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COP27: three reasons rich countries can no longer ignore calls to pay developing world for climate havoc

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Payments from high-emitting countries to mitigate the harm that climate change has caused in the most vulnerable parts of the world is finally on the agendafor discussion at a global climate change summit, more than 30 years after the idea was first articulatedby delegates from small island developing states.

Loss and damage is the term used by the UN to describe these impacts of climate change that cannot be prevented and to which people cannot adapt. These include lives that have been and will be lost, communities displaced by rising seas, extreme weather and famine, livelihoods and cultural heritage destroyed and ecosystems damaged beyond repair because of a failure to arrest greenhouse gas emissions, and so, global temperature rise.

The UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reported that approximately 3.3 to 3.6 billion people are highly vulnerable to climate change. Many of them live in west, central and east Africa, south Asia, central and South America, as well as in small island developing states, such as Vanuatu in the Pacific, and in the Arctic.

As countries in these regions divert more of their wealth towards preparing for and recovering from storms, spreading deserts and melting glaciers, they are left with less money to cut their emissions and contribute to meeting the 1.5°C goal agreed at the negotiations in Paris in 2015. Rich countries, who are responsible for most emissions, promised US$100 billion (£87.2 billion) a year in aid in 2015.

But a recent UN report found that international finance to help the most vulnerable countries adapt to climate change (with bigger sea walls, for instance) has amounted to less than one-tenth of what is needed, and the gap between the two is widening. The US, UK, Canada and Australia are among the biggest laggards when their historical responsibility for climate change is taken into account. There has been no separate funding to address the damage already caused by warming.

At COP26 in 2021, developing countries proposed a loss and damage finance facility to help communities recovering from disasters and compensate them for what they have lost already. The EU and US resistedthis in the final days of talks.

Instead, the Glasgow Dialogue was established: a series of discussions about how to arrange funding to help countries bearing the brunt of climate change. Delegates from developing country were sorely disappointed. Instead of material support, they got another talking shop.

But many of these same negotiators are heading into COP27 with new resolve. Here are three reasons why loss and damage is becoming harder for rich countries to ignore.

1. The latest science

Attribution science, which clarifies the links between extreme weather events and emissions, has taken great leaps forward in recent years. Across more than 400 studies, scientists have examined wildfires in the US, heatwaves in India and Pakistan, typhoons in Asia and record-breaking rainfall in the UK.

Broadly, this research shows the poorest and most vulnerable are bearing the heaviest burden despite having contributed the least to the problem. This growing evidence base bolsters the case for reparations.

2. Climate impacts are escalating

The deadly floods in Pakistan in August are the latest in a series of disasters to push loss and damage up the global agenda. According to a recent study, as much as 50% of the rainfall would not have happened without climate change.

Pakistan’s leaders have said that wealthy countries must help pay the bill. After all, it is the latter’s actions that precipitated the disaster. Pakistan’s historically low emissions mean its own contribution to climate change is negligible.

From droughts in Somalia to floods in Nigeria, extreme weather during 2022 has also heaped suffering on African countries with little culpability for climate change. Given that COP27 will be held in Egypt and has been dubbed “the African COP”, these arguments will be brought to the fore.

3. Growing momentum outside of the UN process

The increasing number and importance of lawsuits brought against countries and companies failing to reduce their emissions highlights growing frustration with negotiations under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). As long as rich countries continue to evade the loss and damage issue, vulnerable countries and communities – and their lawyers – will search for alternative solutions.

That is not to say they haven’t had some notable recent successes. The UN Human Rights Committee (UNHRC) decided in September that the Australian government is failing to protect the Torres Strait Islanders from the effects of climate change. This sets a precedent in international human rights law which could one day extend to governments and institutions which have affected people further afield.

But, outside the UN, poorer countries are organising to explore ever more sophisticated diplomatic and legal ways of applying pressure on rich countries. At COP26, the prime ministers of Antigua and Barbuda and Tuvalu launched a commission to explore the kinds of compensation small island states might seek under international law. A group of countries led by Vanuatu is heading for the International Court of Justice.

Since high levels of debt hinder their ability to recover from the ravages of climate change, African and small island leaders are demanding debtors (including development banks and rich countries) write off, suspend or reschedule payments so that vulnerable nations can spend more on cutting emissions and adapting to climate change. These proposals have been called “debt for climate swaps”.

The International Monetary Fund recently announced a resilience and sustainability trust to help shield the finances of vulnerable countries from climate disasters, suggesting development policy is slowly shifting. This followed campaigning by Mia Mottley, the prime minister of Barbados.

Strings attached

Some rich countries are now taking action, suggesting a growing acknowledgement that this funding cannot be delayed forever. In September, Denmark was the first UN party to pledge finance – about US$13 million – to address loss and damage. The G7, under the leadership of the German presidency, has launched an initiative to expand access to financial aid in the immediate aftermath of climate disasters through improvements to existing insurance and social security schemes.

Because these initiatives have come outside of the UNFCCC negotiations, donor countries are free to dictate the terms of their support, sidestepping a process that should be about meeting the needs of vulnerable communities. Much of their funding will go into insurance schemes. Many of the insurance firms that would benefit are based in Europe and the US.

Insurance payouts may be a lifeline for drought-scarred small farmers and flooded homeowners. But some risks are uninsurable, especially those with a slow onset, such as those resulting from sea-level rise. Then there are less tangible harms, such as lost livelihoods, illness and biodiversity loss. Insurance against cyclones won’t compensate fishers in Tuvaluwho stand to lose their coastal fisheries as coral reefs succumb to warming.

