The Hague,NETHERLANDS:--- In a world first, a Dutch court today ruled that the Netherlands breached the European Convention on Human Rights by not protecting and discriminating against citizens living in the Dutch-Caribbean special municipality of Bonaire from the impacts of the climate crisis, and ordered the State to set new, fair climate targets.
Onnie Emerenciana, plaintiff in the Bonaire Climate Case, said:
“I am very happy. Today, we are making history. Finally, The Hague can no longer ignore us. The court is drawing a line in the sand. Our lives, our culture, and our country are being taken seriously. The State can no longer look the other way. The next step is to free up funding and expertise for concrete action plans to protect our island. We truly have to do this together; Bonaire cannot solve this alone.”
Marieke Vellekoop, Director of Greenpeace Netherlands, said:
“This is truly a historic victory. People on Bonaire are finally getting recognition that the government is discriminating against them and must protect them from extreme heat and rising sea levels. The State must also contribute its fair share to staying below 1.5 degrees of warming by implementing new climate targets. This means that the reduction of Dutch greenhouse gas emissions must be accelerated significantly. This is a huge breakthrough. The current climate policy is insufficient, and the cabinet can no longer get away with failing climate policy. With this ruling in hand, communities have a powerful new asset to hold governments to account.”
In a historic ruling, the Hague District Court found in favour of the residents of Bonaire and Greenpeace Netherlands, observing that the Netherlands is doing too little to protect Bonaire residents from the impacts of the climate crisis.
The Court found the Dutch State in violation of multiple provisions of the European Convention on Human Rights (Art 8 and 14 and Article 1 of Protocol No. 12), citing discriminatory treatment of citizens of Bonaire and a failure by the Dutch State to both reduce greenhouse gas emissions and protect people against the current impacts of climate change.[1]
The Dutch court is the first court in the world to rule that the State is discriminating against its own people by failing to develop and adopt a climate adaptation plan.
The court agreed that Bonaire residents are already experiencing climate impacts, such as rising sea levels, extreme weather, and dying coral reefs. It noted that these impacts will intensify under current policies, providing even greater urgency for a coherent and integrated climate adaptation policy for Bonaire than for the European Netherlands.
This case sets a precedent with global relevance. It is the first time that a European court has ruled that a country must take concrete adaptation and mitigation measures to protect all of its citizens, no matter where they live, from the impacts of climate change.
Michael Bacon, lawyer at Kennedy Van der Laan, said:
“With this ruling the court has done precisely what an independent court in a democratic society must do: determine whether national policy complies with national and international law, and specifically with human rights. The court correctly ruled that Dutch climate policy does not comply with international law. It is now up to the State to improve its climate policy.”
Notes:
[1] The Court Judgement
[2] On January 11, 2024, residents of Bonaire and Greenpeace went to court to demand fair climate policy from the State, after earlier research commissioned by Greenpeace Netherlands confirmed that the climate crisis is already affecting daily life on Bonaire and showed how, under current policies, climate change would continue to intensify risks for the island and its residents in the future. The hearings took place on October 7 and 8, 2025, and were attended by the eight plaintiffs. Greenpeace was assisted in this case by lawyers from Kennedy van der Laan.
Previously, the International Court of Justice in The Hague ruled that states must keep global warming below 1.5 degrees and that their climate plans must demonstrate maximum ambition, taking into account historical emissions and economical and technological capacity of the State. This is the first climate case in Europe, in which these international recommendations have been applied.
