{"id":448,"date":"2019-03-27T12:55:48","date_gmt":"2019-03-27T12:55:48","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2019-06-07T12:53:31","modified_gmt":"2019-06-07T12:53:31","slug":"effect-of-climate-change-on-migrant-human-rights","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net\/free-law-essays\/environmental-law\/effect-of-climate-change-on-migrant-human-rights.php","title":{"rendered":"Effect of Climate Change on Migrant Human Rights"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The interlinkages between climate change and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net\/acts\/human-rights-act-1998.php\">human rights<\/a> are deep and complex, with climate change impacting a wide range of internationally protected human rights; such as rights to health and even life and rights to food, water, shelter and property. In this paper, I am going to discuss the effect of climate change on protected human rights relating to migration, focusing primarily on the relationship between international refugee law and climate change. <\/p>\n<h2>Introduction <\/h2>\n<p>There remains uncertainty<br \/>\non how severe global warming will be and its precise impacts on society,<a href=\"#_ftn1\">[1]<\/a> but there is a 97 per cent<br \/>\nconsensus among experts that a rapid build-up of greenhouse gas is due to human<br \/>\nactivities.<a href=\"#_ftn2\">[2]<\/a><br \/>\nThe Earth\u2019s climate is gradually changing due to the continuous concentration<br \/>\nof anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions into the atmosphere. The<br \/>\nEarth\u2019s surface temperature is getting warmer at a disturbing rate, and has<br \/>\nbecome significantly warmer in the last 150 years after 10,000 years of<br \/>\nrelative stability.<a href=\"#_ftn3\">[3]<\/a><br \/>\nMost climate change projections are based on a two-degree Celsius increase in<br \/>\nglobal mean temperature from the temperature in 1850, which has now been agreed<br \/>\nby most States as the threshold for \u2018dangerous\u2019 climate change.<a href=\"#_ftn4\">[4]<\/a><\/p>\n<p>The consequences of<br \/>\nclimate change are more obvious now due to the increased prevalence of rising<br \/>\nsea levels, extreme weather conditions, drought and desertification, and these<br \/>\nconsequences will have significant effects on the ecosystem, specifically on<br \/>\nfood security, migration, and health.<a href=\"#_ftn5\">[5]<\/a> The political, economic,<br \/>\nand social capacity of a country, which includes its infrastructure, economic<br \/>\nstability, and ability to help its population when in need, will affect<br \/>\nindividual\u2019s ability to cope with the impacts of climate change, and therefore<br \/>\nthe impacts will be felt differently in different communities. In the 1980s and<br \/>\n1990s, climate change was primarily viewed as an environmental and scientific<br \/>\nissue, but in 1990 the potential impacts of climate change on human migration<br \/>\nwere identified by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The<br \/>\nIPCC stated that millions of people would likely be uprooted by shoreline<br \/>\nerosion, coastal flooding, and agricultural disturbances (such as salination of<br \/>\ncrops),<a href=\"#_ftn6\">[6]<\/a> and that climate change<br \/>\nmight require consideration of \u2018<em>migration<br \/>\nand resettlement outside of national boundaries<\/em>.\u2019<a href=\"#_ftn7\">[7]<\/a> <\/p>\n<p>Ever since the IPCC first<br \/>\nnoted that \u2018<em>migration<\/em> <em>and resettlement may be the most threatening<br \/>\nshort-term effects of climate change on human settlements<\/em>\u2019,<a href=\"#_ftn8\">[8]<\/a> the assertion that climate<br \/>\nchange causes forced migration has often been made, but international evidence<br \/>\nsuggests that States are yet to agree on the links between climate change and<br \/>\nmigration.<a href=\"#_ftn9\">[9]<\/a> The relationship between<br \/>\nclimate change and forced migration has emerged as one of the most studied, but<br \/>\ncontested, fields of inquiry,<a href=\"#_ftn10\">[10]<\/a> and the lack of agreement<br \/>\non the links between climate change and forced migration explains why the call<br \/>\nfor the recognition of so-called \u2018climate change refugees\u2019 has been unsuccessful.<br \/>\nLegally, there is no such thing as a \u2018climate change refugee,\u2019 and this point<br \/>\nwill be expanded upon later in this paper, but there is, however, evidence that<br \/>\npeople are moving in response to the effects of climate change. Cross-border<br \/>\ndisplacement resulting from natural disasters and the effects of climate change<br \/>\nhas therefore been identified as a normative gap in the international legal<br \/>\nprotection regime.<a href=\"#_ftn11\">[11]<\/a> Determining how exactly<br \/>\nclimate change affects people\u2019s decisions to move is crucial in determining how<br \/>\nappropriate the call for the inclusion of people displaced by gradual or sudden<br \/>\nenvironmental impacts within the refugee protection framework. <\/p>\n<h2>Link Between Climate Change and Migration <\/h2>\n<h3>Bangladesh<\/h3>\n<h4>Relevance of Refugee Law<\/h4>\n<p>As discussed above, there is an ongoing debate and<br \/>\nscepticism as to the direct link between climate change and displacement, but<br \/>\nthere is now mounting evidence which supports the plight of so-called \u2018climate<br \/>\nchange refugees\u2019 and demands attention from the international legal community.