Inuits Press on Human Rights on Climate Change

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights will hold hearing on March 1 on the Inuit Circumpolar Conference's claim that climate change, caused by human activities, has violated their human rights, and that the government of the United States is to be held accountable. The commission will consider hear the petitioners claims that:

"The impacts of climate change, caused by acts and omissions by the United States, violate the Inuit’s fundamental human rights protected by the American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man and other international instruments. These include their rights to the benefits of culture, to property, to the preservation of health, life, physical integrity, security, and a means of subsistence, and to residence, movement, and inviolability of the home."

The decision to hold hearings comes on the heels of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report, released last week in Paris. The report confirmed that that climate change is "very likely" caused by human activities, and that the effects are accelerating. The report is the first in a series of reports due to be released this year.

The IPCC was established by the World Meteorological Organization and U.N. Environmental Program. It is a panel of scientists from around the world to "assess on a comprehensive, objective, open, and transparent basis the scientific, technical and socio-economic information relevant to understanding the scientific basis of risk of human-induced climate change, its potential impacts, and options for adaptation and mitigation."

The Center for International Environmental Law and EarthJustice are assisting the Inuits in the case. Access to sufficient drinking water is a part of the the Inuit claim, as water resources are insufficient during parts of year in many of the territories.

The case is an important one for human rights law in general, and the Inter-American system in particular. The international community has recognized the importance: Sheila Watt-Cloutier, former chair of the Inuit Circumpolar Conference, and the leading force behind the case, was nominated this month for the Nobel Peace Prize.