- Author(s):
- Parliamentary Assembly
- Origin
- Assembly
debate on 29 September 2021 (28th sitting) (see Doc. 15348, report of the Committee on Migration, Refugees and
Displaced Persons, rapporteur: Mr Pierre-Alain Fridez). Text adopted by the Assembly on
29 September 2021 (28th sitting).
1. The Parliamentary
Assembly is deeply alarmed by the dramatic effects of climate change
and their impact on the lives of millions of people in Europe and
beyond. Extreme events are on the rise. Record temperature levels
have been measured recently on the Antarctic ice sheet, the world's
largest freshwater reserve. Its complete melting would cause sea
levels to rise considerably. If global warming continues, the consequences
are known: flooding of coastal areas and deltas, the outright disappearance
of many islands, an increase in the number of territories affected
by drought and desertification making life impossible and forcing
tens of millions of unfortunate people who have lost everything
to find food and more hospitable land within or outside their country.
This phenomenon will be destabilising and could lead to tensions,
conflicts and even war.
2. Current efforts to limit climate change are not sufficient.
The results will not be seen for decades. Millions of people, however,
are already being forced to migrate. They cannot afford to wait
until climate change is reversed. We should, therefore, act as a
matter of urgency to prevent mass displacement caused by climate change
and help those on the move to survive and live dignified lives in
their host countries. In doing so, we should also bear in mind the
need to do all it takes to secure – in Europe and beyond – the human
right to a safe, clean, healthy and sustainable environment. This
right should become a reality as soon as possible for people to
feel safe enough to live in their homeland, wherever this is.
3. The Assembly welcomes the Joint Declaration on human rights
and the environment issued on 15 May 2020 by the Georgian, Greek
and German presidencies of the Committee of Ministers of the Council
of Europe, underscoring that life and well-being on our planet is
contingent on humanity’s collective capacity to guarantee both human
rights and a healthy environment to future generations.
4. Adequate solutions are needed to help meet the challenges
related to migration caused by climate change. New human rights
protection instruments are necessary for an effective implementation
of the human right to a safe, clean, healthy and sustainable environment,
which could also protect migrants moving in search of such a safe,
clean, healthy and sustainable environment.
5. This “new generation” human right should also be embedded
in international instruments that influence migration – from disaster
preparedness and climate adaptation instruments to economic development strategies,
energy production and trade agreements. The actions taken must ensure
that a gender-responsive approach is fully integrated into the design
and implementation of all projects and programmes. The Green Climate
Fund provides guidance and has produced a practical manual entitled
“Mainstreaming Gender in Green Climate Fund Projects” that supports
the integration of gender equality into climate change interventions and
climate finance.
6. The Assembly underscores the importance of joining forces
to strengthen human rights protection for those affected by climate
change-induced migration in Europe and beyond, acting on the following
pillars: ensuring human rights protection for people who are forced
to migrate because of climate change-induced disasters or hardship;
using science and technology to serve people and save lives; improving
development co-operation and emergency support in migrants’ countries
of origin; and preventing environmental degradation that multiplies
the effects of climate change.
7. In order to ensure human rights protection for people who
are forced to migrate because of climate change-induced disasters
or hardship, the Assembly:
7.1 notes
the current pressure within the UN Human Rights Council to recognise
the human right to a healthy environment, building, inter alia, on the decision of the
UN Human Rights Committee in the Kiribati case on cross-border movement
of individuals seeking protection from climate change-related harm;
7.2 recalls its recommendations formulated in
Resolution 2307 (2019) “A legal status for ‘climate refugees’” and calls for
a legal status for people displaced or migrating for climate-related
reasons. It notes that the term “refugee” falls within the remit
of the 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 Protocol and has a specific
legal status linked to persecution on the five enumerated grounds
of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social
group or political opinion. However, there is a need to develop
specific policies to protect people who are forced to move as a
consequence of climate change. In this respect, the “Legal considerations
regarding claims for international protection made in the context
of the adverse effects of climate change and disasters” issued by
the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees provide valuable
guidelines for assessing those in need of protection;
7.3 calls for a people-centred, human rights-based and systemic
approach to deal with climate migration. Human rights legal frameworks
can effectively guide States in designing policies that prevent displacement,
protect people during displacement and allow people to move in safety
and dignity;
7.4 asks Council of Europe member States to provide adequate
protection to those who raise awareness about environmental degradation
that may lead to mass displacement, whether these be whistle-blowers,
civil society organisations, journalists or other stakeholders.
