JOHANNESBURG: A panel of 127 senior judges from 62 countries on Tuesday admitted that many of the international laws designed to protect the environment and save species from destruction were “paper tigers” which had not been properly enforced.

The panel, which convened at the Johannesburg earth summit, pledged to improve environmental law across the world and champion the poor in a battle for a better environment as part of their duty to defend human rights.

Signing the “Johannesburg principles on the rule of law and sustainable development”, they promised to crack down on pollution, environment crime, and challenge environmentally damaging developments.

Announcing the plan at the earth summit, the chief justice of South Africa, Arthur Chaskalson, said: “Laws are ineffective unless they are implemented, and much environmental law exists, but has not been enforced.”

The idea to involve judges in the Johannesburg summit came from Klaus Toepfer, the executive director of the UN’s environment programme, who said he was astonished by the enthusiastic response.

“We have over 500 international and regional agreements, treaties and deals covering everything from the protection of the ozone layer to the conservation of the oceans and seas,” Toepfer said.

“Countries have national laws too, but unless they are complied with, unless they are enforced, then they are little more than symbols, tokens, paper tigers. This is an issue affecting billions of people who are effectively being denied their rights and one not only of national, but regional and global concern. The judges were enthusiastic about the idea from the start and were unanimous in a desire to act. It is a concrete advance from this summit.”

Giving an example of the sort of actions judges should get involved in, Chaskalson cited the Indian Supreme Court. It received a letter complaining that the air pollution laws in Delhi were not being enforced. No one had brought a case, but the judges instituted an inquiry.

The result is an improvement in the air quality in Delhi, including the introduction of gas-powered cars that comply with the pollution laws.—Dawn/The Guardian News Service.