Constitutional rights intertwined
with environmental rights

Human rights are the basic rights guaranteed by most constitutions of the world. These are the supreme rights ever granted to the human beings like right to life, liberty, freedom of movement and property etc. and supersede all other rights or even the laws inconsistent with or in derogation of fundamental rights have been declared illegal and void by the courts of the country. The Environmental rights are associated with the fundamental rights which cannot be enjoyed unless both are conferred. Without a healthy environment, we are unable to fulfil our aspirations. We may not have access to even the minimum standards of human dignity, so the fundamental rights and the environmental rights are interlinked to each other.

Human rights are part of nature, and our human rights are intertwined with the environment in which we live. Environmental harms interferes with the enjoyment of human rights, and the exercise of human rights helps to protect the environment and to promote the sustainable development.1

Now the question arises “Whether Article 9 & 14 of Constitution of Pakistan 1973 is sufficient to protect the environmental rights of the citizens, while these Articles relates to fundamental rights of the citizens too? 

Article 9 of the Constitution of Pakistan 1973 has vast meaning, alongwith Article 14, covering most valuable right of “right to life”. Although, the Hon’ble Supreme Court of Pakistan in plethora of judgments has covered the environmental rights in vast canvas either by using the words “right to life” “the right to a healthy environment was part of the fundamental right to life and right to dignity, under Article 9 and 14 of the Pakistan Constitution,

respectively”2 or the “decent environment”3 but comparing with other countries constitution those clearly postulates the grant of environmental rights in unequivocal terms. Environmental right, on the other hand, is the term used to describe both existing human rights with environmental implications and emerging right to a clean and healthy environment.4

The word “right to life” was given vital meaning by the Hon’ble Supreme Court in its landmark judgment5 and the Word “life” also could not be confined to mere vegetable or animal existence, but it includes the right to all amenities and facilities which a person born in a free country was entitled to enjoy with dignity. Article 9 & 14 of the Constitution had guaranteed the right to life and human dignity6 which postulates that every citizen has the right to unpolluted environment and clean atmosphere and the Hon’ble court in that case decided that right to life means right to particular quality of life. The word “life” is also very significant as it covers all facts of human existence like right to have water free from pollution and contamination.7, right to enjoy public park8, right to secure life from hazardous waste and dangers etc. Article 9 of the Constitution protects life of citizens and where life of a citizen was degraded, quality of life was adversely affected and health hazards were created affecting large number of people, the same amounts to deprivation of life which was prohibited by Article 9 & 14 of the Constitution9.

The right to a healthy environment has developed gradually since the 1970s when it was first alluded to by the 1972 Stockholm Declaration. Its first Principle states: “Man has the fundamental right to freedom, equality and adequate conditions of life, in an

environment of a quality that permits a life of dignity and well-being”.10

Protecting human rights protects the environment. Human rights are universal and inalienable. All people everywhere in the world are entitled to them. No one can voluntarily give them up. Nor can others take them away from him or her.11 Human rights are relevant to every aspect of our lives. They are central for human dignity and our shared vision for a better world for all. They are key to meeting the Sustainable Development Goals.12 All human beings depend on the environment in which we live. A safe, clean, healthy and sustainable environment is integral to the full enjoyment of a wide range of human rights, including the rights to life, health, food, water and sanitation.13

In the landmark decision in Shehla Zia vs. WAPDA, the Supreme Court of Pakistan held that the right to a clean and healthy environment was part of the Fundamental Right to life guaranteed by Article 9 of the Constitution and the Fundamental Right to dignity provided in Article 14.14 read with Constitutional principles of democracy, equality, social, economic and political justice included within their ambit and commitment, the international environmental principle of sustainable development, precautionary principle, environmental impact assessment, inter and intragenerational equity and public trust doctrine.15 and where there is any complaint that the government’s conduct violated their fundamental rights16 guaranteed under Article 9 (right of life liberty), Article 14 (right of dignity), the courts have rescued the

aggrieved person while exercising constitutional jurisdiction under the right to life and right of dignity.

Human rights and the environment are intertwined; human rights cannot be enjoyed without a safe, clean and healthy environment; and sustainable environmental governance cannot exist without the establishment of and respect for human rights. This relationship is increasingly recognized, as the right to a healthy environment is enshrined in over 100 constitutions.17 The human rights, enshrined in the Constitution of Pakistan, therefore, are interlaced to environmental rights and without having such rights environmental rights cannot be regarded.