WSSD.INFO NEWS
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ISSUE 4
Part II 27 May to 2 June 2002
Compiled by
Richard Sherman
Edited by
Kimo Goree
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Editor's note: Welcome to the fourth issue of WSSD.Info News, compiled by Richard Sherman. We hope to provide this service on at least a fortnightly basis from now through the Summit. If you should come across a news article or have a submission for the next issue, please send it directly to Richard. WSSD.Info News is an exclusive publication of IISD for the 2002SUMMIT-L list and should not be reposted or republished to other lists/websites without the permission of IISD (you can write Kimo for permission.) If you have been forwarded this issue and would like to subscribe to 2002SUMMIT-L, please visit http://iisd.ca/scripts/lyris.pl?join=2002summit-l.
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Contents
NEWS ARTICLES
1. BUSH BLOCKS BID TO SAVE MILLIONS OF LIVES (Independent 2 June 2002)2. ACTION PLAN FOR GLOBAL CONFERENCE ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT NEARLY COMPLETE: U.N. OFFICIAL (Associated Press 2 June 2002)3. BRITAIN CRITICIZES U.S. STANCE ON FARM SUBSIDIES AND KYOTO PROTOCOL Associated Press 2 June 20024. HOPES FOR KYOTO RISE AFTER JAPAN AND EU RATIFY TREATY (The Guardian 1 June 2002)5. CONSUMPTION BAROMETER' TO HELP KEEP JOHANNESBURG SUMMIT GREEN United Nations Development Programme 31 May 20026. SPEAKERS AT PREPARATORY MEETING FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT SUMMIT REPORT ON PROGRESS IN NEGOTIATIONS (United Nations Press Release 31 May 2002)7. IMPLEMENTATION OF DESERTIFICATION CONVENTION SEEN AS KEY TO PROMOTING SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT, FIGHTING POVERTY IN DRYLANDS (United Nations 31 May 2002)8. AT BALI TALKS, NEGOTIATORS HAMMER OUT TEXT FOR ADOPTION AT JOHANNESBURG SUMMIT (United Nations 31 May 2002)9. POVERTY STRAINING ENVIRONMENT (The Herald (Harare) via All Africa 31 May 2002)10. UN REPORTS PROGRESS IN TALKS ON WORLD SUMMIT FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT (United Nations 30 May 2002)11. DEMAND FUELS ILLEGAL LOGGING, ACTIVISTS AT UN CONFERENCE SAY (Associated Press Writer 30 May 2002)12. GOOD PROGRESS MADE IN BALI ON NEGOTIATION OF OUTCOME DOCUMENT FOR JOHANNESBURG SUMMIT (United Nations Press Release 30 May 2002)13. RI SEEKS MORE AID IN BALI TALKS (The Jakarta Post 30 May 2002)14. OECD CRITICAL OF ITS COMMITMENTS (The Jakarta Post 30 May 2002)15. CHINA TRIES TO EXCLUDE PRO-TIBETAN GROUP (The Jakarta Post 30 May 2002)16. AFRICA WELL SET AT UN CONFERENCE (South African Press Association via All Africa 30 May2002)17. STAKEHOLDERS' VOICES (The Jakarta Post 30 May 2002)18. DEVELOPMENT TALKS LIKELY TO BE EXTENDED (The Jakarta Post 30 May 2002)19. BALI MEETING, WORLD SUMMIT TO LIKELY FAIL IN REGULATING COMPANIES (Jakarta Post 29 May 2002)20. PARTNERSHIP, CAPACITY BUILDING DOMINATE MULTI-STAKEHOLDERS MEETING (The Jakarta Post 29 May 2002)21. WATER SHOULD BE AT TOP OF JOHANNESBURG AGENDA, PREPARATORY MEETING FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT CONFERENCE TOLD (United Nations Press Release 29 May 2002)22. VIEWS EXPRESSED ON ROLE OF CIVIL SOCIETY, CAPACITY-BUILDING, PARTNERSHIPS, AS MULTI-STAKEHOLDER DIALOGUE CONCLUDES (United Nations Press Release 29 May 2002)23. HOW EFFECTIVE ARE DEVELOPMENT FUNDS? Financing for sustainability: Priorities and roadblocks (International Herald Tribune 29 May 2002)24. STATES ACCUSED OF BLOCKING TARGETS FOR GREEN SUMMIT (Inter Press Service 29 May 2002)25. HEALTH IS GREATEST WEALTH Vigorous agenda: The issues affect us all (International Herald Tribune 28 May 2002)26. ACTION PLANS FOR WATER, SANITATION, ENERGY, POVERTY ERADICATION AMONG KEY ISSUES UNDER NEGOTIATION IN BALI (United Nations Press Release 28 May 2002)27. 'CHAIRMAN'S TEXT BENEFITS THE NORTH’ (The Jakarta Post 28 May 2002)28. AGENDA 21 UNDER REVIEW IN BALI CONFERENCE (The Jakarta Post 28 May 2002)29. GREENPEACE MULLS ACTIONS IN BALI (The Jakarta Post 28 May 2002)30. GLOBAL GROUPS SEEK ACTION ON MINING INDUSTRY (Inter Press Service 28 May 2002)31. GREEN ACTIVISTS SAY WEALTHY COUNTRIES WRECKING ENVIRONMENT CONVENTION (Associated Press 28 May 2002)32. BALI HOSTS DEVELOPMENT TALKS (BBC 27 May 2002)33. NEWS AND EVENTS (International Herald Tribune 27 May 2002)34. TENSION MOUNTS OVER "EARTH SUMMIT" AGENDA (OneWorld South Asia 27 May 2002)35. NORTH AND SOUTH AT OPPOSITE ENDS IN BALI'S ENVIRONMENT TALKS (The Jakarta Post 27 May 2002)36. NEED FOR GOOD GOVERNANCE, DEMOCRATIZATION, TRANSPARENCY, EQUITY STRESSED AS MULTI-STAKEHOLDER DIALOGUE BEGINS (United Nations Press Release 27 May 2002)37. STATES ACCUSED OF BLOCKING TARGETS FOR GREEN SUMMIT (Inter Press Service 29 May 2002)38. THOUSANDS OF INTERNATIONAL DELEGATES MEET FOR BALI DEVELOPMENT SUMMIT (Associated Press 27 May 2002)EDITORIALS/VIEWPOINTS
39. RICH STANDING BY IDLY WHILE POOR DIE By JEFFREY D. SACHS40. WHAT WILL BE THE LIKELY OUTCOME OF JOBURG SUMMIT? By Agus Sari 7 June 200241. A CALL TO ACTION FOR THE PLANET By Guy Tousignant and Claude Martin CARE International /WWF International. 5 June 200242. CATASTROPHE IS NOT INEVITABLE JANE GOODALL Bangkok Post 5 June 200243. WORLD SUMMIT NOT MORE HOT AIR by Aubrey Matshiqi Business Day via All Africa 5 June 200244. ISSUE IS NOT ENVIRONMENT VERSUS DEVELOPMENT, BUT HOW TO INTEGRATE THEM, SECRETARY-GENERAL SAYS United Nations Press Release 30 May 200245. CONCRETE RESULTS ARE ACHIEVABLE' Viewpoint: Nitin Desai, secretary-general, World Summit on Sustainable Development International Herald Tribune 27 May 2002SPEECHES/STATEMENTS