<a href=\"#_ftn12\">[12]<\/a> The term \u2018climate change<br \/>\nrefugee\u2019 is often used to describe those who will be forced to leave their<br \/>\nhomes because of climate change impacts. In this section, I will focus on the extent to which international refugee<br \/>\nlaw may apply, and discuss why, by and large, it is an inappropriate framework<br \/>\nfor responding to the needs of the displaced. <\/p>\n<p>The first official use of the term \u2018climate change refugee\u2019 was by Essam El-Hinnawi in a United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) report, where he described people who are forced to leave their places of residence because of human or naturally induced environmental issues as \u2018environmental refugees\u2019<a href=\"#_ftn13\">[13]<\/a>. El-Hinnawi was not trying to make a legal argument for the extension of refugee law to cover those displaced for environmental reasons, but instead was using the term to highlight the potentially devastating effects of unchecked development and pollution.<a href=\"#_ftn14\">[14]<\/a> Since then the term has been used in almost any discussion involving the impacts of climate change and forced migration. While those displaced internally (within their own countries) can be protected using the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lawteacher.net\/free-law-essays\/international-law\/the-united-nations-framework-convention-on-climate-change-international-law-essay.php\">United Nations Guiding Principles<\/a> on Internal Displacement mechanism, or even by the national law of their own countries<a href=\"#_ftn15\">[15]<\/a>, those displaced by environmental impacts and who are crossing or wish to cross their countries\u2019 borders currently have no legal basis for this type of movement in international law.&nbsp; <\/p>\n<p>The term \u2018refugee\u2019 is defined in The 1951 Refugee<br \/>\nConvention<a href=\"#_ftn16\">[16]<\/a><br \/>\nas a person who:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote\">\n<p><em>\u2018owing to well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality and is unable, or owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country; or who, not having a nationality and being outside the country of his former habitual residence as a result of such events, is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to return to it.\u2019<a href=\"#_ftn17\"><strong>[17]<\/strong><\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>While persecution lies at the centre of the refugee<br \/>\ndefinition, all of its elements must be satisfied to achieve refugee status and<br \/>\na surprisingly large number of litigants have aspired to the historic<br \/>\ndesignation of the world\u2019s first official climate change refugee<a href=\"#_ftn18\">[18]<\/a>. There are a number of<br \/>\nobstacles that make it difficult to argue that people displaced by the impacts<br \/>\nof climate change can claim refugee status, and asylum claims have foundered on<br \/>\nseveral bases: 1) the convention only applies to people who have already<br \/>\ncrossed an international border; 2) difficulty in demonstrating persecution; 3)<br \/>\ndifficulty in identifying a \u2018persecutor\u2019; and 4) the inability to meet the<br \/>\nrequirement that persecution must be for reasons of an individual\u2019s race,<br \/>\nreligion, nationality, political opinion, or membership of a particular social<br \/>\ngroup. <\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>International Border<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>As previously mentioned, most of the current and<br \/>\nanticipated movement in response to climate change will be internal, and<br \/>\ntherefore will not meet the first requirement. The Refugee Convention does not<br \/>\nfacilitate direct resettlement from the country of persecution, thus even if<br \/>\nthe Refugee Convention were to be extended to include people displaced by<br \/>\nclimate change they would face this same limitation. Of the four requirements,<br \/>\nthis is by far the most straightforward and met, the case of <em>Teitiota v Chief Executive of the Ministry<br \/>\nof Business, Innovation and Employment<a href=\"#_ftn19\"><strong>[19]<\/strong><\/a><\/em><br \/>\nprovides an example of a situation where an individual, or a family in this<br \/>\ncase, met the requirement as they were across an international border on an<br \/>\nexpired work permit in New Zealand.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>Difficulty<br \/>\nin Demonstrating Persecution<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>An immediate issue with trying to include those<br \/>\ndisplaced by environmental impacts or degradation within international refugee<br \/>\nlaw is characterising it as \u2018persecution\u2019. \u2018Persecution\u2019 entails violations of<br \/>\nhuman rights that are particularly serious, either because of their inherent<br \/>\nnature or because of their repetition (an accumulation of breaches, which<br \/>\nindividually would not be so serious but together constitute a violation)<a href=\"#_ftn20\">[20]<\/a>. Whether something<br \/>\namounts to persecution is a question of degree and proportion, and is assessed<br \/>\naccording to the nature of the right at risk, the nature and severity of its<br \/>\nrestriction or impairment, and the likelihood of