Thank you Mr. President,
Franciscans International, Amnesty International, and Human Rights Watch are pleased to welcome Mr. Ian Fry and his first report to this Council. As members of the GeCCco (the Geneva Climate Change Consultative group) and of the Human Rights and Climate Change Working Group, we advocated strongly for the creation of the mandate of a UNSR on human rights and climate change and are pleased to see it come to fruition.
We, within a collective of grassroots and global partners and allies, thus have high expectations for the mandate and the work that Mr. Fry will be able to do. The latest reports and projections of the IPCC confirm the urgent and strong need to put human rights at the center, at all levels and in all aspects of climate action: adaptation and mitigation, loss and damage, and climate finance. We are convinced that the mandate will be effective in responding to this need, including through consultation with, and inclusion of voices and concerns from the individuals and communities most directly affected.
We note with interest the vision that you share, Mr. Special Rapporteur, in your first report. In particular, we are encouraged to see climate-induced displacement and the role of business among your priority issues for the first years of the mandate.
With respect to mobility in the context of climate change, we look forward to providing you with input and research findings on this topic. Our organizations are particularly eager to ensure that your analysis includes regions and aspects of climate-induced displacement, and mobility more generally, that do not receive enough attention in the media and international debates.
We stand ready to support your work as you commence this important mandate.
Thank you for your attention.
