Antigua & Tuvalu file historic climate justice lawsuit
Monday, the co-chairs of the Commission of Small Island States on Climate Change and International Law (COSIS) submitted to the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) a request for an advisory opinion on the obligations of states under the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
Gaston Browne, the prime minister of Antigua and Barbuda, and Kausea Natano, the prime minister of Tuvalu, submitted the request as part of their efforts to protect and preserve the marine environment in the face of climate change-related impacts such as ocean warming, sea level rise, and ocean acidification.
“This is a historic move by Small Island States to invoke international law in an effort to ensure that major polluters take their responsibilities seriously, to prevent harm to vulnerable states or to compensate them for damage. The catastrophic effects of climate change are already being felt by our people. Browne stated that normal operations cannot continue.
Natano stated, “Within a generation, a number of island nations will vanish beneath the waves if humanity does not take immediate action.”
“Protection of the marine environment is essential to life. Greenhouse gas emissions must be taken as seriously as other forms of pollution. In fact, they necessitate a greater sense of urgency and a commitment to uphold the existing principles of international law,” he added.
The proceeding before the ITLOS is the first inter-State case to address the international legal obligations of states in relation to climate change.
The request to ITLOS complements and supports Vanuatu’s initiative to have the United Nations General Assembly request an advisory opinion on climate change from the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
According to sources who spoke with the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC), ITLOS is expected to schedule the filing of written pleadings and a hearing in 2023, in which all States parties to UNCLOS and international organisations will be able to participate.
COSIS is assisted by a Committee of Legal Experts composed of fourteen eminent jurists from around the globe. At COP26 on October 31, 2021, in Edinburgh, the Agreement establishing COSIS was signed.
The current members are Antigua and Barbuda, Tuvalu, Palau, Niue, Vanuatu, and St. Lucia.