The next front in the loss and damage debate will involve exploring whether providing finance as a form of solidarity (rather than compensation) is more palatable for rich countries. If that money is wrapped up in insurance schemes, designed to enrich consultants, it won’t really help poor countries. Progress at COP27 will be determined by whether these nations feel the UNFCCC is even capable of helping them. ( Form : The Conversation)

Indian High Commissioner Vikram Doraiswami inaugurates India pavilion at World Travel Market in London

London : India’s High Commissioner to UK, Vikram Doraiswami on Tuesday (local time), inaugurated the India pavilion and several state tourism pavilions at the World Travel Market (WTM) London.
He made the inaugurations along with Arvind Singh, Secretary, Ministry of Tourism and state leaders from Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Karnataka.
High Commission of India in London tweeted, “HC @VDoraiswami inaugurated @incredibleindia pavilion, and several State tourism pavilions, at the @WTM_London, with Arvind Singh, Secretary @tourismgoi and State leaders from Odisha, MP, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Karnataka et al. @MEAIndia.”
Notably, World Travel Market London 2022 is taking place at ExCel London from November 7-9. The theme of this year`s exhibition is ‘The Future of Travel Starts Now.’
It is pertinent to mention here that the Ministry of Tourism has launched the “Incredible India 2.0” campaign which covers important source markets for Indian tourism and takes into account emerging markets with significant potential. Notably, India is a tourist destination for travellers to explore architectural heritage sites, ghats and tiger reserves.
Earlier on November 7, the Ministry of Tourism in a tweet stated that dandiya performances and yoga sessions took place at World Travel Market London.
Sharing videos and images of the performances on Twitter, the Ministry of Tourism said, “A glimpse of the Indian culture and hospitality at the Indian Cultural Evening along with Dandiya performances and yoga sessions.”

Meanwhile, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in a press release issued on November 5 said that the Ministry of Tourism is participating in World Travel Market (WTM) 2022. It stated that 16 stakeholders, including officials from state governments, other Central ministries, Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) as the industry partner, DMCs, tour operators, hoteliers, travel agents, online travel agents, facilitators of medical value travel are participating as co-exhibitors in the India Pavilion.
The MEA in the press release called World Travel Market “one of the largest international travel exhibitions.” It further said, “With the reopening of the country to foreign tourists, after a gap of almost 2 years, this year`s participation of India is particularly significant. After the world’s largest vaccination drive, the country is ready for international tourists. India is participating in WTM 2022 to showcase itself as a preferred destination for tourism.”
The Ministry stressed that the objective of India’s participation in WTM is to showcase the diverse tourism products and services including Medical Value travel, luxury trains and the gamut of tourism products to the international business community.
It further stated, “The Indian Government is cognizant of the country’s potential in the tourism industry and has taken several steps to make India a global tourism hub.”
According to the release, the Indian delegation led by Arvind Singh, Secretary of the Ministry of Tourism will showcase the varied tourism offerings of India to global tourism industry stakeholders including tour operators, travel agents and media.
The MEA said that the visit will allow the Indian government delegation to showcase investment opportunities and potential that India offers to global investors.
The MEA noted that the contribution of travel and tourism to India’s GDP was 5.19 per cent of the total economy in 2019. Furthermore, the Indian tourism sector accounted for 79.86 million jobs (direct and indirect employment) in 2018.
The Ministry further said, “The consistent efforts of the Central and the State Governments have helped the tourism industry to gradually recover from the Covid-19 pandemic shock to the pre-pandemic levels.”
Notably, India is also gearing up for the G20 presidency which is due to begin on December 1. (ANI)

UN urges Musk to ensure Twitter respects human rights

GENEVA : U.N. rights chief Volker Turk on Saturday urged Twitter’s new owner, Elon Musk, to make respect for human rights central to the social network after he sacked around half the company’s employees.

Reports of Musk laying off the platform’s entire human rights team were “not, from my perspective, an encouraging start,” Turk said in an open letter.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights said he was writing with “concern and apprehension about our digital public square and Twitter’s role in it.”

He warned against propagating hate speech and misinformation and highlighted the need to protect user privacy.

Musk, the richest person in the world, took control of the platform a week ago in a contentious deal.

After completing his mammoth $44 billion acquisition, Musk quickly set about dissolving Twitter’s board and sacking its chief executive and top managers.

Twitter on Friday fired roughly half of its 7,500-strong workforce.

“Like all companies, Twitter needs to understand the harms associated with its platform and take steps to address them,” wrote Turk.

“Respect for our shared human rights should set the guardrails for the platform’s use and evolution. In short, I urge you to ensure human rights are central to the management of Twitter under your leadership.”

Turk posted the open letter on Twitter, where he has more than 25,000 followers.

Turk, an Austrian longtime U.N. official who took up his post as the U.N. rights chief on Oct. 17, spelt out some fundamental human rights principles, urging Musk to put them at the heart of Twitter’s management going forward.

‘Horrific’ consequences

Turk urged Twitter to stand up for the rights to privacy and free expression to the fullest extent possible, under relevant laws, and to transparently report on government pressures that would infringe those rights.

But he said free speech “is not a free pass,” saying that the viral spread of harmful disinformation, as seen during the COVID-19 pandemic, resulted in real-world harm.

“Twitter has a responsibility to avoid amplifying content that results in harms to people’s rights,” Turk said.

“There is no place for hatred that incites discrimination, hostility or violence on Twitter.

“Hate speech has spread like wildfire on social media… with horrific, life-threatening consequences.”

Twitter should therefore continue to bar such hatred on the platform, while every effort should be made to remove such content promptly, said Turk.

He also said free speech depended on the effective protection of privacy.

“It is vital that Twitter refrain from invasive user tracking and amassing related data and that it resist, to the fullest extent possible under applicable laws, unjustified requests from governments for user data,” Turk said.

He said research was essential to understand the impact of social media on societies, and therefore urged Musk to maintain access to Twitter’s data through its open application programming interfaces.

Finally, he stressed that Twitter should have content moderation capacity in all languages and contexts, not just in the United States or in English-language content.

VOA

Sri Lankan president calls for liberalization of service sector to attract FDI

COLOMBO — Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe emphasized the need to gradually liberalize the country’s service sector to attract foreign direct investment (FDI), the President’s Media Division (PMD) said in a statement on Sunday.

