In a landmark paper, the UN Special Rapporteur on Environmental Defenders under the Aarhus Convention warns that the continued State efforts to repress and criminalise environmental protests, including direct action and civil disobedience, are a threat to fundamental freedoms and democracy itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The world is currently facing a triple planetary crisis<\/a> and despite this alarming and unprecedented situation, States are failing to meaningfully address it. In response to this, environmental human right defenders (EHRDs), Indigenous Peoples, peasants movements and civil society from around the world have exercised their right to peacefully protest and participate in demonstrations to pressure their governments into taking concrete actions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some of these demonstrations have taken the form of civil disobedience which has been disproportionately repressed by governments and law enforcement officials.<\/p>\n\n\n\n On 28 February 2024 Michel Forst, the UN Special Rapporteur on Environmental Defenders<\/a>, published a position paper<\/a> highlighting a trend towards the repression and criminalisation of defenders engaging in environmental protests and civil disobedience in Europe, as well as an alarming toughening of stances against them in political discourse and the law enforcement and judicial practices. [The UNECE Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters \u2013 known as the Aarhus Convention \u2013 was adopted in 1998. It aims to protect every person\u2019s right to live in an environment adequate to his or her health and well-being.] See also: https:\/\/humanrightsdefenders.blog\/tag\/aarhus-convention\/<\/a>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n Forst also points to legislative attempts to ban specific organisations \u2013 citing France\u2019s Soul\u00e8vements de la Terre<\/em>, Spain\u2019s Futuro Vegetal<\/em>, or Letze Generation<\/em> in Germany and Austria. These moves come alongside new or updated laws \u2013 including the UK\u2019s \u20182022 Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act\u2019 and Italy\u2019s 2024 \u2018eco vandalism\u2019 law -, which the paper says have virtually prohibited certain kinds of protests. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The Special Rapporteur flags how politicians demonise environmental movements engaging in civil disobedience, while national or pan-European intelligence services no longer hesitate to label peaceful groups or individuals as potential or genuine terrorist threats.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The paper also recognises that European States have been disproportionately and increasingly used criminal, administrative and civil measures against environmental human rights defenders recurring to civil disobedience. This includes excessive and disproportionate use of force against them and extensive investigation and surveillance measures. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Other takeaways include the use of social media by State and non-state actors that have contributed to creating negative narratives against EHRDs and the challenges that defenders and activists face to access to justice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n While civil disobedience tactics have been recently used in protests related to climate justice, they have been constantly used to advocate for other legitimate causes including international solidarity, where States have also criminalised such moves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This paper also comes shortly after the 25th anniversary of the UN Declaration of Human Right Defenders<\/a> and it is a good reminder that civil disobedience is and should be recognised as a legitimate form of exercising the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n States must stop criminalising human right defenders exercising these rights and focus on addressing the root causes of their mobilisation.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n