46. ADDRESS BY PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF INDONESIA AT THE FOURTH PREPARATORY COMMITTEE MEETING FOR THE WORLD SUMMIT ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT47. PROGRESS WILL DEPEND ON ACTIONS BY ALL THROUGH PARTNERSHIPS, AVAILABILITY OF RESOURCES, DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL TELLS BALI PREPARATORY MEETING United Nations Press Release 5 June 200248. GOALS AT THE WORLD SUMMIT ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT Paula J. Dobriansky, Under Secretary of State for Global Affairs Remarks to the Fourth Session of the Preparatory Committee for the World Summit on Sustainable Development Bali, Indonesia 5 June 200249. FOURTH SESSION OF THE PREPARATORY COMMITTEE FOR THE UN WORLD SUMMIT ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT, MAY 27-JUNE 7, 2002 Jonathan A. Margolis, Head of the United States Delegation Remarks to the Fourth Session of the Preparatory Committee (Ministerial Level) Bali, Indonesia 27 May 200250. OPENING REMARKS MR. NITIN DESAI SECRETARY-GENERAL FOR WORLD SUMMIT ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT FOURTH PREPARATORY COMMITTEE FOR THE WORLD SUMMIT ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT United Nations 27 May 2002ON THE WEB
51. FACTBOX - What's on table at talks for "Earth Summit 2" (Reuters via Planet Ark 7 June 2002)52. Global water "crisis" high on Earth Summit Agenda (Reuters via Planet Ark 7 June 2002)53. US, poor nations face off at Earth Summit talks (Reuters via Planet Ark 7June 2002)54. Ministers Struggle to Wrap Up Earth Summit Talks (Reuters 7 June 2002)55. Big cities a headache UN summit wants to address (Reuters via Planet Ark 6 June 2002)56. Business says states not living up to Rio promise (Reuters via ENN 5 June 2002)57. EU warns Earth Summit agenda unrealistic (Reuters via Planet Ark 5 June 2002)58. U.N. Urges Governments to Finish Earth Summit Plan (Reuters 5 June 2002)59. Bali village eyes tourists but puts environment first (Reuters 4 June 2002)60. Ministers to add muscle to Bali Earth Summit talks (Reuters via Planet Ark 3 June 2002)61. Negotiators Try to Wrap Up Earth Summit Plan (Reuters 3 June 2002)62. Ministers to add muscle to Bali Earth Summit talks (Reuters 2 June 2002)63. EU Ratifies Global Warming Pact, Slams Washington (Reuters 31 May 2002)64. Delegates closer to deal on Earth Summit plan (Reuters 31 May 2002)65. Bush Yet to Decide if Will Attend 'Earth Summit 2' (Reuters 31 May 2002)66. Delegates Inch Closer to Deal on Earth Summit Plan (Reuters 31 May 2002)67. Delegates Close in on Earth Summit Plan, NGOs Livid (Reuters 31 May 2002)
NEWS ARTICLES
1) BUSH BLOCKS BID TO SAVE MILLIONS OF LIVESIndependent 2 June 2002 Internet: http://news.independent.co.uk/world/environment/story.jsp?story=301420 European governments have long suspected it. Environmentalists have long proclaimed it. But now there is clear evidence that President George Bush's environmental policy is indeed a load of crap. For the United States is blocking an international plan to halve the number of people, two-fifths of the population of the planet, who have no sanitation. Some 2.4 billion people lack even a bucket for their wastes, and this is one of the main causes of world disease. European and developing nations, meeting in Bali, Indonesia, want the world's leaders to agree to meet this target by 2015. They are proposing that the plan be put in front of the leaders when they meet for a new "Earth Summit" in Johannesburg in August. The summit - officially called the World Summit for Sustainable Development - is to concentrate on the environmental problems faced by the world's poorest people. The Bali meeting, which is the final preparatory conference for the summit, is running into trouble, with the Bush administration, in the words of one top Whitehall source, being "very, very negative". More than 2.2 million people - mainly children - die in the Third World every year from diseases caused by lack of sanitation and by dirty drinking water. The United Nations says that "the incidence of some illnesses and death could drop by as much as 75 per cent" if adequate clean water and sanitation were provided. Margaret Beckett, the Secretary of State for the Environment, who is leading Britain's delegation to Bali, describes dealing with this issue as "absolutely key to any prospect of tackling poverty". The US position is baffling the other countries at the conference because the Bush administration has already agreed a target of halving the number of people without clean drinking water by the same date - and this is seen as inseparable from solving the problem of sanitation. The British officials held a special meeting with the American delegation on Thursday, but did not receive any clear reason for their objection to the plan. The clash over sanitation is only one of a range of issues holding up an agreement on a plan of action to present to the summit. Opec countries are opposing a plan - originating from an initiative by Tony Blair - to halve the number of people, currently two billion, without any modern sources of energy, mainly by tapping into renewable sources. And the US, Canada, Japan and Australia are objecting to European proposals to make energy consumption in developed countries more environmentally friendly. Senior British ministers fear that if the Bali conference fails to reach agreement it will be hard for the Johannesburg summit to succeed - and the best chance of tackling world poverty in two decades will be lost for the indefinite future.
