Many thousands of people protested in Copenhagen yesterday and last night, demanding, among other things, climate justice. According to tcktcktck.org, which has a gallery of images, many thousands more held vigils areound the world. But what does climate justice mean?
To give you a flavor, here is a statement from an activist named Hemantha Withnage of Sri Lanka, who was speaking to a UN-backed group called the Subsidiary Body for Implementation, which oversees the Kyoto Protocol. I’m not going to comment other than to say that there is a yawning gap between the views expressed here and those heard in the halls of the United States Congress. And yet a global agreement to regulate climate will require an accord that, in some way, takes these views into account. Remember, China and India are seeking climate justice, too.
We are movements gathered under the Climate Justice Now! Network – many from the South, from developing countries. Thousands of our members are here in Copenhagen, joining thousands of other citizens in a historic march.
We are calling for Reparations for Climate Debt, the debt that is owed by northern countries, multinational corporations, and international financial institutions to the peoples and countries of the South. This debt is owed by the North for using up more than their fair share of the earth’s capacity to absorb greenhouse gases, and in the process depriving the peoples of the [click to continue…]
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