| Andrew is enjoying a break this week. I’m Jan Kooy, taking care of the Daily Brief in the next few days.Should a deeply repressive country get to host UN climate talks?No, that would be an extremely bad idea.So how on earth did the United Arab Emirates become host of the upcoming and crucial United Nations Climate Change Conference, also known as COP28?The UAE is one of the world’s largest oil producers. It seeks to use the UN conference as a means of improve its image, while continuing to push the expansion of fossil fuels, undermining efforts to confront the climate crisis and protect human rights.Last month the UAE appointed Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber as president of COP28. Al Jaber is the CEO of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC). This is the UAE’s foremost fossil fuel company. It recently announced it was expanding all aspects of ADNOC’s operations — despite a growing consensus that there cannot be new oil, gas, or coal development if governments are to meet global climate targets. The UAE has not been an ally of ambitious and rights-based climate action. The Gulf state sent the largest number of fossil fuel lobbyists as part of its COP27 delegation in Egypt, according to Global Witness, with 70 individuals from within their delegation classified as lobbyists who are either directly affiliated with oil and gas corporations or attending as members of delegations that act on behalf of the oil and gas industry.In October 2021, an investigation by Unearthed apparently revealed that OPEC, where the UAE is a key member, lobbied to remove references to fossil fuel phaseout from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s landmark 2022 report.And there is much, much more proof that the UAE is not fit to host an international summit on the climate crisis. Let’s hope for better choices of COP hosts in the future. And that the international community will come together to finally get serious and try to fix the climate emergency on planet earth. |
 Former Kachin Baptist Convention chairperson Rev. Hkalam Samson (left) meeting with Myanmar army generals in Myitkyina, Myanmar, in December 2020. Source: Senior General Min Aung Hlaing websiteNo One is Safe in MyanmarJust over two years ago, Reverend Hkalam Samson was photographed smiling during a meeting with Myanmar army generals, but a lot has changed since then…The country was the scene of a military coup in February 2021, and junta security forces have carried out deadly crackdowns against any opposition to its rule. More than 19,000 people have been arbitrarily detained. Myanmar’s army and other security forces committed numerous crimes against humanity and war crimes. Read more at www.hrw.org Photos: www.hrw.org, Photo/Kamran Jebrei, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing website |
Leave a Reply