Oldal 36 [36]
OCR
ECOCIDE 2.1.1. Environmental conferences organised within the framework of the United Nations The establishment of the United Nations was a turning point in the environmental discourse of the international community, as the organisation provided a platform for conversation and, later, an institutionalised framework for the acceptance of new programmes targeting environmental issues. In the history of environmental legislation, the conferences organised with the support of the UN are still remembered as crucial moments for environmentalism. The world conferences provided an opportunity to deepen the intergovernmental discourse. On the other hand, they enabled the discussion of environmental issues in an institutionalised form by bodies and organisations dealing specifically with sustainable development and environmental protection. A series of international organisations were established during the second part of the development of IEL, a timeframe usually declared from 1945 (the establishment of the UN) till 1972 (the first UN environmental conference). Among the significant organisations, the IUCN® was founded in 1948. The IUCN is a unique organisation between the governmental and non-governmental sectors, the first to be set up for the conservation of nature. Its activities have given it global importance, including the creation of a ‘red list’ of endangered species. In the European sphere, as part of the political root of European integration, the Council of Europe (CoE) was established with the primary aim of protecting European values, including human rights and the rule of law. However, in the last decades, the CoE has also played an essential role in regional environmental regulation through the acceptance of international treaties. The regulated questions included nature protection and water affairs. In 1972, members of the international community gathered together to discuss pressing environmental issues. The United Nations Conference on the Human Environment was organised in Stockholm." In relation to the history of ecocide, the Stockholm Conference is of particular interest, as on this occasion there was one of the earliest specific references to ecocide, with Olof Palme, the Prime Minister of Sweden at the time, referring to the USA’s Vietnam War Effort as ecocide.” As a result of the Stockholm Conference, the final document, the so-called Stockholm Declaration, was adopted. The Declaration contained 26 principles, many 57 International Union for Conservation of Nature. 58 5-16 June 1972. 59 The significance of the Stockholm Conference and detailed analyses are in the relevant Chapter of this book. 34
