AOSIS proposal to discuss legal architecture of new climate change deal referred to contact group

By Makereta Komai, Climate Pasifika Media, Cancun, Mexico

05 DECEMBER 2010 CANCUN --- At an informal session of the stocktaking plenary of the Conference of the Parties, the proposal for a legal form to a new climate change agreement, was referred to contact group for more consultation.

The 43 members of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) had asked for a contact group to discuss the legal architecture before any final agreement in Durban next year.

“Legal form is important as it provides certainty to the outside world – the governments, the markets, the private sector that we are trying to get involved in this process – all of them need legal certainty to effectively contribute to this process and to make the investments needed, said Ambassador Dessima Williams of Grenada on behalf of AOSIS.

During the informal stock-take session, the chair and President of COP16, Patricia Espinosa ruled that more consultation was needed before any decision was taken.

She appointed Malta’s climate change ambassador, Michael Zammit Cutajar to convene more consultation with Parties in the contact group and report back to the Conference of the Parties next week.

But Grenada on behalf of AOSIS expressed the group’s dissatisfaction for an informal meeting when the original proposal was for the legal form to be discussed in a contact group.

The COP chair later changed her ruling to a contact group after the AOSIS intervention.

Informal sessions are open to Parties only whereas the contact group allows for more participants, including observers.