The president also said steps should be taken to gain membership in the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, the world’s largest free trade agreement to date.

Wickremesinghe made these remarks during a meeting with the officials of the National Trade Negotiations Committee at the Presidential Secretariat.

The president talked to them about free trade negotiations, the future outlook of international trade, and the importance of aligning policy priorities.

He further said that in parallel with the expansion of international trade activities, the government will implement a trade adjustment program to support local industries to adjust to the competition.

Access to regional and global supply chains and re-engagement with the global economy to enhance export and export-oriented foreign direct investment is an element of the government’s economic reform program to revitalize the domestic economy, he said.

  • Xinhua

49 killed, 25 missing due to monsoon-induced disasters in Karnali Provience of Nepal

Kathmandu — Forty-nine people have died and 25 are still missing due to the monsoon-induced disasters and road accidents in Karnali province in the second and third week of October. Seventy-four persons were injured in various disaster-related incidents in the province.

The highest casualties were reported in Jumla and Mugu due to the disasters triggered by incessant rains in the second and half of the third week of October, said Krishna Bahadur Rokaya, Disaster Contact Person at the Karnali Province Government’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and Law.

He gave this information in the Disaster Response Review and Earthquake Scenario discussion programme organised here on Sunday.

“Ten persons each died in Jumla and Mugu, nine in Kalikot, eight in Humla, two in Dolpa and one in Dailekh,” he said, adding that the number of persons missing in disasters has reached 18 in Kalikot, three in Dailekh and one each in Jumla, Humla, Dolpa and Rukum Paschim.

No human casualties due to disasters have been reported in Surkhet district in the month of Saun, Bhadau and Ashoj (July 17 to October 17) in the current fiscal year 2022/23.

As per the data shared by the Ministry, 20794 families have been displaced due to the disasters in the province. Among them, 7418 are from Kalikot and 5,282 are from Mugu.

Similarly, 33 persons lost their life to road accidents, one person died due to lightning and two persons due to frost bite in the province. The preparedness and response plan greatly assisted in the search and rescue works during the disasters, said Dinesh Sagar Bhusal, Secretary at the Ministry. (RSS)   

 

Bhutan unveils new national branding

Bhutan has developed a new national brand identity as it reopens to visitors after more than two years. With help from London-based branding agency MMBP & Associates, the new graphic identity draws on vibrant yellow and orange colours from the Bhutanese flag along with traditional Bhutanese iconography such as hand-painted architectural decoration, mythical animals, folklore and symbolism.

The rest of the colour palette is said to be inspired from nature, including the green of cypress forests that cover 70% of the country, the blue of Bhutan’s national flower, the Himalayan blue poppy, and a soft black inspired by natural soot from the home fires from hearths throughout the kingdom.

Centred around the word “believe”, the new brand uses a colourful, kaleidoscopic style featuring traditional symbols in bold, bright tones.

A new website was also launched as part of the rebrand. This provides information for travellers about planning a trip.

What is ‘Nation branding’?

As a practice, branding isn’t new but is typically used in corporate settings to promote businesses.

Nation branding (also called place branding), uses the same techniques to promote a country, not just to attract tourists but capital and talent or build its reputation. Countries have done this since the 1990s but the technique has become more popular in recent years.

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Today, nation brands can even be judged by official intuitions like the Anholt-Ipsos Nation Brands Index, which found Germany to have the strongest brand in 2021.

Some brands become exponentially famous, like Amsterdam’s “I amsterdam“, which was so popular the “I amsterdam” sign was removed from Museum Square after it caused constant crowds. Others, like the “Best Small Country in the World” campaign by Scotland, lasted just a few years.

Whether it’s an extensive tourism strategy or a simple slogan, for a small suburb or an entire country, the goal is always the same; to shape people’s perceptions of a place.

This isn’t Bhutan’s first brand. For years the nation promoted tourism under a campaign called “Happiness is a Place,” playing off its reputation for having a Gross National Happiness index. In 2018, “Made in Bhutan” was launched as a way to advertise the country’s export industry.

The challenge with nation brand is that, in order to be successful, it must streamline the complex, multi-faceted identity of a country into a single, clear idea. One you can easily communicate by a single icon, slogan or visual. As a result, nuance is removed and places are often portrayed according to their strongest attribute; tourism.

Over four months, MMBP & Associates attempted to create a brand identity that resisted this silo.

MMBP founder Julien Beaupré Ste-Marie told Fast Company the re-brand attempted to communicate two messages to two different audiences. First, that Bhutan was back open and ready for international tourists. And secondly, for young Bhutanese to resist the temptation to move overseas.
( Input from Campaignasia/nzherald)

EU in Nepal collaborating for increasing women participation in football

Surkhet : The European Union in Nepal is to collaborate in increasing participation of women in football in Karnali province.

This issue came up in a meeting between EU in Nepal’s Charge d’affaires, Joëlle Hivonnet, and Mayor of Birendranagar Municipality, Mohan Maya Dhakal on Sunday.

On the occasion, Hivonnet said that collaboration has been started through non-governmental organisation for EU’s investment to increase women’s participation in football and in promoting women’s football in Karnali province.

“Investment would be scaled up for training women football players and their career development. This will boost self-confidence in women. We are confident this would increase women’s attraction towards football,” the EU Delegation’s top official said.

Hivonnet is in Surkhet in connection with the inauguration of the 11th edition of the Nepal European Union Film Festival here.

During the meeting, Hivonnet talked on the projects the EU has implemented in Nepal, especially in Karnali province, the future plans, women empowerment and inclusion, among other topics. She said an agreement has been reached recently with the Government of Nepal for running a project on gender empowerment.

During the meeting, Mayor Dhakal informed about the activities carried out by the Municipality regarding women empowerment and women health and protection.