the restriction or impairment<br \/>\neventuating in the individual case<a href=\"#_ftn21\">[21]<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p>There is nothing explicit in the Refugee Convention that<br \/>\nwould preclude recognition of environmental harm as \u2018persecution\u2019, and<br \/>\narguments have been made for characterising climate change as \u2018persecution\u2019. Christopher<br \/>\nKozoll argues that as \u2018persecution\u2019 is generally understood as serious threats<br \/>\nto life, freedom, or human rights, and on this basis if a serious enough<br \/>\nenvironmental problem exists, then an asylum seeker might claim that the threat<br \/>\nis to her life and therefore \u2018persecution\u2019<a href=\"#_ftn22\">[22]<\/a>. Additionally, he argues<br \/>\nthat the impacts of climate change could be deemed \u2018persecution\u2019 on the<br \/>\n\u2018cumulative breaches\u2019 grounds<a href=\"#_ftn23\">[23]<\/a>, in other words the<br \/>\naccumulation of impacts due to climate change which lead to deprivation of the<br \/>\nright to earn a livelihood, practice religion, or access normally accessible<br \/>\neducational facilities amounts to persecution<a href=\"#_ftn24\">[24]<\/a>. Jessica Cooper argues<br \/>\nthat the governments of the developed world persecute millions of people by<br \/>\nrefusing to commit their collective resources to fight global warming<a href=\"#_ftn25\">[25]<\/a>. She holds that the<br \/>\nindividuals who are at greatest risk of inundation from sea level aren\u2019t<br \/>\nreceiving assistance they need to protect their homes, and as the governments<br \/>\nof developed countries continue to cause global warming and expose individuals<br \/>\nto the consequences, government persecution occurs<a href=\"#_ftn26\">[26]<\/a>. She likens this inaction<br \/>\nin addressing global warming to the Soviet Union\u2019s persecution of its people by<br \/>\ncausing the Chernobyl nuclear plant explosion and in allowing the subsequent<br \/>\ndeterioration of its people\u2019s environment<a href=\"#_ftn27\">[27]<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The arguments made by Kozoll and Cooper could make<br \/>\nsense to a casual observer with limited familiarity with international refugee<br \/>\nlaw, but I do not find these arguments to be very convincing. Although climate<br \/>\nimpacts such as rising sea levels, salination and severity of extreme weather<br \/>\nevents (storms, floods, etc.) are harmful, and sometimes fatal, they do not<br \/>\nmeet the threshold of \u2018persecution\u2019 as is currently understood in international<br \/>\nlaw<a href=\"#_ftn28\">[28]<\/a>. Additionally, in refugee<br \/>\nlaw, for deprivation to move beyond a non-realisation of a right in a manner<br \/>\nthan amounts to persecution, a discriminatory element is required<a href=\"#_ftn29\">[29]<\/a>. It needs to be shown<br \/>\nthat the persecutor is acting in such a way because of an attribute of the<br \/>\npersecuted, it cannot simply be a random attack. &nbsp;There must be a differential impact upon the<br \/>\nindividual or individuals claiming persecution as against the rest of society<br \/>\nas a whole. As the New Zealand Refugee Status Appeals Authority (RSAA) affirmed<br \/>\nin relation to refugee claims from Tuvalu, where they stated that they could<br \/>\nnot be victims of \u2018persecution\u2019 (and therefore could not be refugees) as they<br \/>\nhad not been treated differently from anyone else:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote\">\n<p><em>\u201cAll Tuvalu citizens face the same environmental problems and economic difficulites\u2026 the appellants are unfortunate victims, like all other Tuvaluan citizens, of the forces of nature\u2026\u201d<a href=\"#_ftn30\"><strong>[30]<\/strong><\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>In summary, it is not simply harm to an individual or<br \/>\ndeprivation of a right or freedom that renders a person in need of<br \/>\ninternational protection; the level of harm or deprivation must reach the level<br \/>\nof \u2018persecution, it must be on account of one of the five Convention grounds<a href=\"#_ftn31\">[31]<\/a>, and the individuals<br \/>\ngovernment must be unable or unwilling to shield that person from such<br \/>\npersecution. Accordingly, a refugee claim based generally on the broad impacts<br \/>\nof climate change will not succeed in amounting to \u2018persecution\u2019 for the<br \/>\npurpose of the Refugee Convention. <\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>Difficulty<br \/>\nIdentifying a Persecutor<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Yes, climate-induced environmental impacts may lead to<br \/>\nthreats to life or freedom, but who will be assigned responsibility for these<br \/>\nthreats? Jessica Cooper argues that the blame should be placed on developed<br \/>\ncountries and industrialized nations, as they knowingly contribute to the<br \/>\ndegradation of the environment, and even goes as far as to name Organization of<br \/>\nPetroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) as countries to blame<a href=\"#_ftn32\">[32]<\/a>. It is more than likely<br \/>\nthat developed, industrialised countries shoulder the majority of the blame for<br \/>\nclimate change impacts, and ethically Jessica Cooper\u2019s argument that developed<br \/>\ncountries should be considered the persecutor\u2019s in the context of refugee law<br \/>\nmakes sense, but difficulty in law, however, remains that of proof. How would<br \/>\nit be possible to prove carbon emissions by United States-based industry are<br \/>\nresponsible for the environmental degradation in the Pacific State of Tuvalu?