the road from ecology to Eco-crime

the road from ecology to Eco-crime

Although there is no internationally accepted definition of Eco-crime, some jurists define it as “the widespread damage and destruction that causes serious and permanent changes to the global ecosystem or global commons”.

The Council of States Parties to the International Criminal Court (ICC) held in The Hague in December 2019 hosted a new debate initiated by the Pacific island state, Vanuatu: is it necessary to assassinate nature an international crime?

Vanuatu is a small island state in the South Pacific and faces a possible imminent threat due to rising sea levels. Actions that accelerate this process, such as climate change and the use of fossil fuels elsewhere in the world , create an existential crisis for Vanuatu. It is precisely for this reason that including the crime of ecocracy within the scope of the ICC, whose jurisdiction is limited to serious crimes such as genocide and war crimes, is a question of existence and absence for Vanuatu and similar countries.

Nuremberg Palace of Justice

Although the crime of ecocide has been brought up during ICC meetings, it has not yet been presented as an official draft text. However, there are some promising developments on the subject on the international stage. A delegation of international lawyers was set up to define the crime of ecocide, with an initiative initiated by the “Stop Ecocide Foundation” last November.

The delegation plans to prepare the draft definition in the first months of 2021. The time and location for the creation of the delegation to be announced to the public was quite impressive. It was announced that studies on the definition of the crime of ecocide had started at an event held at the historic Nuremberg Palace of Justice No.600, where the Nazi trials were being held, and on November 20, on the 75th anniversary of the start of the Nuremberg trials. It was pointed out that the words crimes against humanity and genocide were used for the first time in this courtroom.

What is my echo?

The delegation includes former ICC judges, lawyers working in the environmental field, human rights experts from different countries. One of the preparatory meetings for the 19th ICC Council of States Parties, which will be held from December 14-18 this year, focused on “Ecocime” and the work initiated by members of the delegation was discussed in detail. Although there is no internationally accepted definition of ecocracy, some jurists define it as “the widespread damage and destruction that causes serious and permanent changes to the global ecosystem or global commons”.

https://m.bianet.org/bianet/iklim-krizi/236032-soykirimdan-ekokirima-uzanan-yol