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April 9, 2024

European Rights Court Hands Win to Swiss Seniors, Defeat to Portuguese Youth in Historic Climate Cases
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In Strasbourg, France, the European Court of Human Rights handed out one
victory and two defeats for the climate justice movement today as it
ruled on three historic climate cases. The court ruled in favor of over
2,000 senior women from Switzerland who argued their rights were
violated by governmental inaction on the climate crisis.

Siofra O'Leary: "The court finds that there were some critical lacunae
in the Swiss authorities' process of putting in place the relevant
domestic regulatory framework. This included a failure to quantify,
through a carbon budget or otherwise, national greenhouse gas emissions
limitations. Furthermore, as recognized by the relevant authorities, the
respondent state had previously failed to meet its past greenhouse gas
emission reduction targets by failing to act in good time and in an
appropriate and consistent manner."

The Swiss women hailed their "historic" victory, but the celebration was
tempered by the court's dismissal of similar cases by six youth
activists in Portugal and a former French mayor. Activist Greta
Thunberg, who was at the courthouse for the verdicts, weighed in on
those verdicts.

Greta Thunberg: "It's a betrayal beyond words, and today's rulings make
very clear that the European states have a legal responsibility to take
real climate action and to protect people, to protect its citizens. It
cannot be a political choice whether to respect human rights or not."



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