She mentioned about the skill development training provided to women, free distribution of sanitary pads from health posts, free medical examination to pregnant women and gynaecological services. She said these programmes have helped in increasing income generation of women and in protecting women’s health.

She thanked EU for focusing on women participation and empowerment.   (RSS) 

‘Int’l community should create pressure on Bhutan to free political prisoners and provide them with proper rehabilitation’

Having been born and brought up in Bhutan, RAM KARKI fled Bhutan to India in August 1990 at the age of 19 to escape arrest for his involvement in circulating pamphlets that appealed to people to protest against the violations of Human Rights in southern Bhutan. He was then a  student at The National Institute of Education (NIE) undergoing a Primary Teacher Training Course at Samchi Bhutan. Later, Mr Karki and two other fellows exiled Bhutanese Mr Gauri Shankhar Nirola and Mr Bhim Khapangey, rescued the 91 most vulnerable Bhutanese from India to Nepal and established a Bhutanese Refugee camp in Maidhar, Jhapa, Nepal, in early 1991. During his human rights campaign, reached Europe and later sought political asylum in the Netherlands at the end of 2002. Since then, he has been actively campaigning  for human rights and justice for the Bhutanese people. Besides founding and spearheading the campaign to release Bhutanese political prisoners through the Global Campaign for the release of Bhutanese Political Prisoners (GCRPPB), Mr Karki is also the coordinator of the only exile-based Bhutanese Think Tank, The Bhutan Watch based in Australia. He holds a Master’s degree in Sociology from Erasmus University Rotterdam. Mr Karki, based in the Hague, spoke to SOUTH ASIA TIME, on the issue of Bhutanese refugees and political prisoners within Bhutan.

How do you define a person as a political prisoner? How many political prisoners are languishing in Bhutanese prisoners? How do you collect your information? How authentic are they?

 

First and foremost, we Bhutanese refugees are neither the product of natural calamities nor the economic crisis but are political refugees. Bhutanese people felt discriminated against and came to the street demanding human rights and democracy in the country. Bhutan’s supreme law, TSA-WA-SUM, says that anyone who speaks against the King, Country and the government is an anti-national and liable to get death or more commonly, life sentences at the moment. Thus, in this case, all those demanding human rights and democracy are considered the violator of that supreme law TSA-WA-SUM and are liable to get punishment for that.

After the peaceful mass demonstration, the Home Ministry declared that those protestors are anti-national, forfeited citizenship, and must leave the country. Those who resisted were arrested and put on life sentences. Many high profile political prisoners were granted amnesty in due course of time, but some are still serving life sentences since that time.

In due course of time, various peaceful marches and movements were organised from the refugee camps in Nepal, some inside Bhutan and some from Nepal and India. During all these movements, some of the most unfortunate activists were arrested either on Indian soil or inside Bhutan during postering, distributing political literature etc.

All those activists were imprisoned in a separate block of the large chemgang central prison complex of Thimphu, commonly called the anti-national block, where people arrested for violating TSA-WA-Sum live. International Red Cross used to inspect in the past, and every inmate of this block was granted a separate ICRC identity card with a unique number.

Creating a separate block for housing people arrested for engaging in political activities or from the government language for engaging in anti national activities in a large prison complex is itself considered as government recognising them as political prisoners.

Above all, since they were arrested for engaging in various political activities inside Bhutan, they are automatically called political prisoners.

 

At the moment, we have a details list of 49 political prisoners. But very recently, we have received new information about the existence of another eight political prisoners arrested in the early 1990s and are still serving life sentences in another prison at Rabuna under the Wangdi Phodrang district of western Bhutan. Thus now, a total of 57 political prisoners are on our list.

We have been working to accumulate the details of the political prisoners since July 2019 by connecting with the prisoner’s families, relatives, friends, former political prisoners and other sources. After repeated meetings and field works, we could collect these prisoners’ details. They are all checked and cross-checked by the Human Rights Monitoring team headed by Mr Indra Adhikari at Bhutan Watch before publishing the list in its Annual Human Rights Report 2021 on Bhutan.

As the coordinator of the Global Campaign for the release of Political Prisoners in Bhutan (GCRPPB), you have been calling upon the Bhutanese monarch and his government to release ‘political prisoners’ in Bhutan. What has been the response so far?

So far, there is total silence on all our petitions, but that is not surprising becausethe King of Bhutan has hardly spoken on such issues since the start of this problemback in the late 1980s. There is a long history of ignoring and resisting all the calls from outside to establish human rights and democracy. In this case, despite receiving our appeals repeatedly, it has been ignored. Neither media, whether social media, private or state-owned media, writes anything about Bhutanese political prisoners.

I have seen a tremendously positive development behind the scene, though. ICU admitted political prisoner Mr Damber Singh Pulami (who is sentenced to 43 years prison after his arrest in 2001) was provided with excellent medical treatment after we appealed for his good medical treatment. Now he is back to normal, though still sick in his prison cell at Chemgang central prison.

Six political prisoners were released last April 2022, out of which five were released after completing their jail sentence of 15 years each. One was granted amnesty for his life sentence, which can be seen as a positive response to our call.


Bhutan adopted a new constitution in 2008, and periodic elections have occurred since then. Why do you think the Royal Government of Bhutan (RGOB) is acting so harshly against their citizens (esp Nepali-speaking Bhutanese) demanding openness and democracy in the country?

 

Though Bhutan adopted a new constitution and declared itself a multi-party democracy, holding general elections every four years since 2008, its TSA-WA-SUM is still the supreme law that supersedes all other laws. The laws in Bhutan give the sole power to speak on the issue of people arrested for violating TSA-WA-SUM to the King, and no elected, or whatsoever people subordinates to the King are allowed to either speak or act on those issues. Doing that is considered a violation of TSA-WA-SUM and is liable for punishment. There is a general feeling that one imprisoned on this issue is the enemy of the King and should be socially boycotted. Even if others became friends with such people they are considered as the supporters of the anti-national and are boycotted. Such people are deprived of citizenship and no objection certificate, which made them stateless and in a miserable situation for the rest of their lives. Thus who dares to speak in favour of them?

