Summary:
- Bill to criminalise ecocide formally proposed in Netherlands.
- Ongoing public consultation.
- Will require parliamentary approval to become law.
Member of Parliament Lammert van Raan of Partij voor de Dieren (Party for the Animals), officially launched a law proposal to criminalise ecocide in the Netherlands.
The proposal is currently subject to four weeks of public consultation prior to being submitted for advisory opinion to the Council of State. For the bill to become law, it will then need to be approved by Parliament.
In a statement announcing the proposal, Lammert van Raan said:
“The environment has an intrinsic value and serious damage to that environment, by human actions or by inaction, must be made punishable.
“It reflects prevailing views in society and penalises behaviour that conflicts with those views. Given the current social opinion on the importance of climate, nature and the environment, the absence of penalties for serious environmental damage is no longer justified.
“Better than punishing environmental damage is preventing future ecocide. Current environmental legislation does not do that sufficiently, while the severity of the biodiversity, climate and pollution crisis is increasing.”
Babs Verhoeve, Director of Stop Ecocide NL, said:
“National initiatives, like the Dutch ecocide law proposal, are a great step towards preventing ecocide worldwide – the ultimate goal of the Stop Ecocide initiative.
“Criminalising ecocide will provide a much-needed level playing field for all. I strongly believe that it will become reality soon. We are grateful for our team’s opportunity to contribute legal expertise to this proposal and are excited to be a part of this critical cause.”
Jojo Mehta, co-Founder and Executive Director of Stop Ecocide International, said:
“The last few weeks have seen a bill to criminalise Ecocide proposed in Brazil. Leaders around the world are beginning to wake-up to the importance of granting legal protection to our environment and are joining a global movement to criminalise Ecocide.
“It is only a matter of time until recognition of ecocide is accepted as a necessary legislative step both by a critical mass of nation states, and at the International Criminal Court. The momentum we’re seeing is keeping ecocide high up the global agenda, and well it should.”
