Train (dpa-AfX)-Indonesian fishermen take on the multinational building material giant Holcim in a climate process in Switzerland. They accuse the billion -dollar cement group based in the canton of Zug to be responsible for climate change and rising sea levels through the emission of climate -damaging greenhouse gases. The three fishermen and a fishing woman live on the island of Pari, who are increasingly experiencing floods.
The plaintiff Ibu Asmania at the Zug cantonal court argued that the damage and costs that arise due to the rising water level would not have caused the population, as the Keystone-SDA news agency reported.
The plaintiffs require compensation for loss of income and the financing of protective measures on their island. They also call for stronger CO2 reduction at Holcim. This could save the future of the island, said the plaintiff’s lawyer, according to the agency.
Holcim: Court not responsible for CO2 emissions
At the end of the hearing, the judge announced that the judgment would take place in writing. According to a clerk, this can take weeks or months.
A lawyer of the group described the lawsuit as a “artificial staging” and “coordinated campaign”, as Keystone-Sda reported. A Holcim lawyer argued that the entire world population is affected by the consequences of climate change. He denied a concrete concern of the plaintiffs and questioned the responsibility of the civil court.
Holcim claims to have reduced its direct CO2 emissions by more than 50 percent since 2015 and has been working on further reductions.
Pari is around 40 kilometers northwest of the Indonesian capital of Jakarta. The approximately 1,500 islanders mostly live on fishing and tourism. The island is less than a third as large as Helgoland and is only 1.50 meters above sea level.
Not the first climate lawsuit
According to the “Carbon Majors” database, Holcim is one of the 120 largest oil, gas, coal and cement producers in the world, which are historically responsible for most of the global CO2 emissions. The company employs around 48,000 people worldwide and achieved sales of almost CHF 16.3 billion (CHF 17.4 billion) last year.
There are often climate lawsuits like against Holcim. Among other things, climate protectors Shell (Shell (Ex Royal Dutch Shell)) had sued in the Netherlands. In 2021 they won in the first instance and a court sentenced the company to reduce its emissions. An appellate court later received the judgment./OE/AL/DP/JHA
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