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Greenpeace activist unfurls banner denouncing U.S.
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By
IOL South Asia Correspondent
NEW
DELHI, November 1 (IslamOnline) - India has refused to make any
long-term emission reduction commitments regarding green house gases
(GHG) ignoring pleas by developed nations to do so. It held developed
nations responsible for the global pollution problem and asked them to
take the lead to rectify it.
Prime
Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee said here Wednesday, October 30, that
suggestions by developed nations that developing countries like India,
China and Brazil should make such commitment were based on erroneous
logic.
“
The GHG intensity of our economy, at purchasing power parity, is not
higher than that of industrialized nations. The assertion that
developing countries generate GHG emissions which are unnecessary for
their economies is not based on facts,” Vajpayee told a ministerial
meeting at the eight conference of parties (COP-8) to the UN Framework
Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
Rejecting
the developed nations’ argument, Vajpayee said, “We do not believe
that the ethos of democracy can support any norm other than equal per
capita rights to global environmental resources.”
The
per capita GDP of developed nations like Benelux countries or the U.S.
is 60 to 65 times higher than India’ s. Making fresh commitments to
reduce emissions would put an extra burden on the country’ s extremely
fragile economy.
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Vajpayee addressing the UN Conference on climate
change
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Vajpayee
said that GHG emissions of developing countries were lower, and not in
any case higher, than those of the developed countries. He said food
production was a priority issue in developing countries and agricultural
sustainability, water conservation and problems of weather-related
economic losses and deaths represented key areas of adaptation.
“There
is a need for strengthening the capacity of the developing countries in
coping with extreme weather events, which are increasing in frequency
and severity due to climate change,” he added.
Softening
the blow, Vajpayee said though India had not given any assurances
regarding reduction in emissions, still it remained committed to the
idea of sustainable development. “ As the cumulative effect of all the
policies and measures, the energy intensity of our GDP has been
declining steadily,” he added.
The
Prime Minister said developing countries were not suitably equipped to
cope with climate change and suggested that the UNFCCC should pay
particular attention to it.
Earlier
at the meeting a confederation of NGOs, Friends of the Earth
International (FOETI), complained that developed countries were not
forthcoming in clean technology transfers to developing countries.
FOETI’s
Kate Hampton said such transfers were crucial as in their absence the
developing countries were stuck with fossil fuels. If these countries
were not given cleaner technologies, a dangerous rise in GHG emissions
was inevitable, he added.
Developed
countries, with their longer history of industrial development and
intensive use of fossil fuels over the decades have contributed
substantially to global warming. Now that it is time for the developing
countries to catch up, the developed countries are demanding long-term
commitments to emission reductions at least from the larger countries
like India, China and Brazil.
The
insincerity of this stand of developed countries is transparent from
America’ s refusal to make such commitments under Kyoto Protocol. The
U.S., the greatest polluter, is followed by Russia, the second greatest
polluter, in refusing to honor Kyoto Protocol. The U.S. contributes 36
percent to global emissions and Russia 16 percent.
Russia
had pledged to sign Kyoto Protocol next year, but now it is not giving
any clear indication of honoring even that deadline. In a situation like
this, it is not realistic to expect anything better from China or India
whose per capita GDP is far lower than those of developed countries.
Meanwhile
Greens harshly condemned India for inaction. Declaring India as the sole
recipient of all three awards of "Fossil of the Day", the
Climate Action Network (CAN), which comprises over 3000 green groups
from across the globe, last evening denounced the draft Delhi
Declaration prepared by Indian Federal Minister of forest and
environment TR Baalu as it failed to draw any reference to the Kyoto
Protocol, which it said was a "milestone" in international
climate negotiations.
Another
reason for the condemnation was India's refusal to move forward on the
funding negotiations on behalf of G-77 and China, CAN said. India has
also failed to assume the role of a leader to make the Eighth Conference
of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate
Change (COP8) take a concrete step forward, CAN alleged.
''Being
host to an important conference on climate change and one of the largest
countries of the world in both size and population implies a certain
responsibility for these negotiations. India has not lived up to these
expectations so far,'' CAN said.
The
Fossil of the Day awards are a means adopted by environment groups to
condemn countries which display environment-unfriendly attitudes during
the deliberations. The awards are declared publicly every day, amid a
lot of hooting and catcalls, and the recipient countries' flags are
placed in pots full of sand and cactus and surrounded by stones - a
set-up symbolizing what their actions are leading the world to.
Till
now, Saudi Arabia has received the maximum number of points, which are
calculated on the basis of the awards, followed by United States and
Canada. Saudi Arabia has 12 points, U.S. has nine points and Canada has
eight points. India stands fourth with Iran and Nigeria at three points.
