A Swiss court accepts a lawsuit against Holcim for “climate” damage in Indonesia.
Geneva, Dec 22 (EFE)
A Swiss cantonal court has accepted a lawsuit filed by Indonesian fishermen against cement giant Holcim for “climate damage” on their island, a move the plaintiffs consider a major step forward in the fight against global warming through jurisprudence.
The court in Zug, a canton near Zurich in eastern Switzerland, ruled that it has jurisdiction to hear the case, which was filed in February 2023 by four Indonesian fishermen from Pari Island, in an archipelago north of Jakarta.
“This is an important partial victory for climate justice,” said the Swiss Protestant Solidarity NGO, which has supported the fishermen’s lawsuit, in a statement.
The fishermen are seeking compensation from Holcim for climate damage that threatens the very existence of their island, and are also urging the company to contribute to the funding of measures to protect against global warming and to drastically reduce its carbon dioxide emissions.
The court recognized that the plaintiffs were entitled to legal protection and rejected the cement company’s arguments that the courts were not the appropriate venue to address the global challenges of climate change.
In 2023, the lawsuit became the first “climate crime” case brought against a Swiss company, and only the second in Europe after a similar case against the Anglo-Dutch oil company Shell.
The plaintiffs argued that Holcim’s operations had contributed to rising sea levels in the area surrounding Pari, frequently flooding homes, businesses, and roads on the island.