Thus inside Bhutan, no Nepali-speaking Bhutanese dares to speak for Human Rights and Democracy in the country and forget about supporting the causes of the people living in exile or supporting the cause of political prisoners.

Another thing is that the democracy in Bhutan has been considered as a gift from the King and he is considered above democracy. People hardly listen to the elected representatives, and in reality, such representatives are just a showcase, and the body they constitute is powerless.

Through UNHCR, western governments helped to resettle nearly 100,000 Bhutanese refugees in many countries around the world. Do you expect them to pressurise the Bhutan government so as to ensure freedom and human rights within the Himalayan kingdom?

 

Yes, of course. I think the international community, including UNHCR and those eight resettling countries, should create pressure on Bhutan to free political prisoners and provide them with proper rehabilitation, ensure Human Rights and Justice to the discriminated Bhutanese citizen living inside the country, restore the citizenship of around 80000 people whose citizenship was snatched for being the relatives of those who fled Bhutan and became refugees, dignified repatriation of all those willing Bhutanese refugees who are longing since decades to return to their home, allow resettled Bhutanese to visit their parents, family members, relatives, friends and other beloved back to their former country Bhutan.

Few thousand refugees are still languishing in refugee camps in eastern Nepal abandoned by the UN agencies. What would you say to the UN and the host government regarding their well-being and right to return to their country of birth?

More than 6500 Bhutanese refugees still live in the Bhutanese Refugee camps in the Jhapa and Morang districts of eastern Nepal. Those willing to return to Bhutan must be allowed to return with honour and dignity. Those willing to opt for third-country resettlement must be allowed to go for resettlement. Those willing to stay in Nepal should be provided Nepali citizenship and should be allowed to live in Nepal. Till such permanent solutions are not found, UNHCR must restore its relief supplies and monitorship. UNHCR and other international relief bodies who used to look after the refugee in the camps must come back and look after their basic needs to avoid the possible humanitarian catastrophe in the Nepal camps.

I urge the Nepal Government, UNHCR, countries of resettlement USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, United Kingdom, Denmark, Netherlands and Norway to expedite towards finding the above permanent solutions to the Bhutanese Refugee issue.


You have been approaching various international human rights organisations regarding the issue of political prisoners within Bhutan. What has been their response so far?

 

We have been appealing to the respective governments of all the eight resettlement countries to urge Bhutan King to release all the Political Prisoners. Almost all of them responded to us positively. They said that they are aware of the issue and use the appropriate forums to pressure Bhutan for their release. We have also informed and requested the former UN Human Rights Commissioner Michelle Bachelet to help release Bhutanese Political Prisoners during one of our meetings with her on 5 June 2020. She responded by saying that the issue will be raised in the forthcoming Universal Periodic Review of Bhutan on human rights situation there.

We are in close touch with noted Human Rights bodies like Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International. They are fully aware of the issue, and we hope we can soon see some positive results.

International Community were alerted, and now many global rights bodies and stakeholders know the presence of Bhutanese Political Prisoners inside Bhutan.

 

What are your plans? What do you see as the role of the Bhutanese diaspora in pressuring the RGOB to open up its polity and society?

We are entirely determined to work for the early freedom of all our unfortunate brothers and sisters languishing as political prisoners in the various prisons inside Bhutan for decades. Our yearly appeal campaign coinciding with International Human Rights Day on 10 December to the international community will continue. Bhutan King will be appealed more frequently than we used to do before.

We consider the roles of media as the most important towards finding success in our campaign. Thus our attention will also go towards mobilising significant media to cover this issue. Kathmandu-based Kantipur Daily’s Mr Devendra Bhattarai and his team published a comprehensive investigative report on the Bhutanese Political Prisoners Issue with all the facts and evidence in Kantipur and other media. This is the first instance of such exposure on this issue. I sincerely appreciate Mr Devendra Bhattarai and his team for spending months investigating and publishing this rare report. This publication has helped our campaign to a large extent and brought awareness of this issue both inside and outside Bhutan.

 

In the Bhutanese diaspora, very few among the 130000 Bhutanese knew about the existence of political prisoners in Bhutan before our campaign started. Now we could successfully raise awareness among them about it. On my recent visit to the various states of the USA (where our community lives in large numbers), I was pleased to know that almost all of them know about our campaign. They expressed their willingness to be a part of it in whatever way possible. Wherever I go, our community leaders organised a formal/informal program to know and appreciate the work towards releasing political prisoners from me.

The Bhutanese diaspora can and has been playing a significant role towards creating awareness on the issue of Bhutanese Refugees, Human Rights situations and other matters of concern in Bhutan in the international arena. Being resettled and becoming citizens of the major world countries, former Bhutanese refugees can work towards bringing changes inside Bhutan.

The issue of a family split, for example, parents in Bhutan and children in exile, children inside Bhutan and parents in exile, has created significant social and mental problems among the diaspora Bhutanese. Neither can they visit Bhutan, nor those inside Bhutan get a passport or no objection certificate to travel to see their beloved outside the country. This social problem must end once and for all. Bhutan can gain a lot financially if it allows its former nationals with foreign passports to travel to their country of birth, enabling them to meet all their beloved and go around their place of birth.

The Bhutan government should realise that those 100000 plus resettled Bhutanese have considerable potential to contribute to the development of Bhutan. They can also play the role of goodwill ambassadors to promote Bhutan’s tourism and to help build Bhutan’s image in the western world. But for all these to occur, Bhutan’s government must take the initiative to resolve all the outstanding issues stated above and call for a dialogue with its exiled former citizens. There is a win-win situation for Bhutan and those resettled former Bhutanese citizens.

