A push to make ecocide an international crime
Why do we wait until someone has passed away before we honour them? I believe we should overcome our embarrassment, and say it while they are with us. In this spirit, I want to tell you about the world-changing work of Polly Higgins.
She is a barrister who has devoted her life to creating an international crime of ecocide. This means serious damage to, or destruction of, the natural world and the Earth’s systems. It would make the people who commission it – such as chief executives and government ministers – criminally liable for the harm they do to others, while creating a legal duty of care for life on Earth.
It would force anyone contemplating large-scale vandalism to ask themselves, ‘Will I end up in the Hague for this?’
I believe it would change everything. It would radically shift the balance of power, forcing anyone contemplating large-scale vandalism to ask themselves: “Will I end up in the international criminal court for this?” It could make the difference between a habitable and an uninhabitable planet.
There are no effective safeguards preventing a few powerful people, companies or states from wreaking havoc for the sake of profit or power. Though their actions may lead to the death of millions, they know they can’t be touched. Their impunity, as they engage in potential mass murder, reveals a gaping hole in international law.
Last week, for instance, the research group InfluenceMap reported that the world’s five biggest publicly listed oil and gas companies, led by BP and Shell, are spending nearly $200m a year on lobbying to delay efforts to prevent climate breakdown.
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George – Thanks are due you and God/Goddess and/or Buddha and all your holy angels. I had given up on mentioning Polly’s crusade many years ago. We should all get behind her and support the initiative with all our available time & energy. You are absolutely right, making ecocide a capital crime against humanity and nature would initiate a radical evolutionary change for the better, globally.
It seems to me that making laws for what you are not allowed to do is a favorite past time of keyboard warriors. These laws are summarily bypassed and ignored by the movers and shakers. Welcome to the Matrix
The problem with international laws is that they are simply ignored or dismissed by the governments of large countries whenever it suits their convenience. The same contempt for international laws and treaties occurs when large powers engage in military action and/or the invasion of smaller countries in contravention of their obligation to adhere to the rules for military behavior established by the United Nations. Sadly. we have to accept that the problems of the non-compliance with and non-enforcement of international legal rulings, and even non-recognition of the authority and jurisdiction of such bodies as the World Court, are intractable at this point in time.
I have long had a fantasy: Dick Cheney in stocks next to Henry Kissinger in stocks in front of The Hague, available for pelting with ripe beefsteak tomatoes (yes, what a waste; better used for BLTs). These international criminals, along with the Bush and Clinton Crime Families are war criminals who long ago should have been summoned by the International Court. Problem is, abuse of power by The Empire. These existing international laws have been toothless for a long time.
I have a few bottles of expensive bubbly for a special occassion. One has Cheney’s name on it and the day he drops dead I’ll crack it open and celebrate his untimely (should have been a long time ago) demise.
I commented on Ecocide very recently, and have nothing valuable to add to the comments.
There is, as I am sure you are aware, little international judicial infrastructure left to which such matters can be referred. The only thing economists can do is to routinely teach these realities without spending precious time discrediting what has clearly been bankrupt for decades and decades. One wishes that a new institute were established for the minority of students who are interested in studying the multifaceted realities of a failed system and what upcoming activists and lawyers might do to change it.
U.S. does not recognize the Rome Statute, or jurisdiction of the ICC (most of the time), no?
It’s a great shame to see Prime witch hunter and thought crime prosecutor polluting these pages with his usual assinine drivel. #WrongKindofGreen.
Monbiot is usually thoughtful and on the money, But not always and her he’s just thinking because action will never be taken. His final sentence tells why
A name which should be entered alongside Rachel Carson, Lois Gibbs, Alice Hamilton, and now AOC & Greta Thunberg.
Dear Helen – Thanks for mentioning the need for a new institute. Yet, the reason for the cynical pessimism expressed above is what makes the establishment of a new, truly effective institute for study R&D of holotrophic cultural economics and realistic meta-economics highly unlikely. On the other hand, if enough of us care enough to develop an effectively complementary alternative to faux money (debt-for-profit currencies) and toxic banking, the 99%ers who perpetuate the 6th MELE-in-progress will gladly start using it. That could fund surprisingly rapid change for the better. Yet, so far, none of y’all express any interest in collaborating on a whole-system approach for developing & implementing a whole-system solution (a nontoxic global credit+currency system). Apparently, none of y’all can believe a workable solution is possible or worth thinking & talking about. So, I guess you’re right Helen, this is an exercize of futility. Sigh…
Klaatu presented us with some interesting ideas that now seem practical considering advances in AI and forceful robots.
I am leaving soon and you’ll forgive me if I speak bluntly. The universe grows smaller every day and the threat of aggression by any group anywhere can no longer be tolerated. There must be security for all or no one is secure. Now this does not mean giving up any freedom, except the freedom to act irresponsibly. Your ancestors knew this when they made laws to govern themselves and hired policemen to enforce them. We, of the other planets, have long accepted this principle. We have an organization for the mutual protection of all planets and for the complete elimination of aggression. The test of any such higher authority is, of course, the police force that supports it. For our policemen we created a race of robots. Their function is to patrol the planets in spaceships like this one and preserve the peace. In matters of aggression we have given them absolute power over us. This power cannot be revoked. A t the first signs of violence they act automatically against the aggressor. The penalty for provoking their action is too terrible to risk. The result is we live in peace without arms or armies, secure in the knowledge that we are free from aggression and war, free to pursue more profitable enterprises. Now, we do not pretend to have achieved perfection, but we do have a system, and it works. I came here to give you these facts. It is no concern of ours how you run your own planet, but if you threaten to extend your violence, this Earth of yours will be reduced to a burned-out cinder. Your choice is simple: join us and live in peace, or pursue your present course and face obliteration. We shall be waiting for your answer. The decision rests with you.
While the court in the Hague might not be able to enforce ecocide crimes, AI and robots could. Is it worth a shot?
Ken – Bravo! I concur with your inspired intuition and appreciate the closing question. I think the answer is clearly, yes. If well-developed, trained and co-managed, an ethical AI expert system could replace at least 90% of all politicians, bureaucrats, accountants, courts, economists, managers and executives. After all, none of the skill levels required are as computationally challenging as walking & chewing gum while seeing, raising children, etc.
MichaelLucasMonterey, about 30,000 years ago Sapiens invented life in groups. Then it invented multiple groups (tribes). These inventions are destroying Sapiens today. These inventions need to be controlled. AI and robots are one way to do that, since current humans seem unable to accomplish this task.