<a href=\"#_ftn33\">[33]<\/a> Establishing causation in<br \/>\nline with legal principles in this regard will be very difficult<a href=\"#_ftn34\">[34]<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>In addition to the issue of establishing causation,<br \/>\nthose attempting to use the Refugee Conventionin relation to climate change<br \/>\nimpacts completely reverse the traditional refugee paradigm. Standard<br \/>\nConvention refugees are fleeing their own government or actors that they<br \/>\ngovernment is unwilling or unable to protect them from. A climate change<br \/>\nrefugee claimant, fleeing from the effects of climate change, is seeking refuge<br \/>\nfrom, but within, the \u2018international community\u2019 and \u2018industrialised countries\u2019<br \/>\nwhose failure to reduce greenhouse emissions has led to their predicament<a href=\"#_ftn35\">[35]<\/a>. In other words, climate<br \/>\nchange refugee claimants are seeking refuge inside the same countries that they<br \/>\nare claiming as their persecutors. For example, the governments of Kiribati and<br \/>\nTuvalu are not responsible for climate change, and these governments have even<br \/>\nshown a willingness to protect their citizens (their ability to do so is<br \/>\nunclear), but claimants are seeking refuge from these countries<a href=\"#_ftn36\">[36]<\/a>. The de-linking of the<br \/>\nactor of persecution from the territory from which flight occurs is a complete<br \/>\nreversal of the traditional refugee paradigm<a href=\"#_ftn37\">[37]<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p>The Australian Refugee Review Tribunal (RRT) has<br \/>\nfirmly rejected the argument that developed, industrialised countries can be<br \/>\nconsidered persecutors to meet the Convention requirement:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote\">\n<p><em>\u201cThere is simply no basis for concluding that countries which can be said to have been historically high emitters of carbon dioxide or other greenhouse gases, have any element of motivation to have any impact on residents of low lying countries such as Kiribati, either for their race, religion, nationality, membership of any particular social group or political opinion.\u201d<a href=\"#_ftn38\"><strong>[38]<\/strong><\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<ul>\n<li><em>Inability<br \/>\nto Meet Convention Requirements for Persecution on the Grounds of an<br \/>\nIndividual\u2019s Race, Religion, Nationality, Political Opinion, or Membership of a<br \/>\nParticular Social Group <\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Finally, without conceding climate change qualifies as<br \/>\n\u2018persecution\u2019, even if it were to qualify as persecution, the Refugee<br \/>\nConvention requires that persecution be \u2018for reasons of\u2019 and individual\u2019s<br \/>\n\u2018race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or<br \/>\npolitical opinion.\u2019<a href=\"#_ftn39\">[39]<\/a> It will be difficult to<br \/>\nframe the impacts of climate change in a way that would meet this requirement<br \/>\nas the impacts of climate change are largely indiscriminate, and are not tied<br \/>\nto particular characteristics such as a person\u2019s background or beliefs. Climate<br \/>\nchange may adversely affect some countries more than others by virtue of their<br \/>\ngeography or ability to counter environmental harms, but this is not premised<br \/>\non the race, religion, nationality, political opinion or social group of the<br \/>\ninhabitants of these countries<a href=\"#_ftn40\">[40]<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Jessica Cooper argues that because through the 50+<br \/>\nyears of the Refugee Convention\u2019s history the \u2018for reasons of\u2019 requirement has<br \/>\nbeen met on the basis of politics, race, or religion, and this has imposed an<br \/>\nartificial limitation on what will satisfy the \u2018for reasons of\u2019 requirement,<br \/>\nwhich has led to an inaccurate understanding this requirement<a href=\"#_ftn41\">[41]<\/a>. She argues the \u2018social<br \/>\ngroup\u2019 basis for persecution is the broadest of the five Convention grounds for<br \/>\npersecution and acts as a \u2018catch-all\u2019 for individuals that do not fit into<br \/>\npersecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, or political opinion,<br \/>\nand bases this argument on the belief that the \u2018social group\u2019 category was<br \/>\nincluded in the Refugee Convention specifically to protect refugees persecuted<br \/>\nfor unforeseen reasons<a href=\"#_ftn42\">[42]<\/a>. She states that<br \/>\nenvironmental refugees are persecuted for reasons of their social group, which<br \/>\nin this case is the social group of individuals who lack the political power to<br \/>\nprotect their own environment, and it is on account of this disempowerment that<br \/>\nthese people become victims of environmental degradation<a href=\"#_ftn43\">[43]<\/a>. Christopher Kozoll takes<br \/>\na slightly different approach and argues that environmental harms are so<br \/>\nwidespread and affect entire segments of populations, therefore individuals<br \/>\nshould be