Kiribati, 2010

Every year, we gather in this

General Assembly Hall to take stock of our

achievements in the pursuit of a more peaceful, more

secure and a better world for all citizens of the global

community.

As it emerged from the ashes of devastating

world wars, the United Nations heralded a new era and

a new world order of international cooperation in the

pursuit of international peace and security. It is

premised on the principles of sovereign equality and

peaceful coexistence.

Taking stock of what we have achieved since

then, we can say today that we have been successful in

preventing many of the scourges that have challenged

humanity, including world wars and widespread

disease. But as we rid our global society of those

injustices, new and emerging forms of injustices now

threaten our global security.

I believe that climate change remains the greatest

moral challenge of our time. While it affects all nations

of this planet, the irony is that it is the poorest and

smallest countries, which have made the least

contribution to greenhouse gas emissions, that are

paying the ultimate price in order that the lifestyles and

development agenda of some countries may be

maintained. Where is the justice in that?

The Copenhagen Conference failed to meet the

expectations of many, but especially of those countries

on the front line for which the threat of climate change

is no longer a matter of speculation but one of survival,

and therefore of great urgency. There is a tendency in

much of the world to view climate change as a distant

and gradual process whose harmful effects are remote

possible and not worthy of much attention. I have said

in various forums that, for low-lying island countries

like Kiribati, Tuvalu, the Maldives and the Marshall

Islands, among other similarly vulnerable countries,

climate change is a matter of survival and of increasing

urgency.

Already we are witnessing major damage to

infrastructure and property as a consequence of higher-

than-normal tides and storm surges. Coastal erosion in

heavily populated areas is occurring at a rate that

exceeds the Governments’ capacity to respond. Lack of

resources is exacerbating the situation. Coastlines

continue to be eroded and homes and properties

continue to be damaged.

Long before our islands are inundated by the

rising seas, they will become uninhabitable as

freshwater aquifers are contaminated by saltwater

intrusion from rising tides. Increasing demand for

resources to undertake effective responses to climate

change impacts will become a dominant feature of our

development agenda. I truly hope, therefore, that I can

during this session communicate the deep sense of

urgency and growing sense of despair besetting our

people in the face of this oncoming catastrophe.

On the basis of current scientific projections, the

Copenhagen Accord does not provide the means to

guarantee our future survival, and therefore we did not

sign it in Copenhagen. We have subsequently

associated ourselves with the Accord, essentially for

the following reasons. First, we are of the belief that

the Accord at least represents a positive step towards

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an international governance system on climate change.

Secondly, we have the expectation that further,

forthcoming scientific evidence will unequivocally

determine the targets to be agreed upon. Finally and

most importantly, we believe that our support for the

Accord will ensure the flow of urgently needed

adaptation funds. I regret to say that, to date, we have

not been able to access any of the fast-start funds

pledged.

I acknowledge that many elements of any

international regime on climate change will take

several years to conclude, but I also believe that there

is common ground on which there is no real debate.

The urgent need for the flow of adaptation funds to

address the more urgent adaptation needs of the most

vulnerable countries is a matter over which there is

general consensus. It is not a matter to negotiate or

procrastinate over; if we do, it will be too late for some

countries and any subsequent agreement will be

meaningless. It is also important that adaptation funds

not be regarded as additional development funds by

either development partners or recipient countries, but

be provided and applied for the sole purpose of

adaptation to climate change.

I believe that we need to modify our approach to

Mexico if we are to succeed. I believe that we have a

moral obligation to reach agreement on a legally

binding framework that regulates our ability to pursue

policies that harm others. For very obvious reasons, I

do not believe that any country should have the right to

exercise sovereignty over its greenhouse gas emissions.

In my view, any alternative to a legally binding

framework is simply unacceptable and would have

potentially destabilizing consequences.

The experience at Copenhagen taught us that if

we are to make any progress, we must acknowledge

our differences and discuss ways around them rather

than allow them to dominate the international agenda

behind the process. In this regard, we believe that trust

and mutual respect are indispensable to the process.

Climate change offers the international

community an opportunity to reflect upon the future

direction of our relations as sovereign nations. I

believe that the climate change challenge provides us

with the opportunity to be more innovative in our

concept of international governance. Our current

arrangement is similar to that of State Governments not

accepting federal authority within a federal system.

One can imagine the chaos.

