Landmark Peruvian Court Ruling Says the Maran River Has Legal Rights To Exist, Flow and Be Free From Pollution

Landmark Peruvian Court Ruling Says the Marañón River Has Legal Rights To Exist, Flow and Be Free From Pollution

The ruling is the first time Peru has recognized that ecosystems possess legal rights and is based on a constellation of legal precedents in international and Peruvian law.

By Katie Surma
March 20, 2024



The lawsuit to obtain recognition of the Marañón River’s legal rights was filed by the Huaynakana Kamatahuara Kana, a federation of Kukama Indigenous women. Credit: Miguel Araoz/Quisca


The Marañón River, which flows from Peru’s Andes mountains into the Amazon river, has “intrinsic” value and possesses the rights to exist, flow, and be free from pollution, among other rights, a Peruvian trial court ruled Monday.

The case marks the first time Peru has legally recognized the so-called rights of nature, which is the idea that certain ecosystems, individual species or the Earth itself possess inherent rights to exist, regenerate and evolve.

The Nauta provincial court, located in Peru’s Loreto region, also ruled that Indigenous organizations and various government agencies are “guardians, defenders and representatives of the Marañón River and its tributaries,” meaning those entities have the authority to speak on behalf of the waterways in governmental decision making and in court.

Around the globe, it has long been common for entities like corporations, governments and universities to have legal personhood, meaning that they have certain rights and can, through human representatives, go to court to enforce them.

Attorney Martiza Quispe Mamani, who represented the Indigenous Kukama plaintiffs in the lawsuit, hailed the ruling as “historic” and a “transcendental milestone for the protection not only of the Marañón River but also of all rivers contaminated by extractive activities.”

More:
https://insideclimatenews.org/news/20032024/peru-court-rules-maranon-river-legal-rights/