It welcomes the European Union Directive on the protection of persons
who report breaches of Union law (Directive (EU) 2019/1937 of 23
October 2019) and invites non-EU Council of Europe member States
to implement similar instruments at national level, ensuring the
highest possible protection for those who often risk their lives for
the public good;
7.5 welcomes the UN Human Rights Council’s actions aimed at
raising the awareness of the global community about the effects
of climate change and human rights protection needs of those who
are particularly vulnerable and who are forced to migrate by climate
change-induced disasters. Climate change and migration policies
and programmes should meet the needs of vulnerable groups who are disproportionally
affected by climate change, such as persons living in coastal areas,
indigenous people, minorities, older persons, women and girls, children
and persons with disabilities;
7.6 welcomes the focus of the 2021 edition of the Council
of Europe’s World Forum for Democracy on the environment and climate
change and its effect on human rights and democracy. In the framework of
the Forum’s “12 Months, 1 Question” campaign, the Assembly notes
the attention paid to disasters, displacement and climate change
during the month of February 2021, during which the Special Representative
of the Secretary General on Migration and Refugees, Ambassador Drahoslav
Štefánek, called climate change one of the biggest challenges for
humankind and argued that climate change can result in climate refugees,
displacing thousands, even millions, in the future.
8. As regards the use of science and technology to serve people
and save lives, the Assembly:
8.1 calls
for the better use of science and technology to improve communication
on and predictability of migration trends. States should undertake,
both nationally and internationally, a side-by-side mapping of climate
change and migration, using the latest developments in science and
technology. Merging dynamic mapping of climate change with dynamic
mapping of migration would help determine migration trends and build
reliable predictions. Policy makers would have a clearer picture
of where people are likely to move from (regions/countries), where
they are likely to go, in what numbers and when;
8.2 urges member States to improve responses to major hazards
(hydrological, geophysical, meteorological, etc.) and improve early-warning
mechanisms and ecosystem services – whether these be supply services
(fresh water, raw materials), regulating services (water purification,
disease prevention) or cultural and economic services (such as tourism
to ensure protection against job losses);
8.3 calls for the enhancement of corporate responsibility
and the participation of businesses – including the most technologically
advanced companies – in displacement prevention. The role of businesses
is crucial: they lead development and technological innovation and
provide stable sources of income for migrants and their families.
9. Development co-operation is essential for new initiatives
to become reality. However, such co-operation requires sufficient
resources, expertise, organisation and commitment from all countries
involved in the process. To improve development co-operation and
emergency support in migrants’ countries of origin in Europe and
beyond, the Assembly:
9.1 invites
member States to strengthen development co-operation to respond
to security issues that individuals face: from safe access to food
and water to personal and political security, energy security and
global and environmental security;
9.2 calls for greater support for relevant global programmes,
such as the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030,
and those implemented under the United Nations Framework Convention
on Climate Change, the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular
Migration and the Global Compact on Refugees. The Assembly invites
member States to pay particular attention to the work of the UN
Secretary-General’s Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and the Environment;
9.3 calls upon member States to initiate and contribute to
the creation of a world solidarity fund for climate migration that
would assist both migrants’ countries of origin and host countries.
The international community needs to step up development co-operation
with the countries that are most at risk of being affected by climate
change, such as the countries of Sub-Saharan Africa and the Sahel region,
to improve the living conditions of people living there so that
they do not feel forced to migrate. This Europe-based fund could
co-operate with the Green Climate Fund (GCF), following accreditation by
the GCF, which would be a major step forward in meeting international
commitments to “leave no one behind”, including migrants, in a world
affected by climate change. Specific programmes should be developed,
engaging experts from all Council of Europe member States to drive
forward technological developments in countries receiving development
assistance and in countries providing assistance. The world solidarity
fund for climate migration could also support migrants themselves,
in addition to projects designed to improve living conditions in
their countries of origin;
9.4 reiterates its call for co-operation with the Council
of Europe Development Bank (CEB), as set out in its
Resolution 2307 (2019). To meet the challenges posed by climate-induced migration
in Europe, Council of Europe member States can now use the two trust
funds managed by the CEB: the Migrant and Refugee Fund established
in 2015 and the Green Social Investment Fund established in March 2020;
9.5 invites members of parliament to remain vigilant to ensure
that a gender-responsive approach is integrated into the design
and implementation of projects and programmes on climate change-induced migration.
10. Council of Europe member States should act resolutely to prevent
environmental degradation that multiplies the effects of climate
change and may lead to mass displacement. To prevent environmental degradation,
the Assembly:
10.1 calls upon all
member States to refrain from developing major industrial projects
that may have dramatic consequences on peoples’ lives, when there
is an undeniable risk that these projects could multiply the negative
effects of climate change on either their own territory or that
of another member State. The respect of a human right to a safe,
clean, healthy and sustainable environment should be a primary consideration;
10.2 underscores, in particular, the importance of access to
quality drinking water as an intrinsic part of a healthy and sustainable
environment and a basic human right, and calls upon member States
to prevent environmental degradation that may endanger access to
water on their own territory or on the territory of a neighbouring
State. In doing so, all necessary steps should be taken to comply
with international obligations on environmental matters in the framework
of the United Nations 1991 Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment
in a Transboundary Context (Espoo Convention). When issues related
to access to water arise between neighbouring countries or regions,
international negotiations should lead to finding appropriate solutions
in accordance with international human rights standards and practices.
