Summary
September 9, 2024, the Pacific island states Vanuatu, Fiji and Samoa formally submitted a proposed amendment to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to include a crime of “ecocide” to criminalize mass destruction of nature. This development marks the beginning of ICC member states’ formal consideration of ecocide as an international crime. Currently, the court has jurisdiction over four crimes: genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and the crime of aggression. If successful, the ecocide amendment would hold senior decision-makers legally accountable for the most severe crimes against the environment and would become the fifth international crime.
As proposed by Vanuatu, Fiji and Samoa, ‘ecocide’ is defined as “unlawful or wanton acts committed with knowledge that there is a substantial likelihood of severe and either widespread or long-term damage to the environment being caused by those acts.” This definition emerged in 2021 from an Independent Expert Panel convened by the Stop Ecocide Foundation, and has gained significant legal and political traction. Examples could include, massive oil or chemical spills, the clearcutting of primary rainforests, or the destruction of entire river systems.
This event represents a major step forward in the global effort to enshrine mass environmental destruction as a crime under international law. Vanuatu was the first nation to call for international recognition of ecocide at the International Criminal Court in 2019.
“We are taking bold and necessary action to address these challenges and encourage other vulnerable states to take note of our newly tabled proposal to bring ecocide to the ICC. Vanuatu considers it imperative that the international community takes this conversation seriously, and we warmly invite all member states to engage. Legal recognition of severe and widespread environmental harm holds significant potential to ensure justice and, crucially, to deter further destruction.” – Ralph Regenvanu, Special Envoy for Climate Change and Environment for the Republic of Vanuatu