2) ACTION PLAN FOR GLOBAL CONFERENCE ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT NEARLY COMPLETE: U.N. OFFICIALAssociated Press 2 June 2002 JAKARTA, Indonesia - Delegates at a United Nations summit were close to completing an action plan for an upcoming environmental conference, but were still stuck on several issues, a U.N. official said Sunday. Thousands of delegates have gathered at a fourth preparatory summit meeting in Bali and hoped to finish negotiations on the action plan for the World Summit on Sustainable Development by Sunday night. But talks broke off early Sunday morning, leading U.N. officials to suggest the plan will not be completed until at least Tuesday. "It's gone a little slower than what we expected," said Lowell Flanders, a senior U.N. official tracking the negotiations. "But we are getting there. We're not at loggerheads yet." Sticking points include issues of good governance, transfer of technology and financial resources. About 500 delegates have been meeting since Monday to hammer out a nonbinding agreement and timetables that will be voted on at the conference in Johannesburg in August by the heads of state. Delegates in Johannesburg will also vote on a political declaration that will first be approved next week in Bali. Some 50,000 delegates are expected for what is being dubbed the "Earth Summit 2." The meeting is timed to fall on the 10-year anniversary of the Rio De Janeiro Summit, where the first global agreements on how to protect the environment were reached. Critics say many of the goals governments promised in Rio have not been achieved. Three earlier preparatory meetings for the summit prioritized five areas for negotiation: water and sanitation, energy, health, agriculture and preserving natural ecosystems. Delegates at the Bali meeting are expected to adopt targets agreed at the U.N. Millennium Summit, such as halving by 2015 the number of people who face poverty and hunger and the number who lack access to safe drinking water and sanitation. The United Nations estimate 1.2 billion people around the world live in poverty. At least 1.1 billion lack access to safe drinking water. Environmentalists at the talks have accused wealthy nations - led by Japan and the United States _of blocking proposals that would tie governments to a timetable for implementing the action plan and providing money for development programs to achieve its goals. Delegates from rich nations have used the forum to urge poorer countries to address corruption rampant in much of the developing world by enacting laws promoting good governance and through stronger law enforcement. The Bali talks opened on Monday and run for two weeks. Environmental and economic ministers from dozens of countries are due to attend talks June 5-7.
3) BRITAIN CRITICIZES U.S. STANCE ON FARM SUBSIDIES AND KYOTO PROTOCOLAssociated Press 2 June 2002 Internet: http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20020602/ap_wo_en_po/britain_us_development_2 LONDON - Environment Secretary Margaret Beckett on Sunday said U.S. decisions to subsidize its farming industry and abstain from the Kyoto protocol on global warming were simply short-term steps in the wrong direction. Speaking before attending a meeting this week in Bali that is paving the way for the United Nations eco-summit at Johannesburg in August, Beckett called on other nations to keep pressure on the United States to fall into line with international agreements on the environment. "I do agree that the recent American Farm Bill is certainly a step in the wrong direction, but it is not what the administration wanted," Beckett told British Broadcasting Corp. television. "We have seen a short-term step in the wrong direction in America. What we have to do now is try to make sure that they continue to pursue what they say are their long-term goals." The farm bill, signed by U.S. President George W. Bush last month, increases spending by nearly 80 percent over the cost of existing programs and is estimated to cost around dlrs 190 billion over the next 10 years. It raises subsidy rates for grain and cotton growers and revives a target-price system abolished in 1996 to provide supplemental income. It also brings back subsidies for wool and honey producers and provides new payments for milk, peanuts, lentils and dry peas. Beckett said cuts to agricultural subsidies in the developed world would be good both for Third World farmers, who would gain greater access to lucrative European and American markets, and for First World consumers and taxpayers. Beckett said Bush's refusal to endorse the Kyoto protocol did not sound the death-knell for the agreement to tackle climate change. "Americans are major polluters, but don't forget that this American government has said that they accept that there is a climate change problem and accept that action has to be taken to tackle it in America," she said. "I personally believe that as we go on with the Kyoto protocol ... there is every possibility that in the fullness of time the American business community and interests in America that can see America losing out as a result of some of these things will start to rethink and start to increase the pressure on America itself." The Bali talks to agree on an action plan for the World Summit on Sustainable Development in South Africa opened on Monday and run for two weeks. Environmental and economic ministers from dozens of countries are due to attend the gathering for three days from June 5. Some 50,000 delegates are expected in Johannesburg for what is being called the "Earth Summit 2." The meeting is timed to fall on the 10-year anniversary of the Rio De Janeiro Summit, where the first global agreements on how to protect the environment were reached.
4) HOPES FOR KYOTO RISE AFTER JAPAN AND EU RATIFY TREATYThe Guardian 1 June 2002 Internet: http://politics.guardian.co.uk/foreignaffairs/story/0,11538,725841,00.html The European Union and Japan ratified the Kyoto protocol yesterday, binding themselves to cut greenhouse gas emissions despite America's refusal to have anything to do with the treaty. The decision, announced on the first day of a meeting in Bali to make final preparations for the Earth summit in Johannesburg in August, is designed to give the talks much-needed impetus. John Prescott, the deputy prime minister and one of the architects of the Kyoto deal in 1997, was delighted. The Japanese foreign minister, Yoriko Kawaguchi, rang him yesterday to wish him a happy birthday and tell him of her government's surprise decision to ratify. Mr Prescott said: "Mrs Kawaguchi rang me at 8.30am to say she had a birthday present for me. It was a nice way to start the day. She knows how much importance I attach to this, having been so closely involved for so long." It is exactly 10 years since the convention on climate change was first negotiated at the inaugural Earth summit in Rio. The first legally binding cuts were negotiated in 1997 in Kyoto, but agreeing the details proved difficult and the United States, the world's largest greenhouse gas emitter, pulled out when George Bush was elected. The rest of the industrialised world decided to go ahead with the treaty in Bonn last year and the EU promised to ratify it before the Johannesburg summit. Some of America's allies, particularly Canada and Australia, have been reluctant to proceed. Japan, however, is emotionally attached to the treaty because it was negotiated in one of its cities, and had been keen to push ahead as long as the US was on board. For the Kyoto protocol to enter into force, 55 parties to the convention must ratify it, including industrialised countries accounting for 55% of their total combined carbon dioxide emissions in 1990. As of yesterday the first condition was met but the second was proving more difficult because the US, which alone accounts for 36.1% of the emissions, refuses to take part. Almost all other large industrial countries, including Russia and the eastern European states, need to join. The ratifications have given fresh impetus to the ratification process, increasing the percentage of industrialised country emissions now covered under the protocol from 2.7% to around 35.2%. Mr Prescott said Russia, with 17.4%, had already begun the process, and President Vladimir Putin had promised to complete. More signatories were still required to reach 55%. In ratifying the Kyoto protocol, the EU legally commits itself to reduce greenhouse gases by 8% from 1990 levels in the period 2008 to 2012, and Japan by 6%. Some countries in the EU, such as Spain and Ireland, with developing economies are allowed to increase emissions and others have offered larger reductions. The UK's share is a 12.5% reduction, made easier by the switch from coal to gas, which produces less carbon dioxide for the same amount of heat. Eastern European countries such as the Czech Republic and Romania, each with 1.2% of emissions, are likely to be keen to take part in the Kyoto process. When international carbon trading starts they will both have exceeded emission reduction targets and be able to sell surplus carbon dioxide to countries that cannot reach their targets. Canada, with 3.3% of emissions, and Australia, with 2.1%, are likely to face increasing diplomatic pressure to comply with the Bonn agreement, and to show that even without the US the world is willing to tackle climate change