able to claim that the severity of environmental harms creates a<br \/>\ngroup, which is based on the well-founded fear of persecution<a href=\"#_ftn44\">[44]<\/a>. He argues, that under<br \/>\nthis standard, it may be possible for an individual to claim persecution<br \/>\n(environmental degradation) targets their entire racial or ethnic group<a href=\"#_ftn45\">[45]<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The argument that people affected by the impacts of<br \/>\nclimate change could constitute a \u2018social group\u2019 would be difficult to<br \/>\nestablish, because the law requires that the group must be connected by a<br \/>\nfundamental, immutable characteristic other than the risk of persecution itself<a href=\"#_ftn46\">[46]<\/a>. This goes directly<br \/>\nagainst Jessica Coopers\u2019 argument as the only fundamental, immutable<br \/>\ncharacteristic that environmental refugees share is the risk of facing environmental<br \/>\nimpacts. Additionally, Kozoll\u2019s argument struggles because as McHugh J<br \/>\nexplained in <em>Applicant A v Minister for<br \/>\nImmigration and Ethnic Affairs<a href=\"#_ftn47\"><strong>[47]<\/strong><\/a><\/em>,<br \/>\nalthough a shared fear may help to define a group, it is the particular<br \/>\nattribute ascribed to them, rather than the persecutory acts themselves, that<br \/>\nserves to \u2018create\u2019 them as a particular social group:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote\">\n<p><em>\u201cthe actions of the persecutors may serve to identify or even cause the creation of a particular social group in society. Left-handed men are not a particular social group. But, if they were persecuted because they were left-handed, they would no doubt quickly become recognizable in their society as a particular social group. Their persecution for being left-handed would create a public perception that they were a particular social group. But it would be the attribute of being left-handed and not the persecutory acts that would identify them as a particular social group.\u201d<a href=\"#_ftn48\"><strong>[48]<\/strong><\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Therefore, the argument that the shared fear of<br \/>\npersecution itself creates a social group fails. The individuals must share a<br \/>\nfundamental, immutable characteristic that is the reason for the persecution,<br \/>\nwhich as discussed earlier will be very difficult to establish in cases of<br \/>\nclimate change impacts as climate change is indiscriminate. <\/p>\n<h2>Concluding Comments<\/h2>\n<p>Senior courts have made it very clear that the Refugee<br \/>\nConvention does not apply to victims of natural disasters or people in search<br \/>\nof people in search of better living conditions, even though \u2018both of these<br \/>\ncases might seem deserving of international sanctuary\u2019<a href=\"#_ftn49\">[49]<\/a> and this is so \u2018even when<br \/>\nthe home state is unable to provide assistance\u2019<a href=\"#_ftn50\">[50]<\/a>. This is due to the<br \/>\nRefugee Convention\u2019s limited scope, which is largely due to the requirement of<br \/>\n\u2018persecution\u2019. This limitation is highlighted by the High Court of Australia,<br \/>\nthe requirement of \u2018persecution\u2019 limits the Convention\u2019s <em>\u201chumanitarian scope and does not afford universal protection to asylum<br \/>\nseekers. No matter how devastating may be epidemic, natural disaster or famine,<br \/>\na person fleeing them is not a refugee within the terms of the Convention\u201d<a href=\"#_ftn51\"><strong>[51]<\/strong><\/a><\/em><br \/>\nand people fleeing \u201c<em>natural disasters and<br \/>\nbad economic conditions<\/em>\u201d<a href=\"#_ftn52\">[52]<\/a>fall outside the Convention. <\/p>\n<p>There are certain situations in which the impacts of<br \/>\nclimate change might amount to persecution for a Refugee Convention reason<a href=\"#_ftn53\">[53]<\/a>, but these reasons are<br \/>\ndue to government action actions in response to climate impacts rather than<br \/>\nclimate change itself. Some situations which might amount to persecution could<br \/>\ninclude:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><em>\u2018victims<br \/>\nof natural disasters flee because their government has consciously withheld or<br \/>\nobstructed assistance in order to punish or marginalize them on one of the five<br \/>\n[Convention] grounds\u2019;<a href=\"#_ftn54\"><strong>[54]<\/strong><\/a><\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>a<br \/>\ngovernment induces famine by destroying crops or poisoning water, or<br \/>\ncontributes to environmental destruction by polluting the land and\/or water;<a href=\"#_ftn55\"><strong>[55]<\/strong><\/a><br \/>\nand<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>a<br \/>\ngovernment refuges to accept aid from other States when it is in need, such as<br \/>\nin the aftermath of a disaster.