28 November 2011 | Videos | Climate Justice and Energy | COP 17
Durban: “One planet, One Africa, One people: We have faith”
Chair of Friends of the Earth International and Nobel Peace Prize Winner demand legally binding agreements at the COP on Climate Change
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“Now we are asking our politicians that they cannot come to Durban and end the conference without a reasonable legally binding treaty that actually places responsibility and commitments on the polluters. We will not accept it”.
Those were the words of Friends of the Earth International chair, Nnimmo Bassey speaking in Durban about the need for industrialized nations to drastically cut their polluting emissions at the COP that begins Monday in that South African city.
Bassey summarized the position of the international movement for climate justice at a multifaith event organized at the Kings Park stadium in Durban under the slogan “We have faith, act now for climate justice”, with the participation of thousands of people.
One of the main speakers in the rally for climate justice was South African bishop and Nobel Peace Prize Winner, Desmond Tutu. He said “Now we are facing another huge, huge enemy and no one nation, no one country can fight this particular enemy on its own. We are getting ready for the battle to fight against global warming, climate change”.
Tutu also mentioned he had learned that there are certain countries saying “We are not going to agree a binding agreement that will reduce our emissions” referring to several industrialized nations like the United States, Japan and Canada that aim to dismantle the Kyoto Protocol, the only legally binding agreement to reduce polluting emissions. He continued: “We want to tell them: This is the only home we have and whether you are rich or poor this is the only home”.
Nnimmo Bassey spoke at the end of the event at Kings Park stadium. He said “The politicians would like us to come to COP 17 without hope, they’re trying to lower the ambition, that nothing is going to come out of COP 17. But we have faith”, he said while urging the nations to commit to a legally binding treaty that is essential for Africa, which he said “is at risk”.
The environmental leader said he was speaking on behalf of social movements, on behalf of Friends of the Earth International and “we support the Occupy Movement. We will occupy the COP and we shall not leave until we have the right decision”.
Nnimmo ended his speech with the slogan: “One planet, one Africa, one people: we have faith”.
Photo: Radio Mundo Real
