Pacific Voices @ COP15: Waiting on an outcome, the evening of the last day of COP 15 negotiations

Geoffrey Smith, Fiji TV, Climate Pasifika - Copenhagen, 18 December

Transcripts

Ambassador Colin Beck, Solomon Islands

For the rest of the membership we are merely waiting.  Waiting in terms of discussing whatever the outcome within the context of our negotiating groups so definitely representatives of AOSIS within the group of 24 that is currently working on the text to report back to the group.  But I think interesting developments have occurred at the plenary this morning.  Two presidents more or less have rejected whatever the outcome of the 24 groups, what the friends of the chair are doing.  They were speaking on behalf of a number of countries as well. So it's giving a new dynamics, and I think we've always asked for a party driven process.  And for us its really unfortunate that we've been left out of the whole process.

Georgina Makaa, Solomon Islands youth delegate

Its most likely that we wont achieve that we want, like from AOSIS we wanted a legally binding commitment.  I think the leaders should look down to us and see how we the AOSIS countries are suffering because our survival really depends on whatever the outcome from this meeting.

Christina Ora, Solomon Islands youth delegate

We the youths of the Pacific Islands, we all look up to them and definitely I must say a hundred percent, they have all let us down  I'm not only sad but pissed and angry, we need this deal - we don't want it, we need it.  It's our survival we are talking about here.  Please listen to us.  Even though we don't have a deal here this month or this year then there is a need for a deal in the future.

Dr. Al Binger - AOSIS

We wont take it. Personally my advice to the leaders would be - you're signing a suicide pact you're gonna kill your people.  It may be fast in some places and it may slow in others. You know, we did a study in the Caribbean .. two degrees will guarantee us at least two degrees of seal level rise.  We did one study in the Caribbean, just the English speaking Caribbean and one meter of seal level rise, just infrastructure, 100 billion dollars.  No airports or ports, let alone if we start talking about settlements, agriculture and fresh water. So its not a matter of whether we have room to maneuver. The room we had to maneuver was ten, twelve years ago.  We've wasted all of this time and now the clock is running out. We will be the last to walk.  Our point is, if we walk away, we live business as usual and business as usual is killing us. So nothing we will do is going to jeopardize our future by our own actions.