<a href=\"#_ftn56\"><strong>[56]<\/strong><\/a><br \/>\n<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>While individuals in these situations would be<br \/>\nrefugees due to impacts of climate change, it is not actually the climate<br \/>\nchange impacts themselves that allow them to fall within the Refugee<br \/>\nConvention, but rather it is the actions (or lack of actions in relation to<br \/>\niii.) that allow the individuals to fall within the Refugee Convention, and<br \/>\ntherefore falls outside the scope of discussion of this paper. <\/p>\n<p>The plight of individuals seeking to claim the status<br \/>\nof the world\u2019s first \u2018climate change refugees\u2019 is very real, but the argument<br \/>\nthat the Refugee Convention is a solution to their problems is unfounded. As<br \/>\nthe House of Lords have observed, the Refugee Convention does not provide<br \/>\nprotection is all cases of displacement: <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote\">\n<p><em>\u201cthe risk, however severe, and the fear, however well founded, do not entitle him to the status of refugee. The Convention has a more limited objective, the limits of which are identified by the list of Convention reasons\u201d<a href=\"#_ftn57\"><strong>[57]<\/strong><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>In addition to the attempted use of the term \u2018climate<br \/>\nchange refugee\u2019 being pre-emptive and inaccurate legally, it is often<br \/>\nconsidered offensive in nature to those the international legal community is attempting<br \/>\nto apply it to. For the most part, citizens of Kiribati and Tuvalu resoundingly<br \/>\nreject the label \u2018climate change refugee\u2019, as they see it as invoking a sense<br \/>\nof helplessness and lack of dignity.<a href=\"#_ftn58\">[58]<\/a> AS the President of<br \/>\nKiribati explained:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote\">\n<p><em>\u201cwhen you talk about refugees \u2013 climate refugees \u2013 you\u2019re putting the stigma on the victims, not the offenders. We don\u2019t want to lose our dignity. We\u2019re sacrificing much by being displaced, in any case. So we don\u2019t want to lose that, whatever dignity is left. So the last thing we want to be called is \u2018refugee\u2019.\u201d<a href=\"#_ftn59\"><strong>[59]<\/strong><\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Part of their discomfort stems from the fact that most<br \/>\nrefugees flee from their own government, but in this case the people of<br \/>\nKiribati and Tuvalu have no desire to escape from their governments or countries<br \/>\nfor that matter, as discussed earlier it is the actions of other States which<br \/>\nwill ultimately force their movement. Most of their discomfort with the term<br \/>\nstems from the fact that refugees are not looked at as people with resilience,<br \/>\nwho have fled situations of violence or conflict, they are viewed as victims,<br \/>\nwaiting for help in cams and relying on handouts.<a href=\"#_ftn60\">[60]<\/a> Men have described the<br \/>\nlabel of \u2018refugee\u2019 as signalling a failure on their behalf to provide and<br \/>\nprotect their families, citizens of Kiribati and Tuvalu want to be seen as<br \/>\nactive and valued members of the community, if they were ever to make the move<br \/>\nNew Zealand, Australia, or elsewhere.<a href=\"#_ftn61\">[61]<\/a> For the most part, these<br \/>\nissues are outside the scope of this paper as they highlight some of the major<br \/>\nissues with international refugee law,<a href=\"#_ftn62\">[62]<\/a> but I though raising<br \/>\nthese issues would help to emphasize the Refugee Convention\u2019s inappropriateness<br \/>\nwith regard to those displaced by climate change. <\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\"\/>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref1\">[1]<\/a><br \/>\nAustralian Academy of Science, <em>The<br \/>\nScience of Climate Change: Questions and Answers <\/em>(Australian Academy of<br \/>\nScience, 2010) 16<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref2\">[2]<\/a><br \/>\nPeter T Doran and Maggie Kendall Zimmerman, \u2018Examining the Scientific Consensus<br \/>\non Climate Change\u2019 (2009) 90 Eos, Transactions, American Geophysical Union 22;<br \/>\nWilliam RL Anderegg and others, \u2018Expert Credibility in Climate Change\u2019 (2010)<br \/>\n107 Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 12107<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref3\">[3]<\/a> S.<br \/>\nTanaka, <em>Climate Change <\/em>(House of<br \/>\nAnansi Press: Toronto, 2006) 11<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref4\">[4]<\/a> J.<br \/>\nMcAdam, <em>Climate Change, Forced Migration, and International Law <\/em>(Oxford<br \/>\nUniversity Press: New York, 2012) 2<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref5\">[5]<\/a> Demola<br \/>\nOkeowo, \u2018Examining the link: climate change, environmental degradation and<br \/>\nmigration\u2019(Environmental Law Review,<br \/>\n2013) 273<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref6\">[6]<\/a> Intergovernmental<br \/>\nPanel on Climate Change (IPCC), <em>Climate<br \/>\nChange: the IPCC Scientific Assessment: Final Report of Working Group I <\/em>(Cambridge<br \/>\nUniversity Press, 1990)<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref7\">[7]<\/a><br \/>\nRobert T Watson and others (eds), <em>IPCC<br \/>\nSpecial Report: The Regional Impacts of Climate Change: An Assessment of<br \/>\nVulnerability: Summary for Policymakers <\/em>(IPCC, November 1997) Part 6.8<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref8\">[8]<\/a><br \/>\nWilliam JM Tegart, Gordon W Sheldon and D Colin Griffiths (eds), <em>Climate Change: The IPCC Impacts Assessment <\/em>(Australian<br \/>\nGovernment Publishing Service, 1990) 5-9<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref9\">[9]<\/a> Demola<br \/>\nOkeowo, \u2018Examining the link: climate change, environmental degradation and<br \/>\nmigration\u2019(Environmental Law Review,<br \/>\n2013) 274<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref10\">[10]<\/a> J.