By Lisa Williams in Apia Samoa
Pacific nations grappling with the loss and damage caused by climate change are relying on fast and decisive action from their leaders on next steps following the ICJ ruling, says veteran civil society leader Drew Havea.
In Samoa this week at the Pacific Climate Change Roundtable focus on Loss and Damage, there’s been a collective optimism fed by last months ruling of the world’s highest legal body, who’ve said developed nations must accept responsibility for climate harm, including compensation and potential legal action for damages.
The ICJ decision has affirmed much of what Pacific and other global ocean states have argued for decades since the first Climate negotiations three decades ago – that climate change is causing irreversible loss, and expensive damages, through impacts seen and unseen.
Havea says there is still lots of talk, but its important that the Pacific continue to act and lead on what has essentially been a Pacific-led global milestone for climate. With the 54th Forum Leaders meeting less than a month away, he’s concerned over a lack of clarity and information to civil society access and side events in the regional space.
“We keep saying we don’t leave anyone behind, but those are the people who are suffering most from the loss and damage of climate change,” he said, “I think we need to take a Pacific stand and we hope in Solomon Islands, the leaders will come and make a decision on how to do this, and that will be reflected and go on to international and other levels.”
Pacific Forum Foreign Ministers, usually the agenda-setting mechanism for the Leaders meeting, will decide Thursday what the Honiara meetings will focus on.
Havea says he’s not clear on how regional civil society leads in Suva are ensuring the host country public ‘peoples forum’ spaces continue to feature in a year where development partners of the Forum are set to be noticeably absent.
As Chair of the Civil Society Forum of Tonga, Havea led an impressive People’s Forum programme in Nuku’alofa during the 53rd Forum.
He says the ongoing silence and lack of information on the People’s Forum for the Honiara PIFLM programme is a concern.
“Unless we take care of our issues, how can international bodies take care of that for us? The process there is much longer–if we do it in September, that would be great,” he says of the Forum timing.
Climate negotiators, advisors and delegation officials at the meeting in Apia this week have shared their thoughts on the time window, noting that language on Loss and Damage and the ICJ ruling would gain momentum and interest for development partners taking their cue from language in the annual Leader communiques.
Havea has welcomed the new Apia Declaration outcome of the Pacific Youth Dialogue on Loss and Damage, saying it provides a chance “to hear from the countries’ youth and the process they are going through, so we can learn from each other. We’re quite happy with the idea, the process, the discussion and talanoa. But the question is: how do we get this to our leaders in time to be part of their (Forum) decision-making?”
Havea noted information is late, and to date, there’s little to help his civil society stakeholders plan.
“We don’t know how the Solomon process will happen. Where will the civil society dialogue with Leaders be? Will there be dialogue with civil society and private sector? Will there be side events? Will there be a process to feed into the leaders’ meeting? A lot of these are uncertain, and time is running out. They need to share that information quickly with us.”
Civil society sources in Suva have confirmed the People’s Forum and Civil Society audience with Leaders will go ahead in Honiara, with planning underway via the Forum’s Pacific Regional NGO process, involving events led by regional leads PANG and PIANGO.
Ideally, says Havea, the climate roundtable decisions can feed into a concept note or white paper to the leaders to help amplify what SPREP will speak to, when they have face time with the leaders. But for now he’s challenging participants to spend face time talking to their leaders when they get home to ensure climate messaging from the Pacific builds on what the renewed momentum from the ICJ ruling.
