Balochistan Vulnerability Highlights Need for Climate Justice Initiatives

APP

Islamabad: Senator Samina Mumtaz Zehri, Chairperson of the Senate Standing Committee on Human Rights, and Romina Khurshid Alam, Coordinator to the Prime Minister on Climate Change, have reached a consensus on the urgent need to integrate human rights into Pakistan’s climate change policies.

During a bilateral meeting on Sunday, the two officials agreed to collaborate on developing a viable action plan that ensures climate actions not only address environmental challenges but also protect the rights of vulnerable communities affected by climate change, particularly in the highly climate-vulnerable Balochistan province.

Senator Zehri emphasized that integrating human rights into climate change policy is crucial to prevent exacerbating existing inequalities and infringing on basic rights. “Climate change significantly undermines fundamental human rights, including the right to life, health, food, and water,” she stated, reflecting growing awareness of these critical issues.

Highlighting Balochistan’s unique challenges, Senator Zehri pointed out that the province’s geographic features, socio-economic struggles, and environmental stresses make it particularly susceptible to climate risks, such as devastating floods, heatwaves, and droughts.

She stressed the importance of strategies that prioritize equity and justice in addressing climate change while promoting a fairer society with equitable access to resources necessary for building climate resilience.

Senator Zehri called for well-coordinated national efforts to uphold and protect these rights, noting that marginalized groups—especially women, children, and economically disadvantaged communities—are disproportionately affected by climate impacts and often lack the means to adapt.

“The ongoing climate crisis highlights that those least responsible for climate change frequently bear its most severe consequences,” she added, advocating for fair resource distribution and support for at-risk communities.

Romina Khurshid Alam echoed these sentiments, stating that the climate crisis impacts a wide range of human rights, including life, health, food security, and access to clean water and sanitation.

She stressed that recognizing climate change as a human rights issue is a pivotal step towards developing inclusive national policies that consider the social and economic impacts on vulnerable communities, particularly in Balochistan and Gilgit-Baltistan.

Alam assured Senator Zehri of her full support in achieving climate justice, emphasizing the need for human rights-based climate policy and action plans framed in consultation with affected communities and implemented at the grassroots level to ensure people’s rights to a healthy life and environment, especially during times of disaster.