Finally, on behalf of our campaign, I would like to reiterate our appeal to His Majesty, The King of Bhutan, to release all the political prisoners without delay. Let them have the opportunity to live the rest of their lives with honour and dignity with their beloveds.

 

Cricket Scotland partners with SACA to boost number of British Asian professional cricketers

London , The Cricketer — Cricket Scotland has partnered with the South Asian Cricket Academy to tackle inequality within Scottish cricket and boost British Asian representation in the professional game.

The announcement of the partnership comes three months after the publication of an independent inquiry into racism in the game in Scotland, which highlighted 448 examples that demonstrated institutional racism.

That review followed allegations made by former Scotland internationals Majid Haq and Qasim Sheikh, who is one of the figures involved in the foundation of this project. Last month, Cricket Scotland set up an independent process for investigating complaints to emerge from the review, while three weeks ago Anjan Luthra was appointed as the governing body’s new chair.

The partnership with SACA, which was founded in England last year based on the PhD research of Tom Brown, will comprise two separate one-year pilot programmes, with each designed to provide opportunities for British South Asian cricketers in Scotland’s men’s and women’s pathways.

In England, the scheme has already seen several graduates earn trials with county second teams, while some – Kashif Ali, Andy Umeed and Zain-ul-Hassan – have signed professional deals with counties. Umeed, born in Glasgow, was in Scotland’s youth system before ending up at Warwickshire. He joined Somerset last summer.

The partnership with Cricket Scotland has been developed by Brown alongside Sheikh and Toby Bailey, Cricket Scotland’s interim head of performance.

Cop 27 : UN climate summit begins

London — The UN’s annual climate change summit opens on Sunday with hosts Egypt billing it as the world’s “watershed moment” on climate action.

More than 120 world leaders are heading to the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.

About 30,000 people will attend the two-week summit, known as COP27, though some activists are staying away over concerns about Egypt’s rights record.

The past year has seen extreme weather regularly linked to climate change.

The summit opens with welcome speeches from the UN’s new climate change chief, Simon Stiell, and Egyptian Foreign Affairs Minister and COP27 President-Designate Sameh Shoukry.

World leaders will speak on Monday and Tuesday, and once they depart, conference delegates get down to the business of negotiation.

( Input from BBC / agencies )

UK declares bank holiday for King Charles III coronation

London — With an aim to honour the coronation of King Charles III, UK on Sunday (local time) declared a bank holiday for May 8.
“The Prime Minister has decided to proclaim an additional bank holiday to mark the Coronation of His Majesty King Charles III next year. The bank holiday will fall on Monday 8 May, following the Coronation on Saturday 6 May,” read UK Prime Minister’s Office.
“The Coronation of a new monarch is a unique moment for our country. In recognition of this historic occasion, I am pleased to announce an additional bank holiday for the whole United Kingdom next year,” said UK PM Rishi Sunak.
In line with the bank holiday to mark Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s Coronation in 1953, this will be an opportunity for families and communities across the country to come together to celebrate, added the PMO release.
The bank holiday will take place across the United Kingdom.

“I look forward to seeing people come together to celebrate and pay tribute to King Charles III by taking part in local and national events across the country in his honour,” added Sunak.


King Charles, 73, automatically became king on the death of his mother Queen Elizabeth in September. Charles will become the oldest monarch in British history to sit on the throne.


As per tradition, the incoming king will sit on the throne known as Edward’s Chair (named after King Charles II in 1661) while wielding the sovereign’s sceptre, rod, and orb, which symbolises the Christian world.
His reign as a king will officially begin in May. Along with him, Camilla Parker-Bowles will be crowned as Queen Consort.


“The Coronation combines the sacred and the solemn but it is also celebratory. This bank holiday will once again give people across the United Kingdom the opportunity to come together as families and communities to welcome His Majesty to the throne as we mark this important day in our nation’s long history,” said Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Oliver Dowden.


Charles was declared the UK and the Commonwealth monarch on September 10 after his mother Queen Elizabeth II passed away on September 8.
The death of the 96-year-old Queen ended a generation-spanning, seven-decade reign that made her a beacon of stability in a tumultuous world. (ANI)

Time to work for secure future in face of climate crisis

By Narayan Prasad Ghimire, Kathmandu  —  “Climate change is landing blow after blow upon humanity and the planet, an onslaught that will only intensify in the coming years even if the world begins to bring down greenhouse gas emissions.” It is the severe warning of the Adaptation Gap Report-2022 released by the UN Environment Programme just five days back. The report is titled, ‘Too Little, Too Slow.’

The very title of the report suggests that global efforts on climate adaptation to reduce vulnerability are meagre and the pace too is quite slow to reduce the intensity of climate change impact. The report stated that the adaptation finance flows to the developing countries are 5-10 times below estimated needs with a widening gap. It is estimated that USD 160-340 billion is required for annual adaptation needs by 2030 and USD 315-565 billion by 2050.

An equally alarming and appalling report the UNEP released was on the emission gap in the last week of October. The Emissions Gap Report 2022 was prepared based on the pledges countries made since COP26 – held in 2021 in Glasgow, UK.

According to this, they make a negligible difference to predicted 2030 emissions and that we are far from the Paris Agreement goal of limiting global warming to well below 2°C, preferably 1.5°C. “Policies currently in place point to a 2.8°C temperature rise by the end of the century. Implementation of the current pledges will only reduce this to a 2.4-2.6°C temperature rise by the end of the century, for conditional and unconditional pledges respectively,” the report further warned.

The report points out the need for an ‘urgent system-wide transformation’ which it argues can deliver the huge cuts required to limit greenhouse gas emissions by 2030: 45 per cent compared with projections based on policies currently in place to get on track to 1.5°C and 30 per cent for 2°C.

These reports reflect how slow and negligible global efforts are on reducing climate change vulnerabilities. Yawning gaps in adaptation and ambition are terrible threats to humanity. Amidst such background, the 27th Conference of Parties under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) is commencing today in Sharm El-Shaikh city of Egypt. It will last till November 18.

