Amnesty International and Greenpeace joined forces today at the Paris climate summit, to warn governments not to allow climate change to undermine human rights.
Millions of people around the world are already seeing their rights to life, water, food, health and housing affected by climate change. If those rights are to be protected, governments must limit global warming to no more than 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels.
For this to happen, Greenpeace and Amnesty demand that fossil fuels are phased out by 2050, with a just transition to 100% renewable energy. Forests and other ecosystems must also be protected and restored.
Thomas Schultz-Jagow, Director of Campaigns and Communications at Amnesty International, said:
“The human rights consequences of failing to act on climate change are stark. As many as 600 million more people could go hungry by 2080. The brunt of negative climate impacts will be suffered by the poorest, especially women, girls and Indigenous Peoples. All governments have obligations under international human rights law to protect human rights, including the rights to life, housing, food, water, sanitation, and to a healthy environment. Governments here in Paris must recognize their obligations to human rights in the context of climate change, and commit now to a just transition to 100% renewable energy by 2050.”
Kumi Naidoo, International Executive Director of Greenpeace International, added:
“To limit global warming to the relative safety of 1.5 degrees, we have to shift to 100% renewable energy for all by 2050. This transition can and must be delivered in a way that supports global human rights and the rights of Indigenous Peoples. Governments meeting in Paris have human rights obligations that can be met if they agree to phase out fossil fuels. But let us also be clear: we will hold governments to account if they fail to act now to prevent further harm.”
The full statement can be downloaded at here.
Greenpeace Southeast Asia, disaster survivors and community organisations successfully brought petition to Commission on Human Rights of the Philippines, asking it to investigate the responsibility of the Carbon Majors for human rights impacts of climate change.
The Commission will launch the investigation on International Human Rights Day (December 10, 2015). It is anticipated that an inquiry, assessing property damage and loss of livelihoods and life in the Philippines, will take place in the first quarter of 2016.
Amnesty International was one of the NGOs that provided advice to Greenpeace Southeast Asia on human rights legal issue in the formulation of this complaint.
ENDS
For further information contact:
Ashfaq Khalfan, Law and Policy Programme Director, Amnesty International, +44-78-99805445 (in Paris), 
Naomi Ages, Climate Liability Campaigner, Greenpeace USA, +31 (0)6 31 34 67 43 (in Paris), 