http://naturalhealthwarriors.com/bolivia-gives-legal-rights-to-the-earth/
Law of Mother Earth sees Bolivia pilot new social and economic model based on protection of and respect for nature.
Bolivia is to
become the first country in the world to give nature comprehensive legal
rights in an effort to halt climate change and the exploitation of the
natural world, and to improve quality of life for the Bolivian people.
Developed by grassroots social groups and agreed by politicians, the
Law of Mother Earth recognises the rights of all living things, giving
the natural world equal status to human beings.
Once fully approved, the legislation will provide the Earth with
rights to: life and regeneration; biodiversity and freedom from genetic
modification; pure water; clean air; naturally balanced systems;
restoration from the effects of human activity; and freedom from
contamination.
- See more at: http://naturalhealthwarriors.com/bolivia-gives-legal-rights-to-the-earth/#sthash.K3piDIP2.dpuf
Law of Mother Earth sees Bolivia
pilot new social and economic model based on protection of and respect for
nature.
Bolivia is to become the first
country in the world to give nature comprehensive legal rights in an effort to
halt climate change and the exploitation of the natural world, and to improve
quality of life for the Bolivian people.
Developed by grassroots social
groups and agreed by politicians, the Law of Mother Earth recognizes the rights
of all living things, giving the natural world equal status to human beings.
Once fully approved, the legislation
will provide the Earth with rights to: life and regeneration; biodiversity and
freedom from genetic modification; pure water; clean air; naturally balanced
systems; restoration from the effects of human activity; and freedom from
contamination.
The legislation is based on broader
principles of living in harmony with the Earth and prioritizing the “collective
good.” At its heart is an understanding that the Earth is sacred, which arises
from the indigenous Andean worldview of ‘Pachamama’ (meaning Mother Earth) as a
living being. An initial act outlining the rights – which was passed by
Bolivia’s national congress in December 2010 and paves the way for the full
legislation – defines Mother Earth as a dynamic and “indivisible community of
all living systems and living organisms, interrelated, interdependent and
complementary, which share a common destiny.”
Bolivia’s government will be legally
bound to prioritize the well-being of its citizens and the natural world by
developing policies that promote sustainability and control industry. The
economy must operate within the limits of nature and the country is to work
towards energy and food sovereignty while adopting renewable energy
technologies and increasing energy efficiency.Preventing climate change is a
key objective of the law, which includes protecting the lives of future
generations. The government is requesting that rich countries help Bolivia
adapt to the effects of climate change in recognition of the environmental debt
they owe for their high carbon emissions. Bolivia is “particularly vulnerable
to the impacts of climate change,” according to an Oxfam report in 2009, with
increasing drought, melting glaciers and flooding.
On the international stage, the
government will have a legal duty to promote the uptake of rights for Mother
Earth, while also advocating peace and the elimination of all nuclear, chemical
and biological weapons. Following a change in Bolivia’s constitution in 2009,
the law is part of a complete overhaul of the legal system. It represents a
shift away from the western development model to a more holistic vision, based
on the indigenous concept of Vivir Bien (to live well).
The proposal for the law states:
“Living Well means adopting forms of consumption, behavior and and conduct
that are not degrading to nature. It requires an ethical and spiritual
relationship with life. Living Well proposes the complete fulfillment of life
and collective happiness.”
Unity Pact, an umbrella group for
five Bolivian social movements, prepared the draft law. They represent over 3m
people and all of the country’s 36 indigenous groups, the majority of whom are small scale farmers with many still living on their ancestral lands. The bill
protects their livelihoods and diverse cultures from the impacts of industry.
Undarico Pinto, a leader of the
social movement Confederación Sindical Única de Trabajadores Campesinos de
Bolivia, said: “It will make industry more transparent. It will allow people to
regulate industry at national, regional and local levels.”Signifying a
fundamental shift away from exploitation of nature, the draft law referrers to
mineral resources as “blessings” and states that Mother Earth, “is sacred,
fertile and the source of life that feeds and cares for all living beings in
her womb. She is in permanent balance, harmony and communication with the
cosmos.”
A Ministry of Mother Earth is to be established to promote the new rights and
ensure they are complied with. But with its economy currently dependent on
exports of natural resources, earning nearly a third of its foreign currency –
around £300m a year – from mining companies, Bolivia will need to balance its
new obligations against the demands of industry.
Bolivia Rain forest
The full law is expected to pass
within the next few months and is unlikely to face any significant opposition
because the ruling party, the Movement Towards Socialism, has a considerable
majority in parliament. Its leader, President Evo Morales, voiced a commitment to
the initiative at the World People’s Conference on Climate change, held in
Bolivia in April 2010.
The Law of Mother Earth includes the
following:
The right to maintain the integrity
of life and natural processes.
The right to not have cellular
structure modified or genetically altered.
The right to continue vital cycles
and processes free from human alteration.
The right to pure water.
The right to clean air.
The right to balance, to be at
equilibrium.
The right to be free of toxic and
radioactive pollution.
The right to not be affected by
mega-infrastructure and development projects that affect the balance of
ecosystems and the local inhabitant communities
The law also promotes “harmony” and
“peace” and “the elimination of all nuclear, chemical, biological” weapons.
Law of Mother Earth sees Bolivia pilot new social and economic model based on protection of and respect for nature.
Bolivia is to
become the first country in the world to give nature comprehensive legal
rights in an effort to halt climate change and the exploitation of the
natural world, and to improve quality of life for the Bolivian people.
Developed by grassroots social groups and agreed by politicians, the
Law of Mother Earth recognises the rights of all living things, giving
the natural world equal status to human beings.
Once fully approved, the legislation will provide the Earth with
rights to: life and regeneration; biodiversity and freedom from genetic
modification; pure water; clean air; naturally balanced systems;
restoration from the effects of human activity; and freedom from
contamination.
- See more at: http://naturalhealthwarriors.com/bolivia-gives-legal-rights-to-the-earth/#sthash.K3piDIP2.dpuf
