Ciudad de México Mexico
A group of young people, accompanied by the Northwest Environmental Defense organization, filed a lawsuit against the Mexican government to demand that it comply with the General Law on Climate Change and issue the regulations and public policies derived from it.
According to a press release published by Northwest Environmental Defense, "the demand for guarantees presented by these young people was framed within the global discussion on the planet's climate emergency, in which, during 2019, a document signed by 11,000 scientists from around the world warned that, if immediate action is not taken, the effects of climate change could be devastating."
In the lawsuit, the young people request that their human rights, fundamental rights, be protected, guaranteed and repaired against the omissions of the authorities responsible for said noncompliance.
The amparo lawsuit was resolved by an Administrative Court in Mexico City, which resolved the dismissal of the case due to lack of: a) legitimate interest and b) direct link with the object of the environmental claim.
The complaining party filed an appeal against the first instance ruling, which has been admitted and is pending resolution by a Collegiate Court in Administrative Matters.
In their lawsuit, the plaintiffs argue the following: "Climate change jeopardizes food security, public health, and access to water for millions of Mexicans, among other effects. Given this, Mexico has an obligation as a country to enact the necessary instruments to reduce or mitigate Mexico's contribution to global climate change, and thereby guarantee the population access to a healthy environment, as established by the Constitution."
- A group of young people, accompanied by the Northwest Environmental Defense organization.
- President of the United Mexican States.
- Head of the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources.
- Evaluation Coordination.
- Intersecretarial Commission on Climate Change.
- Climate Change Council.
- National Institute of Statistics and Geography.
The lawsuit states that "Mexico is one of the ten countries responsible for 73% of all greenhouse gas emissions on the planet. The main sources of emissions in our country are energy generation from the use of fossil fuels, inappropriate techniques used in waste management, and agricultural and industrial activities."
Furthermore, the country "does not have appropriate regulatory conditions for combating climate change; and even though there is a General Law on Climate Change, it is not possible to act and achieve the objectives to which our country committed when signing the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the Paris Agreement and other international declarations on the matter since there are no instruments, bodies, public policies and regulations for this."
Standards
- Political Constitution of the United Mexican States, articles 1, paragraphs one, two and three; 4, paragraphs four, five and six, nine and ten; 25, paragraphs one and seven; 27, paragraph three; 89, section I, 128 and 133.
- International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, Articles 12 and 2.2.
- Additional Protocol to the American Convention on Human Rights in the Area of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, "Protocol of San Salvador", Articles 11, 2 and 3.
- Convention on the Rights of the Child, preamble and articles 1, 2, paragraph 1, 3, sections 1 and 2, 4, 6 and 27, section 1.
- United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, preamble and articles 2 and 3, paragraphs 1 and 4.
- Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, preamble and articles 2 and 10.
- Paris Agreement, preamble and articles 2, paragraph 1, 4, paragraph 1.
- General Law on the Rights of Girls, Boys and Adolescents, articles 1, 2, 3, 6, 13, 43.
- The General Law on Climate Change.