<br \/>\nMcAdam, <em>Climate Change, Forced Migration, and International Law <\/em>(Oxford<br \/>\nUniversity Press: New York, 2012) 4<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref11\">[11]<\/a><br \/>\nUNHCR, \u2018High Commissioner\u2019s Dialogue on Protection Challenges: Breakout Session<br \/>\n1: Gaps in the International Protection Framework and its Implementation:<br \/>\nReport by the Co-Chairs\u2019 (8-9 December 2010) 3<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref12\">[12]<\/a><br \/>\nV. O. Kolmannskog, <em>Future Floods of Refugees: A Comment on<br \/>\nClimate Change, Conflict and Forced Migration <\/em>(Norwegian<br \/>\nRefugee Council: Oslo, 2008<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref13\">[13]<\/a><br \/>\nE. El-Hinnawi, <em>Environmental Refugee <\/em>(United<br \/>\nNations Environmental Programme: Nairobi, 1985).<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref14\">[14]<\/a><br \/>\nJ. McAdam, <em>Climate Change, Forced Migration, and International Law <\/em>(Oxford<br \/>\nUniversity Press: New York, 2012) 40<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref15\">[15]<\/a><br \/>\nDemola Okeowo, \u2018Examining the link: climate change, environmental degradation<br \/>\nand migration\u2019(Environmental Law<br \/>\nReview, 2013) 282<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref16\">[16]<\/a><br \/>\n1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, 28 July 1951, 189 UNTS 150<br \/>\n(came into force 22 April 1954) (1951 Refugee Convention) read in conjunction<br \/>\nwith the 1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees, 31 January 1967, 606<br \/>\nUNTS 267 (came into force 4 October 1967) (1967 Protocol).<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref17\">[17]<\/a><br \/>\nArticle 1A (2) of the 1951 Refugee Convention, ibid, read in conjunction with<br \/>\nthe 1967 Protocol, ibid<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref18\">[18]<\/a><br \/>\nJustice Bernard McCloskey, \u2018Climate Change and Refugee Law\u2019(Commonwealth Judicial Journal, 2016) 16<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref19\">[19]<\/a><br \/>\n[2015] NZSC 107<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref20\">[20]<\/a><br \/>\nCouncil Directive (EC) 2004\/83 on Minimum Standards for the Qualification and<br \/>\nStatus of Third Country Nationals or Stateless Persons as Refugees or as<br \/>\nPersons Who Otherwise Need International Protection <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref21\">[21]<\/a><br \/>\nGuy S Goodwin-Gill and Jane McAdam, <em>The<br \/>\nRefugee in International Law <\/em>(3<sup>rd<\/sup> edn, Oxford University Press,<br \/>\n2007) 2<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref22\">[22]<\/a><br \/>\nChristopher M Kozoll, \u2018Poisoning the Well: Persecution, the Environment, and<br \/>\nRefugee Status\u2019 (2004) 15 Colorado Journal of International Environmental Law<br \/>\nand Policy 282 <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref23\">[23]<\/a><br \/>\nDiscussed above, an accumulation of breaches could amount to a violation even<br \/>\nif the individual violation would not be so serious. <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref24\">[24]<\/a><br \/>\nChristopher M Kozoll, \u2018Poisoning the Well: Persecution, the Environment, and<br \/>\nRefugee Status\u2019 (2004) 15 Colorado Journal of International Environmental Law<br \/>\nand Policy 283<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref25\">[25]<\/a><br \/>\nJessica B Cooper, \u2018Environmental Refugees: Meeting the Requirements of the<br \/>\nRefugee Definition\u2019 (1998) 6 New York University Environmental Law Journal 520<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref26\">[26]<\/a><br \/>\nIbid 521<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref27\">[27]<\/a><br \/>\nIbid 522<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref28\">[28]<\/a><br \/>\nSee Guy S Goodwin-Gill and Jane McAdam, <em>The<br \/>\nRefugee in International Law <\/em>(3<sup>rd<\/sup> edn, Oxford University Press,<br \/>\n2007), point is discussed throughout 90-130 <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref29\">[29]<\/a><br \/>\nJ. McAdam, <em>Climate Change, Forced Migration, and International Law <\/em>(Oxford<br \/>\nUniversity Press: New York, 2012) 44<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref30\">[30]<\/a><br \/>\n<em>Refugee Appeal No 72189\/2000, <\/em>RSAA<br \/>\n(17 August 2000) para 13<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref31\">[31]<\/a><br \/>\nThis point will be discussed in greater detail in 4) below<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref32\">[32]<\/a><br \/>\nJessica B Cooper, \u2018Environmental Refugees: Meeting the Requirements of the<br \/>\nRefugee Definition\u2019 (1998) 6 New York University Environmental Law Journal 511<br \/>\nand 520<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref33\">[33]<\/a><br \/>\n[33]<br \/>\nDemola Okeowo, \u2018Examining the link: climate change, environmental degradation<br \/>\nand migration\u2019(Environmental Law<br \/>\nReview, 2013) 284<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref34\">[34]<\/a><br \/>\nJ. Smith and D. Shearman, <em>Climate Change Litigation: Analysis of the<br \/>\nLaw, Scientific Evidence and Impacts on the Environment, Health and Property <\/em>(Presidian<br \/>\nLegal Publications: Adelaide, 2006) 107<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref35\">[35]<\/a> J.