By Pacific Island TimesNews Staff
Port-Vila — A record-breaking 100 oral statements, to be followed by 91 written submissions, will be presented before the International Court of Justice, which is scheduled to hear arguments on Vanuatu’s initiative calling for an advisory opinion on countries’ climate change obligations.
Slated to begin on Dec. 2 at the ICJ in The Hague, The Netherlands, the oral hearing will follow a UN climate change summit in Azerbaijan.
Vanuatu is scheduled to present its arguments on Dec. 12.
“The release of the oral statements schedule by the International Court of Justice puts us one step closer to one of the most important climate decisions of our time,” said Arnold Kiel Loughman, Vanuatu’s attorney general.
The court’s non-binding advisory opinion—which Vanuatu hopes will be handed down in 2025— will clarify the obligations of all nations to address historical climate change, as well as prevent future harm to the climate system, the environment and fundamental human rights.
The case was driven by a global campaign led by the Pacific Island Students Fighting Climate Change, who sought to “bring the world’s biggest problem — climate change — before the world’s highest court.”
Working in coalition with a core group of UN member states, the Vanuatu-led campaign culminated in the adoption of a consensus resolution by the UN General Assembly on March 29, 2023, triggering the now-pending advisory proceedings on climate change before the ICJ.
“We are on the front lines of climate change; Vanuatu is projected to lose 25 percent of its gross domestic product every year due to climate disasters. The impacts are already being felt by our communities," Loughman said, adding that
the lives of present and future generations are at stake.
"If the current carbon emissions trajectory remains unchanged, Vanuatu and other small island states like us have a zero chance of surviving the deluge of threats that climate change has unleashed," he added.
Loughman pointed out that other climate-vulnerable countries around the world are “also suffering from the extremely disproportionate impacts of climate change, making these advisory proceedings equally important across all of the global south, evidenced by unprecedented participation in the proceedings.”
Of the 100 oral arguments, 88 will be delivered by country delegations and organizations, including a joint statement from five Nordic countries, and the remaining will be from organizations.
Loughman said the world needs “a seismic shift in global climate policy, a torrent of climate action, to ensure a more just and equitable future for all.”
"Vanuatu is hopeful the ICJ advisory opinion will usher in a new era of climate cooperation that clarifies legal responsibilities under international law and respects and protects human rights with clear paths to hold major polluters accountable for their lack of action,” he added.
Graham Leung, Fiji’s attorney general, reflected on the importance of global cooperation:
“The ICJ advisory opinion offers a unique opportunity to clarify what
international law requires of states to address and mitigate the impacts of climate change," Leung said.
"For many of us, this is not simply a legal issue—it is a matter of survival. The effects of climate change are already upon us, and we have a duty to ensure that the legal framework governing this crisis is as robust, clear, and enforceable as possible," he added.
Pauline Beiatau, Kiribati’s attorney general, stressed the urgency of climate action.
"With sea temperature rises, storm surges and high winds, erosion, drought and flooding, and climate changes that are exacerbating Kiribati’s high burden of disease, the continued existence of our islands is already threatened," she added.
In Papua New Guinea, Attorney General Pila Kole Niningi, said his country stands in solidarity with its Pacific neighbors to present a unified fight against the climate crisis.
"Climate action in the Pacific is about survival, of our environment, peoples and cultures, and addressing climate change demands sustained, long-term commitment," Niningi said. "This historic case before the ICJ is an opportunity to provide a global compass, guiding nations toward real action, accountability, and justice in addressing the climate emergency.”
Attorney General Laingane Italeli Talia of Tuvalu said the ICJ advisory opinion could become a defining moment in international law and set new precedents for climate justice, human rights protection, and holding polluters accountable for their contributions to the climate crisis.
“Tuvalu’s very existence is under threat, along with other island states, and collective action is our strongest tool against the climate crisis," Talia said.
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