While other countries are focusing their efforts

and resources on their sustainable development, we,

the most vulnerable countries, continue to spend the

limited resources we have on fighting the continuous

onslaught of the rising seas and storm surges on our

homes and livelihoods. It is no surprise therefore that

we are off-track to achieve most of the Millennium

Development Goals and the implementation of our

sustainable development agenda under our national

development plan, the Pacific Plan and the Mauritius

Strategy. For every step we take forward, we are

knocked back two or three due to the challenges we

face, which are exacerbated by climate change.

In this regard, it is imperative that the pledges

made at Copenhagen for fast-start funds to assist

vulnerable countries like Kiribati to adapt to the impact

of climate change and sea-level rise be mobilized at the

earliest possible opportunity. This is a matter of great

and increasing urgency.

We acknowledge the critical role of our

environment as the pillar of sustainable development.

Maintaining the health of our biodiversity within our

oceans and ecosystems faces the very same challenges

that we have so far failed to address in respect of our

atmosphere. It is imperative, therefore, that we

undertake the commitment to put in place now the

measures needed in order to avoid the mistakes we

have made with climate change. In pursuit of this, we

in Kiribati have designated the largest marine protected

area and marine World Heritage Site, the Phoenix

Islands Protected Area. It covers an area of more than

400,000 square kilometres, representing some 11 per

cent of our exclusive economic zone. The Protected

Area is the result of a collaborative partnership with

Conservation International and the New England

Aquarium. It provides a natural breeding ground for

tropical fisheries and ocean ecosystems. It is a natural

laboratory for the study of such ecosystems and the

impact of climate change in a pristine area virtually

untouched by human activity.

The preservation of that Area is our gift to

humanity and our contribution to international

biodiversity conservation efforts to significantly reduce

biodiversity loss in this International Year of

Biodiversity. Even now, as we confront the possibility

that our islands will become uninhabitable within the

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century due to the rising sea level, we recognize the

value of protecting something that is the common

heritage of humanity.

Kiribati and the Pacific are committed to the

sustainable conservation and management of their

ocean ecosystem through the Micronesia Challenge,

the Coral Triangle Initiative, the Nauru Agreement and

the many other national efforts throughout the region

to conserve biodiversity and ecosystems. At its meeting

last month in Vanuatu, the Pacific Islands Forum

endorsed the Pacific Oceanscape Framework, which

promotes collaboration and cooperation among marine

protected areas in the Pacific region. Initiatives such as

the Pacific 2020 Challenge and a novel Pangaea World

concept of green development through knowledge

economies link those initiatives to the countries of the

Pacific Rim and beyond.

Our message to the international community is

that the conservation of biodiversity and ecosystems in

the Pacific is not important only to the sustainable

development of Pacific peoples. It is also of vital

significance to the rest of the world. Support from the

international community in protecting ecosystems in

the Pacific, and indeed elsewhere, should not be

viewed as a handout, but as an investment for future

generations of this planet.

Last year, we all called for a new world order. We

all acknowledged that our great Organization must

evolve to reflect the realities of our time — a time in

which new and emerging security threats and injustices

such as climate change are challenging the credibility

of our international system of governance; a time in

which the future survival of some nations is seriously

in question; a time when all those countries with the

ability to do so must contribute to the prevention of

that calamity or be forever judged in history.

We note that tensions remain high in certain

regions, notably in the Middle East and the Korean

peninsula. For the sake of those of us on the front line

of the major global challenges, let us pray that great

understanding and stability will prevail. For while we,

as small nations, may seem not to be affected by such

events, they serve to distract the focus of attention

away from the real challenges facing the international

community and our planet today.

It is gratifying to note the easing of tensions and

improvement of relations across the Taiwan Straits —

no doubt, a most welcome development for all in that

region. We also welcome the inclusion of Taiwan in the

World Health Assembly, and we hope that similar

understanding will prevail in respect of other

international institutions in which Taiwan can

participate and contribute meaningfully for the good of

humanity.

As we chart the path towards a new world order,

we must address the fundamental threats to the very

existence of the units that make up our Organization.

As the so called community of nations, we must be

able to guarantee the survival of members of our

community by addressing this defining challenge of

our era. Climate change must be addressed before it is

too late for those nations on the front line and for the

whole of humanity.

At this time, we need compassionate, visionary

and responsible leadership to direct our path towards a

more secure and more just world. We need to share the

solution, and we need to act as one in Mexico. We owe

it to our future generations to act, and to act now.

Maintaining the status quo is simply not an option.