5) CONSUMPTION BAROMETER' TO HELP KEEP JOHANNESBURG SUMMIT GREENUnited Nations Development Programme
31 May 2002 Delegates to the upcoming World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) in Johannesburg, South Africa, will be able to consult a "consumption barometer" offering a daily update on how much food, water, energy, paper and other resources they use. Environmental audits carried out before, during and after the summit will chart its impact -- and what it would have been without efforts to stay "green." The Greening WSSD Initiative, launched by the Government of South Africa, UNDP and the Global Environmental Facility (GEF), will showcase environmental best practices to leave a useful legacy for the host country and create greater awareness about environmental concerns championed at the summit. More than 60,000 participants are expected to converge on Johannesburg for the event from 26 August to 4 September. The Greening Initiative is expected to influence how UN and other major gatherings are organized in future. The Department of Agriculture, Conservation, Environment and Land Affairs (DACEL) of Gauteng Province, UNDP and GEF are providing more than US$4 million for the initiative. The South Africa country office of the World Conservation Union is providing technical assistance and managing the initiative. Mary Metcalfe, the provincial member of the executive in charge of DACEL, said: "We must make sure that in our efforts to demonstrate and document the effects of the summit we leave a legacy of greater public awareness, which will positively influence how people relate to the environment in the future." The initiative is a "tangible way of showing that we can learn by putting into action the message of the summit," said John Ohiorhenuan, UNDP Resident Representative and UN Resident Coordinator. Mohamed T. El-Ashry, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of GEF, said that the project will also demonstrate to participants the "choices that they can make during the WSSD and in their daily lives to minimize the negative environmental impacts of their activities." Over the next few months, extensive awareness campaigns through the media, schools and other channels will educate South Africans about the challenges and opportunities of promoting sound environmental practices and sustainable development. Summit organizers will try to ensure that procurement transactions take into consideration and reflect best environmental practice. Service providers, such as those dealing with waste management and transport, are expected to apply environmentally-friendly standards in their services. Caterers are expected to source and use reusable and recyclable materials as much as possible, and the five "R's" -- reduce, re-use, replace, recover and recycle - will be watchwords for the summit. Specially designed tours will enable delegates to visit field projects that demonstrate the challenges and opportunities associated with sustainable development at the local level. Awards for the hospitality industry will encourage environmentally sustainable operations. For further information please contact Sharon Chetty, UNDP South Africa, or Cassandra Waldon, UNDP Communications Office.
6) SPEAKERS AT PREPARATORY MEETING FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT SUMMIT REPORT ON PROGRESS IN NEGOTIATIONSUnited Nations Press Release 31 May 2002 Internet http://www.johannesburgsummit.org/html/bali/pressreleases/envdevb10-e.htm Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy Denied Accreditation The fourth and final Preparatory Committee for the upcoming World Summit on Sustainable Development was briefed this morning on the state of negotiations on the Summit implementation plan, with speakers underlining the progress made in the negotiations thus far and outlining the areas that required further deliberation. In other business this morning, the Committee decided to reject accreditation of a non-governmental organization (NGO), the Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy, by a vote of 90 in favour of no action to 37 against, with 10 abstentions. Representatives have formed two working groups to advance their negotiations on the Chairman's paper, which contains the text of the draft implementation programme (the latest version of the text is contained in documents A/CONF.199/PC/WG.1/2 & WG.2/2), with a third group deliberating on a Vice-Chairman's paper (see document A/CONF.199/PC/L.3) entitled "Institutional Framework for Sustainable Development". STATUS OF NEGOTIATIONS KYOTAKA AKASAKA (Japan) Co-Chair of Working Group I, which is assigned to deal with the first half of the Chairman's paper, said the Group had worked very hard to meet the Chairman's deadline of completion of work by this evening. About 80 per cent of the text was now agreed upon, within today's deadline. The text of two "rather large" areas, energy and oceans, had been under intensive consultation and were not included in the latest version of the text. Even in those cases, good progress had been made, with many differences having been bridged. More time was needed to complete discussions on those items. Issues remaining in brackets included how to deal with financial and technical issues. Some of the issues were linked to those being discussed by the other Working Groups, which made it hard to complete discussions without seeing the results of those Groups. RICHARD BALLHORN (Canada), Co-Chair of Working Group II, which is assigned to deal with the second half of the Chairman's paper, said the latest text contained some reproduction errors -- corrected copies were available at the back of the room. The first chapter of the section, on sustainable development in a globalizing world, had many bolded and bracketed texts. Trade and finance issues would have to be dealt with in the relevant contact group. It was not as unresolvable as it looked. He said chapter 6, on health and sustainable development, was in reasonably good shape. Chapter 7, on Small Island developing States, was also in reasonable shape. Discussions were continuing, and there was a good chance that a number of the issues would be resolved perhaps even by this afternoon. Chapter 8, on sustainable development for Africa, had proceeded at a slightly different pace because there had been less time at the last Preparatory Committee to deal with it. Good progress had been made in a contact group on Africa yesterday, he continued. It was quite a substantial text and in some cases delegations were having to check with their authorities before they could decide. He thought a substantial text could be achieved, but that some issues remained to be resolved. He noted that there was now a chapter 8 bis -- proposals for very concentrated regional initiatives to promote sustainable development. In the final chapter, means of implementation, paragraphs 59 to 70 were the subject of a contact group and required significant further group. He hoped experts in finance and trade -- where the biggest challenges lay -- could sit down resolve those issues. Good progress had been made on the remaining issues. IHAD GAMELELDIN (Egypt), Co-Chair of Working