which predict a 20% increase in hunger and malnutrition by 2050, due to climate change. The report highlights that individuals and groups who are marginalized or vulnerable to discrimination will be disproportionately affected.

Amnesty International cites the example of women, explaining that they are “often confined to roles and jobs that make them more dependent on natural resources and therefore more vulnerable to the effects of climate”. In addition, they often face obstacles in accessing financial and technical resources and land ownership, which hampers their ability to adapt to climate change.

Another example is indigenous peoples, who depend on the natural environment for their livelihood, housing, medicine and cultural identity. These people often live in areas prone to climate-related disasters, due to a history of expropriations and forced removals, and are among the groups most affected by the effects of climate change, according to Amnesty International’s estimates.

The NGO also remembers people with disabilities and explains that they are at greater risk in climate disasters than people without disabilities. “Their needs and their voices are often overlooked in disaster risk reduction strategies.”

Recommendations

In light of the identified threats, the report makes a series of recommendations for countries and companies. In the case of governments, Amnesty International is calling for the urgent elimination of greenhouse gas emissions, as well as measures such as helping people affected by climate change adapt, ensuring action against climate change aligns with people’s rights, and providing compensation for damages. Ensuring the right to information, participation and compensation.

The NGO considers international cooperation and assistance essential and demands that G20 countries take on their fair share of the problem, including looking at historical emissions since the start of the Industrial Revolution.

In addition to being regulated by states, companies must also assume responsibilities such as reducing emissions and ensuring environmental human rights standards in their operations and in chains that include subsidiaries and suppliers. Businesses must also refrain from pressuring governments to perpetuate a carbon-based economy.

In the case of financial institutions, the NGO recommends stopping funding and investing in new projects, activities and industries that drive the expansion of fossil fuel use and deforestation.