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X v. Commissioner General for Refugees and Stateless Persons (Arrest No 191 948 of 13 September 2017 in case RvV X / IV) - judgment

Filing Year For Action

An individual from Freetown, Sierra Leone, applied for asylum in August 2015, making his claim primarily due to fleeing violence from his former partner’s family. After receiving a refusal, the individual, 'X', filed for appeal in August 2017. As part of his claim on appeal, he evidenced that there was water scarcity in his region, worsened by climate change and exacerbating scarcity in the dry season. This caused him to walk distances to fetch it, exposing him to mosquitoes and the possibility of becoming infected with malaria. The applicant claimed the former partner’s family had publicly blamed him for water scarcity in the local area, as the family strife the father alleged X had caused had prevented him from building a water tank. This, it was argued, put the applicant’s life at even more risk as the importance of water made people vengeful towards X.

In the appeal, the applicant and his legal team identified him as ‘klimaatvluchteling’ (“climate refugee”), providing a definition to the court. His legal team attempted to argue that being sent back to a country where there is no water may violate Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights. The court raised concerns that the applicant had not included climate reasons in his initial application, but only on appeal. 

The court found that this asylum motive is also not related to any of the 1951 Refugee Convention criteria for granting asylum (political or religious beliefs, nationality or race or belonging to a social group). The court found that this issue concerns “the general level of development” in the applicant’s region of origin, without indicating for what reason this would affect him personally. The court buttressed this decision by using the European Union’s Qualification Directive, which establishes that dangers which threaten a whole population with serious harm do not in themselves constitute an individual threat. The court also required that he demonstrated a real risk of suffering serious harm because of torture, or inhuman or degrading treatment, or punishment on his behalf in the event of his return to Sierra Leone. The court did not find that any of his arguments made a plausible case in this regard.

X v. Commissioner General for Refugees and Stateless Persons (Arrest No 191 948 of 13 September 2017 in case RvV X / IV)

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An aim to achieve a quantifiable outcome within a given time-frame, set by an institution such as a national government.

Policy instruments are techniques or tools used by governing authorities to promote certain policies in order to achieve predetermined goals. Put simply, instruments are how a government tries to achieve its goals, with this taxonomy being focused on national policy instruments.

Risk is the potential for adverse consequences resulting from the dynamic interplay between (climate-related) hazards, exposure, and vulnerability of affected human or ecological systems.

Groups  of people who are adversely affected by climate change or the response to it

A set of principles, processes, and practices that build economic and political power to shift from an extractive economy to a regenerative economy.

Justice is the ethical and political framework that addresses fairness, including issues of responsibility, rights, and structural inequity.

Renewable energy means all forms of energy produced from renewable sources in a sustainable manner.

Fossil fuel is a generic term for non-renewable energy sources such as coal, fossil gas, and oil (including crude oil, and petroleum products), that can be used for electricity and heat generation. Fossil fuels are hydrocarbons formed from pressurised and heated organic material buried over millions of years.

Molecules in the atmosphere that play a key role in the greenhouse effect by trapping heat radiating from Earth’s surface.

Area of the economy in which actors engage in identical or related activities.

In human systems, the process of adjustment to actual or expected climate change and its effects, in order to moderate harm, increase resilience or exploit beneficial opportunities. In natural systems, the process of adjustment to actual climate change and its effects; human intervention may facilitate adjustment to expected climate change and its effects.

The management and allocation of funds, assets and investments to meet various objectives

People who are less able to respond to the effects of climate change due to having limited financial or physical assets

Either money or something of monetary value is transferred between two or more organisations, people or countries.

Actions or measures to adapt freshwater systems to climate change.

Actions or measures to adapt freshwater, coastal and marine systems to climate change.

People who have left their homes, whether through force, voluntarily, or a mixture of both

woman and genders outside of the gender binary

The activities of industries that transforms raw materials into finished goods through industrial processes.

This sector involves activities that impart knowledge and skills to individuals, including formal schooling, vocational training and educational support.

This sector includes firms and individuals offering specialised expertise in fields such as law, accounting, consulting, science and engineering.

This sector provides medical services, manufactures medical equipment, and develops pharmaceuticals to maintain and improve health.

Climate change impacts our society by disrupting the natural, economic and social systems we depend on. Physical hazards and underlying vulnerabilities can lead to increased resource competition for food and water, which can heighten the risk of conflict.

X v. Commissioner General for Refugees and Stateless Persons (Arrest No 191 948 of 13 September 2017 in case RvV X / IV) - judgment

Risk

Impacted group

Economic sector

Adaptation/resilience

Finance