Group II, said he was confident that the remaining issues could be resolved. He noted good process had been made on such issues as capacity-building and science and technology transfer. Discussions were ongoing in the area of health. In a nutshell, progress was being made. EMIL SALIM (Indonesia), Chairman of the Preparatory Committee, then urged delegates to undertake a constructive approach to the remaining negotiations. The time had come "to clean the text by focusing our discussion on the brackets". The representative of Venezuela, for the "Group of 77" developing countries and China, said any paragraph or section absent from the two documents before the Committee didn't mean that they were outside the document in real terms -- they were present in the text, even though they didn't appear in it. The CHAIRMAN assured the Committee that such passages would not be left out. NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATION ACCREDITATION When the Committee took up accreditation of the Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy, it had before it a letter from the Permanent Representative of China (see document A/CONF.199/PC/19). The letter sets out China's firm objection to accreditation of the NGO to the World Summit and its preparatory process, because it was "a separatist organization that is same in nature as 'International Campaign for Tibet' and 'Tibet Justice Center' whose applications for accreditation were resolutely rejected" by the Preparatory Committee. At the outset of the Committee's consideration, the representative of the United States said it was his position that legitimate NGOs, such as the one in question, applying for accreditation could and should be approved. All well-established and widely recognized NGOs could make positive contributions to the Summit. The NGO in question was well qualified to be accredited and to participate. He proposed that the plenary grant the request for accreditation. The representative of Spain, for the European Union and associated States, then said the Union welcomed the participation of NGOs and other major groups at the Summit. They had an important part to play in the discussions. A large number would be present at Johannesburg representing a broad range of different views that would help lead to a fruitful exchange of views. The Union believed that the NGO in question should be able to participate in Johannesburg and he supported its accreditation. This didn't mean it supported its views, however. The Union supported the call for a vote just made by the United States delegation. The representative of China next reaffirmed his delegation's objection to the accreditation of the NGO in question. He moved to take "no action" on the proposal of the United States and requested an immediate vote by roll call. The Chinese government had consistently supported participation in the Summit of NGOs operating in the spirit of the United Nations Charter. The NGO in question was a political organization, which had the aim of splitting China's territory. It had never carried out any activities to help the socio-economic situation of Tibet, he noted. He strongly appealed to vote yes to China's no action motion and reject the NGO's application for accreditation. Following China's request, both Pakistan and Cuba spoke in favour of the motion. The United States and Spain, for the European Union, spoke against the motion. The motion was then carried by a vote of 90 in favour to 37 against with 10 abstentions. Also today, the Committee decided to accredit to the current meeting and the World Summit two intergovernmental organizations, the Pacific Centre for Environment and Sustainable Development and the Center for International Forestry Research.
7) IMPLEMENTATION OF DESERTIFICATION CONVENTION SEEN AS KEY TO PROMOTING SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT, FIGHTING POVERTY IN DRYLANDSUnited Nations 31 May 2002 Internet: http://www.johannesburgsummit.org/html/whats_new/otherstories_desertification.htm 31 May, BALI, Indonesia- The dust blowing across China that assaulted Beijing this year went on to reach Japan and Korea, but it did not stop there: it continued on toward the west coast of North America, disrupting air travel and causing health problems. Dust storms are increasing, according to Hama Arba Diallo, Executive Secretary of Convention to Combat Desertification, and it is affecting areas that have never though of it as a problem before. In fact, he said, sands blown away from Africa recently landed in Switzerland. Land degradation has often been considered a local issues, caused by poor land management, poor farming techniques, and poor water distribution. But the problem, which affects an estimated 2.3 billion people in over 100 countries is now blowing across national boundaries, and is having an international impact. The issue has emerged as a major issue for the World Summit on Sustainable Development and United Nations Secretary-General identified land degradation, which affects as much as two thirds of the world's agricultural land, as one of the five main areas where the Summit should concentrate efforts to achieve results. The United Nations Environment Programme estimates that every year, 10 million hectares of arable land are being lost to desertification, costing the world close to $42 billion annually. Yet that the price-tag for action to avoid further degradation would only be $2.4 million. "No one is listening, but this is a good investment," Diallo said, but the treaty to halt land degradation, with virtually universal membership, still has little funding. There are proposals presently under consideration in the Bali PrepCom to significantly increase funding to the Desertification Convention through the Global Environment Facility, but there are some concerns that the GEF could be stretched too thin unless donor countries agree to a significant replenishment. Mostafa Tolba, who presided over the Earth Summit+5, and who is a member of a panel of eminent personalities for the Convention, said it was essential to address the issue of land degradation if the Johannesburg Summit is to succeed. "About 70 per cent of the poverty in Asia and Africa is in rural areas. If you want to address poverty, you have to go where the poverty is. Implementation of the Convention would be a good way." According to Tolba, interest in the desertification issue has flagged because it is not seen as affecting people in developed countries, although dryland areas of Spain, Portugal and Greece are experiencing degradation. Although people see a connection between themselves and climate change and ozone depletion, he said that link is often missing when it comes to desertification. The Desertification Convention, an offspring of the 1992 Earth Summit, calls for a "bottom-up" participatory approach where people in affected communities, including women and youth, identify their problems and their solutions. The process eventually percolates up to the national level where, countries adopt national action plans. To date, 58 countries have adopted these plans, and are now looking to donors for resources to implement them. But desertification has not been a donor priority, Diallo says. Assistance to hot spots, such as Afghanistan, East Timor and Kosovo, Diallo said, are usually the explanation donors give why resources to fight desertification are not forthcoming. Desertification, Diallo said, is not about build barriers to prevent the spread of the desert, but rather, about taking steps to transform fragile ecosystems back into land that can produce food. According to Diallo, restoring degraded lands can also play an important role in mitigating the effects of greenhouse gases by serving as a carbon sink. "What we are saying," Diallo said, "is that dealing with land degradation can lead to win-win scenarios." Partnerships will be important he said, but since land degradation is typically a problem of the poorest of the poor, most of the partnerships will necessarily require the public sector. The development of voluntary partnership initiatives has emerged as a third major outcome of the Johannesburg Summit. The partnerships, it is hoped, will go beyond what governments can and must do to implement sustainable development.
