Latest news with #criminalLaw
The Guardian
28-05-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Company directors who cause nature damage in Scotland could face jail
Company directors who cause severe or reckless damage to nature could face jail terms or hefty fines under a bill that aims to criminalise environmental destruction in Scotland. The proposed law, which would be the first of its kind in the UK, is designed to put a class of environment offences known as ecocide on a similar legal footing to other grave crimes such as murder. Monica Lennon, the Scottish Labour MSP who has tabled the ecocide (Scotland) bill in the Scottish parliament, said it would introduce strict new legal duties on company executives and government agencies, with potential sanctions such as heavy fines or prison sentences. She said it would bring Scotland into line with the EU, which has an environmental crime directive, and formal moves by small nations such as Vanuatu, Samoa and Fiji to add ecocide to the mandate for the international criminal court. Brazil, Mexico, the Netherlands, Peru and Italy are also pursuing domestic ecocide laws, which are broadly defined as 'unlawful or wanton acts' committed knowing they could cause severe, widespread or long-term environmental damage. Activists point to oil tanker disasters; deforestation of the Amazon or destructive fishing practices, as examples of ecocide. Lennon said voters were very clear they believed serious environmental crimes needed to be policed and punished. 'I think the bill will give people hope,' she said. 'I think it's really important to renew hope and put environmental protection at the top of the agenda. 'This should give confidence to policymakers, and ensure the public knows we're making sure our laws are fit for purpose, and closing gaps and loopholes. We just don't talk about the nature emergency: we have a robust legal framework too.' More than 50 MSPs from all the major parties in the Scottish parliament, including the Conservatives, have supported Lennon's decision to table the bill, which will soon go to an initial vote to confirm it can progress. Environmental campaigners are critical of the Scottish government's recent track record on the climate and nature conservation, with promised legislation watered down and spending cut. Even so, ministers in Edinburgh support Lennon's bill in principle. Maurice Golden, a Scottish Tory MSP who backs the legislation, said the mere fact of its implementation would force companies and public agencies to be far more rigorous on environmental issues to avoid breaching it. 'The context of this is an international one. We don't want Scotland being seen as a soft touch,' he said. 'What we will see, as a result of this law, is that in order to reduce the risks of malpractice, companies are going to up their game.'
The Independent
23-05-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
UN expert says Guatemalan prosecutor's office using criminal law to pursue opponents
A United Nations expert warned Friday at the conclusion of her two-week visit that Guatemala's prosecutor's office is increasingly using criminal law against former prosecutors, judges, defense attorneys, journalists and others. Margaret Satterthwaite, the U.N. Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, traveled the country meeting with judges, lawyers, lawmakers and others, including Guatemala's chief prosecutor. 'The instrumental use of criminal law by the Prosecutor General's Office appears to amount to a systematic pattern of intentional and severe deprivation of fundamental rights, targeted at specific groups,' Satterthwaite wrote in her preliminary report. 'This persecution appears to be intensifying, as those who have sought to end impunity and corruption, defend human rights, or speak out against abuses of power increasingly face digital harassment, threats, and criminal charges.' The office is led by Consuelo Porras, who has been sanctioned by the United States and other countries and accused of being an obstacle to corruption investigations. Satterthwaite met with Porras and her staff. They told Satterthwaite that they acted within the law, denied using criminal law to pursue opponents and said they were the real victims of attacks by the executive branch and its allies, the U.N. expert said. 'Criminal charges have been directed at more than 60 justice operators and defense or human rights lawyers,' Satterthwaite said, noting that more than 50 'justice operators' have been forced into exile by the prosecutor's office. Porras' office said later that it did not agree with Satterthwaite's preliminary report, because it did not reflect 'the complex work that we do, nor the exhaustive information that was provided.' 'We energetically reject the idea of a 'criminalization of sectors,'" the office said. 'Our actions are based on serious, objective investigations that strictly adhere to the Guatemalan legal framework.' President Bernardo Arévalo has tried unsuccessfully to convince Porras to step down. His office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Satterthwaite's observations.
