Appeal from Global Migrants for Climate Action
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| Adopted by the Norwegian Union of Municipal Workers and General Employees oct. 2007, supported by several Norwegian organizations |
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There have always been natural catastrophes. We now, however, face man-made catastrophes; a rise in the scale of flooding, drought and avalanches as a result of climate change, which will only be accelerated in the coming decades.
As we know climate change is a product largely of the rich, industrialised countries but it is the poorer countries which must bear the brunt of the results. The UN, the World Bank and others conclude that rich countries have a duty to help these poorer countries to deal with the destruction which is being caused.
If a house is burnt to the ground, one does not simply contribute a little on one’s own terms. One has a duty to provide full compensation. Compensation for damages is one of the most basic principles of law in all human societies; it is a basic element of justice.
It is surely in the interest of the rich countries to acknowledge the need for Climate Justice. The Climate Crisis will need a huge common effort from both the more industrialised and the less industrialised nations. But dialogue has so often come to a standstill because a basic underlying trust between these more and less ‘developed’ nations is lacking. And how can this minimum of trust be created if one overlooks the most basic principles of justice?
Governments must acknowledge that the climate crisis can no longer be overlooked. Priorities must be pinpointed. Real cuts must be planned which will have a real effect. And Climate Compensations must be given to those who have contributed the least to global warming.
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