The COP27 is being keenly observed from across the globe on whether it would be able to deliver the results, thereby fulfilling the past commitments since Paris Agreement to Glasgow Pact. Nearly 30,000 people, including government delegates and climate scientists, from more than 190 countries are attending the mega events and voicing their concerns.

The voices are being raised from the individual nations, and in groups as least developed countries (LDC), developing countries and developed countries. It is worth noting for Nepal as we are the LDC and aspire to be graduated to the status of a developing country but highly dependent on international finance for climate adaptation, mitigation and resilience.

It is said a total of USD 46 billion is required for Nepal in climate financing by 2030. It is humungous in deed that government is not able to afford it, so there is no option but to request international support and urge the private sectors within a country to walk together on climate changes issues and development activities.

When it comes to financing for adaptation, which Nepal is taking as an important agenda to raise in the COP27, a report states that from 2012-2020, Nepal received about USD 4.416 billion in climate finance resources through various international, bilateral, and multilateral sources for climate change adaptation and mitigation.

The report ‘Capitalizing Green Finance for Nepal’ published by Oxford Policy Management (OPM), UK in October this year, further stated that based on the analysis of all the possible sources of climate finance that could be available to meet the financing targets of National Adaptation Plan and Nationally Determined Contribution by 2030, it is estimated that about 56.5 % of funding gaps exist to meet the climate commitments target.

With this in mind, Nepal is raising the mountain issues, loss and damage in a vibrant manner. Similarly, it will remind the developed countries’ commitment of 100 billion US dollars per year to climate finance.

Not only Nepal, but the entire LDC is also all set to be vocal on loss and damage this year too. Chair of the LDC Group at UN Climate Change negotiations, Madeleine Diouf SARR (Republic of Senegal), wrote in Nature, “As the chair of the LDC Group on Climate Change, I represent 46 nations that are home to nearly one billion people.

This month, I will be among those calling on governments to establish a loss-and-damage fund for developing countries during COP27 in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt. Research estimates that US$290 billion to USD 580 billion per year will be needed by 2030.”

It is worth reminding that although the low and middle-income countries had proposed a Loss and Damage Finance Facility in the COP26 last year, the developed countries denied it. Rather they had offered a three-year dialogue on it.

Similarly, the LDCs, including Nepal, are up in arms to press the developed and rich countries to double the climate finance. According to the LDC Chair, the global fossil-fuel subsidies from 2021 alone reached US$697 billion, which she argued could pay for the climate-related economic losses suffered by the most vulnerable countries from 2000 to 2019 and still have US$170 billion in profits left over.”

At home in Nepal, the Ministry officials are insisting on grants rather than loans for climate finance. So, in case the rich countries agree to double climate finance, additional dialogue and discussion are imperative for the modality of finance flows- grant or loan.

Climate change and global atmosphere

‘Phase out’, ‘Phase down’, and ‘water down’ were some of the significant phrases that surfaced in the COP26 and were used by the media alike. The news stories with these phrases clearly indicated that climate change is an international political issue too.

It is linked to global political power as well. How the rich countries ‘water down’ the entry of loss and damage mechanism in the Glasgow Climate Pact proposed by the vulnerable countries, and how intense the debate was there among the western countries and the emerging economies on inserting ‘phasing out’ or ‘phasing down’ of use of coal in the negotiation and pact.

As COP27 is being held in the background of alarming cases of loss and damages which are showcased by several reports and the global development of the Ukraine War, how do the international experts on climate change observe the climate summit?

I had put forth queries to Director for Climate Change at the International Institute for Environment and Development, Clare Shakya, on whether the Ukraine War diverted developed countries’ attention from pressing issues of climate change and how it would affect COP27. She responded, “COP27 is taking place against a backdrop of global challenges, including the war in Ukraine but also soaring food and energy prices and the ongoing repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic.

That context certainly makes it harder to focus minds on the urgency and importance of the climate negotiations. But delegates should also have the recent devastating floods in Pakistan, record high temperatures in Europe and crippling drought in the Horn of Africa to serve as reminders that climate change impacts are no less urgent than other global challenges.”

Similarly, the LDCs including Nepal are insisting on doubling climate finance by the rich ones along with special attention on loss and damage, how the rich countries would respond to it is equally meaningful to us.

In the question of whether the developed ones would be positive for loss and damage, expert Shakya viewed, “Loss and damage have at least emerged as a strong agenda recently with the Scottish and Danish governments both pledging money specifically to address it.” She points out the need for more and better pledges to tackle how countries can be supported technically to deal with the losses and damage they are already facing.

According to her, domestic politics guides how countries respond to the sensitivity of climate change. On the politics of climate, she observed, “Sensitivity and responsiveness of different governments vary depending on their domestic politics. You only have to look at the recent presidential election in Brazil to see how the fortunes of the environment can vary from one moment to the next.

Having Brazil and Australia bring in new governments prepared to act on climate change has been crucial. But we need to see more action across the G20, not least from USA and China, but also the likes of Indonesia, and indeed Russia too.”

The expert’s observation reflects that irrespective of the global political tussle and power game, climate change is undoubtedly a global issue of urgent attention, engagement and action. All sorts of countries must be made responsible for this crucial problem of our time. However, looking from LDC, if the differing stands of parties continue on climate change negotiation this time too, the vulnerable countries and communities would be further jeopardized. It is time for all to unite for a secure collective future.

Good governance need at home     

Undoubtedly, climate change is both a global and local concern. It is also the admixture of environmental and sociopolitical problems. As a vulnerable country, Nepal has no option but to negotiate effectively in the most significant global climate change platform, COP27, and utilize the finances it receives for environment, development and climate change issues. Development activities should concentrate on building the national economy while paying much attention to the reduction of climate impact and propelling adaptation.

