Belem: HE Secretary-General of the National Human Rights Committee (NHRC), Sultan bin Hassan Al Jamali, has urged the adoption of a binding global instrument to promote human rights in the face of climate change and enhance international protection mechanisms. He emphasized that such measures would reinforce a multilateral approach to address challenges, ensure accountability, and provide redress for those impacted by climate change.
According to Qatar News Agency, Al Jamali spoke at an expanded consultative forum organized by NHRC in collaboration with the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change (MECC). The event focused on climate justice and the responsibilities of national human rights institutions (NHRIs) and was held at Qatar's pavilion on the sidelines of the 30th session of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP30) in Belem, Brazil.
Al Jamali highlighted that achieving human rights and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2030 depends on the international community's ability to adopt a fair climate framework. This framework should involve international cooperation, support for least developed countries, and capacity building to counter climate-induced risks. The forum reflects NHRC's commitment to addressing climate change issues, following up on the Doha Declaration on Climate Change and Human Rights, adopted in February 2023 in partnership with the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).
Al Jamali noted that NHRC recognizes the risks posed by climate change, including its detrimental impacts on human rights. He stressed that these challenges are exacerbated by phenomena like widening discrimination gaps, marginalization of priority groups, rising poverty and unemployment rates, increased numbers of internally displaced persons and irregular migrants, and growing security and humanitarian challenges.
Dr. Jorge Augusto Nogueira, Brazil's Federal Public Defender and Adviser on Environment, Climate, and Human Mobility, discussed measures by the Office for Environmental Protection regarding human mobility and disasters, such as the floods in Rio Grande do Sul in 2024, affecting 21.5% of its population. He highlighted response mechanisms to aid the region's reconstruction.
Raquel Caballero de Guevara, Prosecutor for the Defense of Human Rights in El Salvador, emphasized the need to analyze and detect climate change impacts on human rights globally. She noted common effects like food and water crises and forced displacement, despite varying realities.
The forum covered three papers: the role of NHRIs in a human rights-based approach to climate change by Hamad Salem Al Hajri of NHRC, climate governance and effective redress by Aline A. Larroyed from Brazil, and corporate cooperation in human rights and climate change by Rosa Guillermina Sandoval from El Salvador.
On the conference's sidelines, Al Jamali met with El Salvador's Human Rights Ombudsperson to discuss strengthening bilateral relations, sharing expertise, and coordinating global events. They planned joint programs on women's rights, vulnerable groups, and peace promotion, alongside organizing events during Human Rights Council sessions in Geneva to enhance their global presence.