<br \/>\nMcAdam, <em>Climate Change, Forced Migration, and International Law <\/em>(Oxford<br \/>\nUniversity Press: New York, 2012) 45<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref36\">[36]<\/a><br \/>\nSee Teitiota v Chief Executive of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and<br \/>\nEmployment [2015] NZSC 107<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref37\">[37]<\/a> [37]<br \/>\nJ. McAdam, <em>Climate Change, Forced Migration, and<br \/>\nInternational Law <\/em>(Oxford University Press: New York,<br \/>\n2012) 46<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref38\">[38]<\/a> <em>0907346<\/em> [2009] RRTA 1168 (10 December<br \/>\n2009) [51]<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref39\">[39]<\/a> [39]<br \/>\nArticle 1A (2) of the 1951 Refugee Convention, ibid, read in conjunction with the<br \/>\n1967 Protocol, ibid<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref40\">[40]<\/a> J.<br \/>\nMcAdam, <em>Climate Change, Forced Migration, and International Law <\/em>(Oxford<br \/>\nUniversity Press: New York, 2012) 47<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref41\">[41]<\/a> Jessica<br \/>\nB Cooper, \u2018Environmental Refugees: Meeting the Requirements of the Refugee<br \/>\nDefinition\u2019 (1998) 6 New York University Environmental Law Journal 521<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref42\">[42]<\/a><br \/>\nIbid 522<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref43\">[43]<\/a><br \/>\nIbid 522<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref44\">[44]<\/a> [44]<br \/>\nChristopher M Kozoll, \u2018Poisoning the Well: Persecution, the Environment, and<br \/>\nRefugee Status\u2019 (2004) 15 Colorado Journal of International Environmental Law<br \/>\nand Policy 286<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref45\">[45]<\/a><br \/>\nIbid 286<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref46\">[46]<\/a> As<br \/>\nmade clear by Dawson J in <em>Applicant A v<br \/>\nMinister for Immigration and Ethnic Affairs <\/em>(1997) 190 CLR 225, 341<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref47\">[47]<\/a><br \/>\nIbid<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref48\">[48]<\/a><br \/>\nIbid (McHugh J) 246<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref49\">[49]<\/a> <em>Canada (Attorney General) v Ward <\/em>[1993]<br \/>\n2 SCR 689, 732<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref50\">[50]<\/a><br \/>\nIbid<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref51\">[51]<\/a> <em>Applicant A v Minister for Immigration<br \/>\nand Ethnic Affairs <\/em>(1997) 190 CLR 225, 248<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref52\">[52]<\/a> <em>Minister for Immigration v Haji Ibrahim <\/em>(2000)<br \/>\n204 CLR 1, 48-49<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref53\">[53]<\/a> J.<br \/>\nMcAdam, <em>Climate Change, Forced Migration, and International Law <\/em>(Oxford<br \/>\nUniversity Press: New York, 2012) 47<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref54\">[54]<\/a><br \/>\nUNHCR, \u2018Forced Displacement in the Context of Climate Change: Challenges for<br \/>\nStates under International Law\u2019, Submission to the 6<sup>th<\/sup> Session of<br \/>\nthe Ad Hoc Working Group on Long-term Cooperative Action under the Convention<br \/>\n(20 May 2009) 9-10<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref55\">[55]<\/a> <em>SERAC and CESR v Nigeria, Decision Regarding<br \/>\nCommunication No 155\/96, <\/em>ACHPR\/COMM\/A044\/1, \u201815<sup>th<\/sup> Annual<br \/>\nActivity Report of African Commission on Human and Peoples\u2019 Rights\u2019 (7 May<br \/>\n2002) Annex V, [44]<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref56\">[56]<\/a><br \/>\nInternational Law Commission, \u2018Report of the International Law Commission on<br \/>\nthe Work of its Sixty-Second Session (3 May-4 June and 5 July-6 August 2010)\u2019,<br \/>\nUN Doc A\/65\/10, 327<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref57\">[57]<\/a> <em>Horvath v Secretary of State for the Home<br \/>\nDepartment <\/em>[2001] 1 AC 489, 499-500<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref58\">[58]<\/a> J.<br \/>\nMcAdam, <em>Climate Change, Forced Migration, and International Law <\/em>(Oxford<br \/>\nUniversity Press: New York, 2012) 40<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref59\">[59]<\/a><br \/>\nInterview with President Anote Tong, President of Kiribati (Tarawa, Kiribati,<br \/>\n12 May 2009). <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref60\">[60]<\/a> J.<br \/>\nMcAdam, <em>Climate Change, Forced Migration, and International Law <\/em>(Oxford<br \/>\nUniversity Press: New York, 2012) 41<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref61\">[61]<\/a><br \/>\nIbid <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"#_ftnref62\">[62]<\/a><br \/>\nSuch as burden sharing which leaves refugees in protracted situations with no<br \/>\nhope for solutions<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This paper will discuss 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