UN urges govts to finish Earth Summit plan
Date: 06-Jun-02
Country: INDONESIA
Author: Dean Yates
The World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg - dubbed Earth Summit 2 - is being billed as the largest U.N. conference ever, where 100 heads of states will pledge to roll back poverty while saving the environment.
Addressing the start of talks with environment and development ministers on Indonesia's Bali island, U.N. Deputy Secretary General Louise Frechette said pre-summit preparations were at a decisive stage to help three billion people, half the world's population, who live on less than $2 a day.
As she spoke, 250 Indonesian activists protested not far from the conference site, calling the pre-summit talks a sham. Later, scores of foreign environmentalists taking part in the talks marched backwards through the conference centre, saying that symbolised the direction the negotiations were taking.
"The summit in Johannesburg is truly a chance to set a more hopeful course of development for all humanity. We know what needs to be done. Now, let us move ahead," Frechette said.
"Full agreement has to be reached on the implementation plan before we leave Bali," she said.
The ministerial talks were preceded by 10 days of debate between negotiators on the plan, which was supposed to be ready last week but which now might get carried over to Johannesburg.
Negotiators have agreed the bulk of the draft, which covers everything from measures to cut poverty, improve sanitation, preserve natural ecosystems and reduce pollution.
"I think it's too early to say we will reach an agreement because it's still under discussion. But it's also far too early to worry," South African Environment and Tourism Minister Valli Moosa told a news conference.
The Johannesburg meeting opens on August 26 and has been timed to fall a decade after the landmark Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, which put environmental issues on the global political agenda.
Ministers in Bali will draw up an agenda and the outlines of a political declaration leaders will make to cement commitments.
They have not been expected to get involved in the action plan, although some delegates said that was already happening.
EU Environment Commissioner Margot Wallstrom has said the action plan needed to be shorter and more focused.
Ian Johnson, World Bank vice president for sustainable development, told Reuters the summit needed to crystallise want it wanted to achieve, but added that political pressure would likely emerge to make sure it did not flop.
"I still think it has to gel... and focus on five or six big ticket items the conference wants to focus on and declare a way forward. No one wants a failure of a large U.N. conference like this and no one wants a failure in Africa," he said.
Environmentalists have accused rich nations of dragging their feet on measures to help the poor and of putting trade liberalisation ahead of efforts to clean up the polluted planet.
As part of the start of the ministerial meeting and to mark World Environment Day, Indonesian protesters earlier sang songs and shouted slogans against rich countries, especially the United States, saying they were not interested in helping the poor.
There were no clashes with security personnel, who prevented them marching on the conference venue.
Frechette tried to simplify the summit's goal.
"The relationship between human society and the natural environment is the core concern of Johannesburg, and that is what sets Johannesburg apart from other U.N. conferences and summits," she said in her speech.
Some targets for the action plan were agreed at the U.N. Millennium Summit, which called for halving by 2015 the numbers of people living on less than $1 a day.