8) AT BALI TALKS, NEGOTIATORS HAMMER OUT TEXT FOR ADOPTION AT JOHANNESBURG SUMMITUnited Nations 31 May 2002 Internet: http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=3825&Cr=sustainable&Cr1=development 31 May - Negotiators meeting in Bali, Indonesia, today reported progress in their efforts to hammer out draft final documents for adoption by the World Summit for Sustainable Development, which will convene this August in Johannesburg. Reporting to a plenary session of the Summit's Preparatory Committee, Kyotaka Akasaka of Japan, who chaired negotiations on parts of the text, said agreement had been reached on 80 per cent of the language. Two "rather large" sections, on energy and oceans, had been under intensive consultation, he added, noting that despite some progress, more time would be needed to complete discussions on those issues. Richard Ballhorn of Canada, another chief negotiator, said agreement was still outstanding on sections concerning globalization, trade and finance. Other areas were largely agreed on, including those relating to health and sustainable development. Negotiator Ihad Gameleldin of Egypt, who is also chairing talks on portions of the document, voiced confidence that remaining issues could be resolved, pointing out that good process had been achieved on issues related to science and technology. Also today, the Preparatory Committee considered applications from several intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to participate in the Johannesburg Summit. A motion by China for the Committee to take no action on the application of the Tibet Centre for Human Rights and Democracy, an NGO, was approved by a vote of 90 in favour, 37 against, and 10 abstentions, effectively rejecting the bid for participation. The Pacific Centre for Environment and Sustainable Development and the Center for International Forestry Research were both accredited without a vote.
9) POVERTY STRAINING ENVIRONMENTThe Herald (Harare) via All Africa 31 May 2002 Internet: http://allafrica.com/stories/200205310413.html AT 66 years old, Ambuya Berita Chanakira from Epworth should be retired and enjoying a pension at some old people's home. But that life is still a fairy tale and a luxury least afforded by most of the people in the Third World where daily chores include warding off the poverty scourge. To expect people who daily endure the ravages of dire poverty, hunger, disease, war and natural disasters such as droughts, floods and earthquakes for many decades to come to understand the advantages of sustainable development in a globalising environment is but a tall order. For Ambuya Chanakira, constant hard work in her small vegetable garden since her husband's death in 1986 has helped her escape the grinding penury that is the order of day for the majority of people in Epworth, a run down settlement that rapidly sprouted after 1980 into a major urban residential area 10km outside Harare. "This is a very poor community, but I have never expected someone to give me food," said Ambuya Chanakira, taking a break from adding fertiliser to the soil in her vegetable garden along a small stream running through the settlement. "I have to struggle everyday to fend for myself." While Ambuya Chanakira's efforts to feed herself have had little effect on the environment, the struggle for survival for many Zimbabweans and others elsewhere on the globe, where poverty reins supreme, has, however, resulted in environment degradation to a point that economic and physical survival is being seriously threatened. "Since the 1970s the environment and key natural resources in most African countries have been increasingly threatened by escalating and unsustainable pressures from fast growing populations and cities as well as expanding agricultural and industrial activities," says the Global Environment Outlook 2000, a report by the United Nations Environment Agency, the United Nations Environment Programme. The UNEP reports that Africa is the only continent where poverty is expected to rise during the next 100 years. This prediction comes at a time when the continent's 500 million hectares of land have been affected by soil degradation; the number of undernourished people has doubled to over 200 million since the 1960s; 50 million hectares of tropical forest have disappeared since 1980; and water scarcity has continued to increase over the years. The UNEP further points out that Africa is also still suffering from economic development policies and patterns, imported by colonial authorities that "largely neglected the adverse impacts on the poor majority of people and on the environment". Says the UNEP: "On achieving independence during and after the 1960s, African governments inherited and maintained centralised economic and sectoral institutions and narrowly-focused growth policies, usually with the encouragement and support of international aid agencies. "These national and international 'development' policies, in combination with rapid population growth and increased poverty, had progressively adverse impacts on the state of the environment and natural resource base." Epworth, a former property of the United Methodist Church-run Mission School but invaded by desperate home-seekers from Harare when Zimbabwe became independent in 1980, is a perfect example of the real dilemmas and obstacles many developing countries are facing to achieve sustainable levels. Recognised as an urban settlement after a Local Government Board was appointed to run the area in 1986, Epworth's population has rapidly increased over the years to more than 45 000 today. Despite the Government's pledge since the mid-1980s to develop the area by installing proper sewerage and water systems, constructing roads and electrifying houses, Epworth has remained an eyesore as more home-seekers continue to invade the settlement consequently throwing planners off course. The majority of people are unemployed, crime and environmental degradation are rampant as people devise means of survival. Sand and wood poachers have wrecked havoc in the surrounding farms, stealing sand to construct their homes and wood for domestic fuel after the cost of paraffin rose to unaffordable levels. The area is now so densely populated that attempts to properly settle the people would actually involve removing everyone and flattening much of the settlement since the present set up has no provision for roads, sewers and electricity power lines. A severe drought that has swept across most of Southern Africa has also exacerbated the plight of the people in Epworth after their small crop fields wilted. By merely multiplying the plight of the people in Epworth by Zimbabwe's 15 major urban areas where similar problems occur the country's economic and environmental problems become a complex jig-saw puzzle. While blaming corrupt governments for the Third World's economic and environmental crises, the International Monitory Fund and World Bank-initiated reforms have so far managed to bring about little relief either. The solutions to the poverty trap, that have ironically ignored the issue of debt relief, have completely failed to reverse the environmental catastrophe facing poor nations. The United Nations hopes that a World Summit on Sustainable Development, due to start in Johannesburg, South Africa, on 26 August this year, will produce "concrete results" on providing clean water and sanitation and energy to developing countries, and health, agriculture and biodiversity issues. The UN conference is a follow-up to the 1992 "Earth Summit" held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, that put, for the first time, environmental issues on the global political agenda. "The planet is at a crucial crossroads with the choices made today critical for the forests, oceans, rivers, mountains, wildlife and other life support systems upon which current and future generations depend," the latest UNEP global report says. It is, therefore, crucial that world leaders attending the Johannesburg meeting find the political courage and the innovative financing needed to implement the hundreds of declarations, agreements, guidelines and legally-binding treaties made so far, says the UNEP Executive Director Klaus Toepfer. A World Bank official responsible for environmental issues, Mr Ian Johnson, says: "I think one of the themes that will emerge at a political level in Johannesburg is how to make globalisation work for poor countries. "There's quite a lot of evidence to suggest that public opinion is concerned about many of the issues that will be raised at the Johannesburg summit and politicians have yet to grasp how important it is to many people." Balancing these issues and setting priorities right at the global level to achieve sustainable development in a world where the number of poor people continues to rise is definitely going to be a difficult task for the world leaders for some time to come. For a better future to be realised in Africa, the UNEP has, for instance, concluded that: "The key challenge is to reduce poverty. "New approaches that put the poor at the top of the environment and development agenda could tap and release the latent energy and talents of Africans to bring about development that is economically, socially, environmentally and politically sustainable."
