http://www.businessday.co.za/articles/Content.aspx?id=147084
Durban climate talks ‘exclude the poor’
SUE BLAINE
Published: 2011/06/29 06:32:44 AM
LOBBY group for the poor Abahlali baseMjondolo said yesterday that the government and some civil society organisations have effectively locked the poor out of climate-change talks that will affect them.
This includes the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations (UN) Framework Convention on Climate Change to be held in Durban in December, known as COP17 .
It is widely accepted that the poor often bear the brunt of negative effects of climate change, such as rising energy and food prices.
The UN talks were at a very high level and the poor “are talked about and yet no one wants to come and engage with us”, Abahlali baseMjondolo general secretary Bandile Mdlalose said.
“Part of the problem is these big organisations like the UN think they can use millions and millions of rand in donor money to create their own fake poor people’s organisations that will be tightly controlled by their nongovernmental organisations and be their good boys and girls. Our government likes this too.”
The government’s chief negotiator, Alf Wills, said it was agreed at the recent UN climate change talks in Bonn, Germany, that more discussion was needed about ensuring civil society had better ways of influencing the talks. Further discussions would be held in Durban, and in June next year.
The COP negotiations are government-to-government talks, and nongovernmental organisations can be admitted to sessions as observers only.
Spokeswoman for the UN in SA Helene Hoedl said about 1400 nongovernmental and 86 intergovernmental organisations were accredited as COP observers for the Durban talks.
They represented a broad spectrum, from business and industry, to environmental, farming and agriculture groups as well as indigenous populations, local and municipal authorities, research and academic institutions, labour unions, and women and gender and youth groups.
Ms Mdlalose, who said her organisation represented more than 10000 people in 64 informal settlements across SA, said the UN’s “beautiful plans” nonetheless excluded the poor.
“That’s why they (the UN Development Programme) called me to Nairobi (where she addressed the body earlier this year). They said they don’t know what’s happening on a grassroots level.” Ms Mdlalose’s trip to Kenya was sponsored by the UN body.
Mpho Nenweli, a programme manager at the UN in SA, said on Friday that a meeting was held with the Civil Society Committee for COP17 to discuss how the UN could support civil society participation in events that run parallel to the intergovernmental talks.
Civil Society Committee for COP17 member Melita Steele said the committee was planning an alternative space for civil society to hold exhibitions, workshops and discussions . It hoped to have a full plan within two months.
Ms Mdlalose is a member of this committee.
Ms Hoedl said that the UN Development Programme supported governments in creating mechanisms to enable citizens to engage in policy processes — including marginalised sections of the population.
blaines@bdfm.co.za