Copenhagen Summit: A Sham

Ninety-eight world leaders, 15,000 delegates, about 5,000 journalist and 45,000 green activists attended the Climate change

Summit in Copenhagen for two weeks, all in the name of creating less CO2 in the future. The bill for this 12-day jamboree topped £130million, the GDP of any small African nation. The flights, limos – about 1,200 of them, of which only five were electric cars or “hybrids” - rail, bus, food and energy consumption at the conference generated about 41,000 tons of carbon dioxide – more than what is produced by Malawi,Afghanistan or Sierra Leone combined over the same period, and, as much CO2 produced by Switzerland in 2006.

The other excesses of the entirely ridiculous forum included use of about eight million sheets of paper, the equivalent of 100 trees; installation of 1200 kilometers of cable; about 80,000 phone calls made in the period; and, extravagant convention menus of scallops, foie gras and caviar. Not to forget hotel accommodations for delegates at top hotels at £650 a night.

What was the outcome of this ridiculous party? Nothing! Nada! The final accord did not even have “targets for carbon cuts and neither an agreement on a legally binding treaty.” As was expected, the US and its pro-coal, prowar lackey Australia, two of the world’s worst per capita greenhouse gas (GHG) polluters, successfully sabotaged the 2009 Copenhagen Conference just as they did in Kyoto in 1997, Bali in 2007 and Poznan in 2008.

Primarily, a huge amount of money was spent on the summit, and thousands of tons of carbon dioxide emitted to get there, just to give the delegates a good photo opportunity. Wouldn’t have it been better to spend money on those nations whose people do not have electricity or water? What was the need to have this wonderful party in Copenhagen that achieved nothing and was waste of time? This sham accord had no real requirements for any countries. It was merely a repackaging old positions and pretending they’re new. The actions, the accord suggests, for the rich countries that caused the climate crisis are extraordinarily inadequate.

Estimates show that fewer than 1 billion people will survive this century due to unaddressed, man-made global warming – these estimates translating to a climate genocide involving deaths of 10 billion people this century, this including 6 billion under-5 year old infants, 3 billion Muslims, 2 billion Indians, 0.5 billion Bengalis, 0.3 billion Pakistanis and 0.3 billion Bangladeshis.

What now after this fiasco, which the UN has described as “a work in progress” to save face? First, world leaders, especially of developed nations, need to focus on seriously tackling this crisis. If not, then sanctions, boycotts and embargoes should come into effect. But most importantly, a new alliance, built on hope, peace and justice is needed to oppose the axis of pollution, extinction and self destruction.

-Editor