10) UN REPORTS PROGRESS IN TALKS ON WORLD SUMMIT FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENTUnited Nations 30 May 2002 Internet: http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=3811&Cr=sustainable&Cr1=development 30 May - Negotiators are finalizing documents that are expected to be endorsed by the upcoming World Summit on Sustainable Development, according to a UN official attending the preparatory session in Bali, Indonesia. "Overall, we are progressing quite well," Lowell Flanders, a senior official with the Summit Secretariat, told reporters. He predicted that working groups assigned to negotiate the text would complete the bulk of their talks by Friday evening. The Summit itself will convene in Johannesburg, South Africa, this August. Critical issues still requiring further deliberation include trade and finance, natural disasters, oceans, water, sanitation, and the establishment of a world solidarity fund for poverty eradication, according to Mr. Flanders. The section of the document related to Africa was also being further negotiated, as was the issue of how best to deal with the issue of climate change. Some of the text currently in brackets, indicating that it is still in dispute, might "go through to Johannesburg" for final consideration, he said. In another development, the UN today released the unabridged version of an article by Kofi Annan on sustainable development which was published yesterday in The Financial Times. Mr. Annan argues that ecological and economic considerations must be integrated in order to achieve sustainable development. He recommends that the Johannesburg Summit pay priority attention to issues linked to water, energy, health, agriculture and biodiversity. Acknowledging that tackling all of those areas may sound either too ambitious or too limited, Mr. Annan says this agenda represents "the essential, achievable start that we must make, if we are to preserve the hope of a decent life for our children and grandchildren."
11) DEMAND FUELS ILLEGAL LOGGING, ACTIVISTS AT UN CONFERENCE SAYAssociated Press Writer 30 May 2002 JAKARTA, Indonesia - Illegal logging will continue in poor countries unless demand from rich nations drops and law enforcement is stepped up, activists at a U.N. development conference in Bali said on Thursday. Forestry is one of dozens of development and environmental issues being debated by around 6,000 international delegates at the 12-day meeting. Delegates from rich and poor nations are debating a political declaration and action plan to be taken to the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg in August. That meeting will mark the 10-year anniversary of the Rio de Janeiro Earth Summit, which was the first international attempt to tackle environmental issues. Environmentalists, also represented at the talks, have already criticized the Bali convention, and accused wealthy nations of trying to wreck it. "We want the political declaration to say governments have to play a bigger role in helping reduce consumption and create good law enforcement," said Farah Sofa from Walhi, Indonesia's leading green organization. Speaking by phone from Bali, Sofa said delegates from wealthy countries were insisting that log-tracking technology and labeling systems under which timber is identified as coming from legitimate sources were the best ways to wipe out illegal logging. Corruption in many poor countries where exporters can easily buy fake documents meant that this approach was ineffective, she said. "If the demand from rich countries is there, illegal logging will continue," Sofa said. Massive expansion in the plywood, pulp and paper industries over the last 20 years has led to much of the world's forests being wiped out, environmentalists say. Critics say graft within the security forces, and forestry and port officials allows for huge amounts of illegal timber to be sold and shipped throughout Asia. Leading global pulp and paper industries admit as much as 60 percent of the timber they use has been illegally felled, according to a recent study by World Resource Institute. In Indonesia, the World Bank estimate that all of Sumatra's forests will be destroyed by logging in five years. Those in Kalimantan will be wiped out in 10 years. The Bali meeting, which started on Monday, will peak between June 5-7 when ministerial-level negotiations from U.N-member states are due to be held.
12) GOOD PROGRESS MADE IN BALI ON NEGOTIATION OF OUTCOME DOCUMENT FOR JOHANNESBURG SUMMITUnited Nations Press Release 30 May 2002 Internet: http://www.johannesburgsummit.org/html/bali/pressreleases/envdevb9-e.htm As the final Preparatory Committee for the upcoming World Summit on Sustainable Development continued its session today, government representatives focused their attention on the draft implementation programme to be adopted by the Summit this September in Johannesburg, South Africa. Speaking at the daily briefing held by the Department of Public Information, Lowell Flanders, a senior official with the Summit Secretariat, said "Overall, we are progressing quite well", and it looked increasingly likely that the working groups assigned to negotiate the text would complete the bulk of their work by tomorrow evening. He informed correspondents that the critical issues still requiring further deliberation included trade and finance, natural disasters, oceans, water, sanitation and the establishment of a world solidarity fund for poverty eradication. The section of the document related to Africa was also being further negotiated, as was the issue of how best to reflect climate change in the text. If agreement wasn't reached on those issues by the close of this evening, it was possible that Preparatory Committee Chairman Emil Salim (Indonesia) would convene a "committee of the whole" tomorrow morning to try to reach agreement. He added that it was possible that a few phrases or bracketed text might "go through to Johannesburg" for final consideration. Representatives have formed two working groups to advance their negotiations on the Chairman's paper, which contains the draft (see document A/CONF.199/PC/L.1/Rev.1), with a third group deliberating on a Vice-Chairman's paper (see document A/CONF.199/PC/L.3) entitled "Institutional Framework for Sustainable Development", covering among other things, the question of governance. Working group I is dealing with the introduction and chapters on poverty eradication; changing unsustainable patterns of consumption and production; and protecting and managing the natural resource base of economic and social development. Working group II is covering the chapters on sustainable development in a globalizing world; health and sustainable development; sustainable development of small island developing States; sustainable development initiatives for Africa and means of implementation. Also today, side events sponsored by civil society representatives were held on such topics as: mining and sustainable development; new strategies for sustainable energy, healthy forests, better land and water management and food security; and habitat and sustainable development. So far, over 3,365 people from 153 countries are participating in the preparatory meeting, including 1,342 government delegates, 931 representatives of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and 144 journalists.
