Go Green or Go To Jail

Ecocide bill introduced in Mexico's Congress

Representative Karina Barrón Perales

Mexico has joined a small but growing list of countries that are considering enacting laws to criminalize willful destruction of the environment. In a bill introduced by Karina Barrón Perales, who is a Representative of the Congress of Mexico from the state of Nuevo León, Perales seeks to make "ecocide" a crime in Mexico.

The language of the bill is based largely on the legal definition of "ecocide" as put forth by the Stop Ecocide Foundation in 2021. This definition of ecocide states, in part, that ecocide is "any unlawful or wanton act committed with the knowledge that there is a substantial likelihood of severe and either widespread or long-term damage to the environment".

In addition to Mexico, the European Union, Brazil, the Netherlands, Scotland, Spain, and Belgium have also introduced legislation to criminalize ecocide. Vietnam, Ukraine, and Russia have already adopted similar ecocide laws.

Jojo Mehta - who is the co-founder and Executive Director of Stop Ecocide International - stated in response to Barrón Perales' bill:

This is exciting news from Mexico. The momentum is really gathering around the world - recent months have seen ecocide bills at various stages of proposal in the EU, Brazil, the Netherlands, Scotland, Spain (Catalunya) and Belgium (where the government is now only waiting on parliamentary approval). Leaders across the globe are clearly beginning to wake up to the very real dangers we face, and a strong legislative direction of travel is becoming evident.

It is only a matter of time before enforceable legal protection against severe and widespread or long-term environmental harm is accepted as a necessary step towards a safer world... by a critical mass of nation states, at regional level and indeed at the International Criminal Court.

Of course, laws like this are difficult to enforce and highly subjective. And in a country like Mexico, skirting such laws is often a function of paying the right people to look the other way. Nevertheless, Barrón Perales is determined to introduce and move through congress progressive legislation aimed at improving the environment and the lives of people and animals in Mexico. A member of Mexico's (currently opposition) PRI (Partido Revolucionario Institucional) party, Barrón Perales’ political career - both in the State Congress of Nuevo León and as a Representative of Nuevo León in Mexico’s national Congress - has been marked by activism in the realms of gender equality, sustainable development, attention to youth and vulnerable groups, and of course the environment and natural resources. In her capacity as a legislator, she has also introduced legislation to require the burial of the unsightly above-ground wiring that permeates many neighborhoods in Mexico, as well as a bill aimed at criminalizing offenses committed against Mexico's many street dogs. For that alone, she get's my unwavering support 🐕.

Karina Barrón Perales pointing out a nest of wire and cable above a street in Mexico

Mexican street dogs, parading in support of Karina Barrón Perales