Philippines
launches world’s first national human rights investigation into 50 big
polluters
By
GREENPEACE
December 4, 2015
MANILA – The
Philippines Commission on Human Rights (CHR) announced that it will
launch an investigation on December 10 (International Human rights
Day) which could hold fossil fuel companies responsible for the
impacts of climate change, such as extreme weather events. This will
be the world's first national human rights investigation into big
polluters.
The 50 companies that will
be investigated include Chevron, ExxonMobil, BP, Royal Dutch Shell,
ConocoPhillips. They are a part of the 90 legal entities that are
responsible for the majority of global CO2 and methane emissions in
the earth’s atmosphere, as identified by peer-reviewed research into
so-called ‘Carbon Majors’ published in 2014.
“The response of the
Philippines’ Human Rights Commission to the petition signals a turning
point in the struggle to avoid catastrophic climate change. It opens a
critical new avenue of struggle against the fossil fuel companies
driving destructive climate change,” said Kumi Naidoo, the
International Executive Director at Greenpeace International.
“This should hopefully
inspire other human rights commissions around the world to take
similar action. If I were a CEO of fossil fuel company, I would be
running scared. This is yet another indication that we are seeing the
end of the fossil fuel era.”
The CHR disclosed in a press
conference on 4 December in Paris that it’s investigation will involve
all stakeholders including the 50 corporations, and include
consultations and studies. As triggered by the petition, it will
organize an investigation committee devoted to climate change and
human rights.
“This investigation is not
just about how fossil fuel companies do business, but that they do
business at all in the future. It’s time we held, those to account who
are most responsible for the devastating effects of climate change,”
said Zelda Soriano, legal and political advisor at Greenpeace
Southeast Asia.
“We’re absolutely behind the
Commission on Human Rights in seeking the opinion and cooperation of
UN human rights experts and scientists, and its courageous
investigation into these distant and faceless companies,” adds Zelda
Soriano, legal and political advisor at Greenpeace Southeast Asia.
Greenpeace Southeast Asia
together with 14 organizations, 20 individuals, filed the petition on
22 September calling for this investigation to take place. Over
100,000 signatures have been gathered in support of the initiative
online from Change.org, SumOfUs and Greenpeace Southeast Asia, and
eight international NGOs provided advice and support. Among other
requests, the complaint asks for the CHR:
- to officially put these
companies on notice;
- to request plans from
these companies on how they intend to eliminate, remedy and prevent
damages (or threatened damages) resulting from the impacts of climate
change, and;
- to recommend to the
government that it provides human rights mechanism where victims of
climate change can be monitored and assisted.