13) RI SEEKS MORE AID IN BALI TALKSThe Jakarta Post 30 May 2002 Internet: http://www.thejakartapost.com/detailheadlines.asp?fileid=20020530.@04&irec=3 Debt payments amounting to 40 percent of the state budget and a chronic budget deficit has driven Indonesia to seek more financial aid and new debt payment options from developed countries at the United Nations meeting in Bali on sustainable development. A member of the Indonesian delegation, Djumala Darmansjah, said developing countries were seeking to include loan and debt payment proposals into the action plan, which delegates were negotiating on. He said one suggestion was to include some US$30 billion in funds developed countries had promised during a meeting on poverty in Monterey, Mexico, into the action plan. "Indonesia is actively pursuing its interests during the talks. It was, after all, our proposal to get the Monterey fund into the negotiations," Djumala said on Wednesday. The country has much to gain from the talks. Debts totaling $130 billion have undermined efforts to create employment, cut poverty or, for that matter, promote sustainable development. Domestic debt payments outweigh spending on development, of which only a portion is allocated for social welfare programs. While spending has been kept to a minimum, the state budget remains in a deficit, forcing the government to rely on foreign aid to cover the shortfall. The U.S. and the European Union agreed at a meeting on poverty in Monterey early this year to set aside $30 billion in aid to help reduce poverty worldwide. Djumala said the means to channel the funds had not been drawn up yet, allowing it to be integrated into the Chairman's Text now under negotiation. Delegates from around the world have gathered in Bali for the fourth preparatory committee meeting that leads up to the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, South Africa in August and September. The summit is aiming to hammer out a more concrete action plan after the first one agreed at the 1992 summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, failed to produce the desired results. Delegates in Bali expect to finalize negotiations of the Chairman's Text, which is the action plan for world leaders to sign in Johannesburg, South Africa. Chapter IX of the Chairman's Text will draw the most heated debates, as it outlines the means and implementation of the action plan. Falling under chapter IX are the issues of loans to finance sustainable development programs, and Djumala said it was obvious that developed countries were defensive on this issue. "It's their money and they just don't accept other countries telling them how to spend it," he said. But he added that developed countries could back down on their stance later on during the committee of the whole meeting, where different working groups get together to iron out the final issues. He said Indonesia along with other developing countries also proposed to utilize the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) loans to finance sustainable development programs. Also called the Special Drawing Rights, the IMF loans cover only a country's balance of payment in cases of a liquidity crisis. Indonesia has been under the IMF's auspices since the country was hit by the 1997 economic crisis. Other suggestions under negotiation in the Chairman's Text are to loosen financial aid to the least developed countries and promote the use of aid to boost development. One suggestion accepted by all is the call for action to meet developed countries' targets of allocating 0.7 percent of their gross domestic product (GDP) to overseas development assistance. Indonesian Delegation head Makarim Wibisono said implementation of the Monterey pledge would bring overseas development assistance closer to its target. At present, he said, the average overseas development assistance stands at 0.39 percent of GDP. To help cut the debt burden carried by developing countries, they proposed several debt solutions, Djumala said. These include debt-swapping payments with sustainable development programs or a debt-to-nature swap that would, for instance, protect forest areas from timber companies. Preliminary talks of a debt-to-nature swap are under way on a bilateral basis, such as with Germany. However, the amount has been relatively small. So far the only debt relief has come from the rescheduling of Indonesia's foreign debts under the Paris Club group of creditors. Some NGOs have called for more drastic measures, such as demanding debt reduction. The government, however, is unlikely to entertain such demands, reasoning that the mere mention of a default would condemn Indonesia to isolation from the international finance community.
14) OECD CRITICAL OF ITS COMMITMENTSThe Jakarta Post 30 May 2002 Internet: http://www.thejakartapost.com/detailfeatures.asp?fileid=20020530.M07&irec=6 Developed countries have given the cold shoulder to their commitment to help developing countries achieve sustainable development, even at the last leg of meetings before the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg later in August and September. Kenneth G. Ruffing, acting director and chief economist at the environment directorate of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), acknowledged on Wednesday that developed countries continued to show reluctance in spending money to support less fortunate countries, despite their rhetorical commitments on sustainable development. "We would like to see them be more ambitious in targeting goals and promises that they have made. We would like to see a higher level of ambition to protect the earth by promoting sustainable development," Ruffing said on the sidelines of the preparatory committee meeting for the World Summit. OECD, established in 1960, comprises 30 developed countries, and aims to contribute to the development of the world economy. However, according to OECD data, in the past 10 years after the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, developed countries have failed to fulfill their own commitments to provide the equivalent of 0.7 percent of their gross domestic product to help developing countries. The only country that managed to fulfill that commitment was Denmark, while the others spent about 0.2 percent of their GDP. "They always come up with reasons for their lack of ability to fulfill the commitments. Of course, there is no sanctions mechanism in the organization," Ruffing remarked. One of the main reasons cited by developed countries to avoid commitments is the lack of good governance on the part of developing countries and ineffective use of aid. He added that it was unhelpful if developed countries made generalizations, as each developing country faced different problems. Considering the specific situation in each country, Ruffing said that the OECD had adopted a new paradigm to deal with the problem differently in each developing country. He cited that it would be unfair to ask developing countries to look for alternative energy sources if they could not afford to do so. In many cases, it would take a while before developed countries brought down the cost of producing alternative energy so that developing countries could change their consumption patterns without paying higher prices, he remarked. To deal with the problem, OECD is trying to take the lead in initiatives aimed at nature conservation
15) CHINA TRIES TO EXCLUDE PRO-TIBETAN GROUPThe Jakarta Post 30 May 2002 Internet: http://www.thejakartapost.com/detailfeatures.asp?fileid=20020530.M05&irec=4 The People's Republic of China (PRC) has again expressed its strong objection that the Tibetan Center for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) be allowed to attend the upcoming World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, South Africa. The decision of whether the TCHRD will be allowed to attend the meeting will be decided on Friday during the United Nations (UN)'s plenary meeting here, confirmed Pragati J. Pascale, a senior media officer at the UN. Norzin Dolma, one of TCHRD's activists, said on Wednesday that the Chinese Permanent Representative to the UN had requested the world organization exclude his group from participating at the World Summit slated to be held from August to September this year. The organization has already registered with the UN on its participation at the upcoming summit. In a letter sent to the UN Headquarters two weeks ago, the Chinese representative accused members of the TCHRD group of being separatists who support the independence of Tibet, said Dolma. The PRC representative has also said that the presence of the group was not relevant to the issue of sustainable development, and they merely wanted to slander the PRC government at the event. It was the third attempt by the Chinese government, after two previous successful moves to kick out two other pro-Tibet organizations, the International Campaign for Tibet (ICT) and the Tibet Justice Center (TJC), from participating in the next World Summit. In the UN's General Assembly meeting last April, the majority of UN member countries, including Indonesia, rejected the presence of the two pro-Tibetan organizations in the World Summit. "Their allegations that we would raise political issues is groundless. We are committed to focusing on various environmental problems in Tibet," explained Norzin at the sidelines of the PrepCom meeting
16) AFRICA WELL SET AT UN CONFERENCESouth African Press Association via All Africa 30 May2002 Internet: http://allafrica.com/stories/200206010061.html Discussions on Africa at the United Nations' final preparatory meeting for the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD), being held on the Indonesian island of Bali, appear to be heading for a "very positive outcome", says a senior South African official. |