Both the government and observers often point out that we’re smart on policy documents but lack proper implementation. The legal and policy documents prepared under the UNFCC and after COP26 must be made enforced with the utmost participation of local people. At a time when we have three tiers of governance, climate change issues must be percolated at the local level with utmost cooperation and coordination. Climate change literacy is a must among citizens.

Importantly, making climate change a multi-stakeholder agenda and wiping out corruption should be made other priorities at home. The political parties should be brought to the knowledge of the chilling effect of climate change. Although the political parties in their recent election manifesto mentioned climate change, climate adaptation and emission reduction, it was worrying that during the last five years, there were no political debates on climate change issues. Neither the federal nor provincial parliaments zeroed in on climate change impacts.

Even in the ongoing election campaigns, party leaders are mute on this pressing agenda but engaging in blame games. It suggests mere mention in the document does not suffice to cope with this defining problem of the present time. Good governance and the spending capacity of the government are other elusive issues, which need serious review and immediate correction. (RSS)

Over 120 leaders to attend climate talks; Egypt positive on protest

BERLIN: More than 120 world leaders will attend this year’s U.N. climate talks, and requests by environmental activists to stage a rally during the event would be responded to “positively,” host Egypt said.

Veteran diplomat Wael Aboulmagd, who heads the Egyptian delegation, told reporters Friday that his country had been working for months to set the scene for “meaningful outcomes” at the two-week meeting in the Red Sea coastal resort of Sharm el-Sheikh starting Sunday.

“We have, I think about 121 maybe, and the number is growing, heads of state and government here,” he said during an online briefing. “We hope that it will be a watershed moment.” Leaders such as U.S. President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak confirmed their attendance, but Aboulmagd said other major heads of state such as China’s Xi Jinping and India’s Narendra Modi would not be going.

Aboulmagd said recent scientific reports highlighted the urgency of tackling global warming.

“Everyone is now aware of the gravity of the situation, of the enormity of the challenge, and have come here hoping to work together,” he said.

Greenhouse gases, financial aid

Several thorny issues will be discussed at the November 6-18 talks, including further cutting greenhouse gas emissions and boosting financial aid for poor countries struggling with the impacts of climate change. It is the first such meeting held in Africa since 2016. Over 40,000 people have registered for the event.

Aboulmagd appealed to negotiators to engage constructively. “We cannot afford to waste any time,” he said. “So everyone must rise to the occasion and must move away from the adversarial winner-takes-all approach that has plagued this process for too long.”

Civil society groups have expressed concern that their presence at this year’s talks will be restricted, citing Egypt’s questionable human rights record.

But Aboulmagd said activists would get their space, with special arrangements already put in place “for those who want to organize demonstrations or protests or stand-ins.”

Asked about the possibility of holding a large rally midway through the talks, as has traditionally happened in previous meetings, he said, “That will be taken care of.”

Organizers would need to submit the names of contact persons, and city officials must approve the planned route.

“Once a request to that effect comes, it will be responded to positively,” he said.

Egypt would press diplomats to live up to the lofty pledges their leaders had made, Aboulmagd said, warning that so far, these had not been translated into the negotiating rooms.

“This separation between the reality in the public sphere and what actually happens in negotiating rooms cannot continue,” he said. “It is about real lives that are being lost and future lives that will be devastated” by unchecked climate change.

VOA

COP 27: World leaders must block undue influence to achieve climate action : TI

The 27th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) will begin this Sunday, 6 November.

For years, Transparency International has been calling attention to potential conflicts of interest and undue influence impacting climate policy and calling on leaders to address gaps. This year the UNFCCC Secretariat began an “observer review process” to ensure meaningful, inclusive, fair and transparent engagement from all observers, including civil society, academia and businesses – and stop undue influence. But the process has been delayed, making no progress since the last COP.

Brice Böhmer, climate and environment lead at Transparency International, said:

“Fighting climate change and fighting corruption go hand in hand. The world’s most powerful industries, from fossil fuels to automobile manufacturers, continue to lobby to dilute and delay climate policies – and they must be stopped if we are to make real progress to save our planet.

“We are thrilled that the UNFCCC Secretariat has begun to recognise this issue by beginning the observer review process and putting conflict of interest on this year’s agenda, but we need tangible action now. Transparency International calls on the Secretariat to urgently implement a conflict of interest policy and put a stop to major corporations and polluting interests rendering climate action ineffective.”

Transparency International is co-hosting an official COP27 side event “Climate Justice, Civic Space and Public Participation” on 16 November from 15:00-16:30.

Tourist arrivals in Nepal have more than tripled in the first 10 months

KATHMANDU — Foreign tourist arrivals in Nepal have more than tripled in the first 10 months of 2022 than the whole year of 2021, show government figures released on Friday.

The South Asian country received 473,563 foreign tourists by the end of October, a sharp rise from 150,962 recorded in 2021, according to the Nepal Tourism Board data.

“It is clear that we’re on the path to recovery,” Binayak Shah, first vice-president of Hotel Association Nepal, told Xinhua.

“We have received growing inquiries from foreign travel agencies about their clients’ visit plans to Nepal,” he added.

Nepal’s tourism sector, hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, has a long way to go before it can repeat the feat of having as many as 1.19 million foreign tourists in 2019.

Amid rising tourist arrivals, the hotel occupancy rate has climbed to an average of 25 percent nationwide from almost nil last year, according to Shah.  (Xinhua)

London-Nepal is world’s third largest unserved flight route

London — London to Nepal is the world’s third largest unserved flight route, new analysis has revealed.

Some 89,200 people travelled on indirect flights between Heathrow and Kathmandu in the 12 months to the end of July, according to schedule analyst OAG.

That is equivalent to 244 each day.

The lack of direct flights means passengers must change planes in locations such as India, Qatar or the United Arab Emirates.

Many UK visitors to Nepal go trekking in the Himalayas, with some climbing Everest, the world’s highest mountain.

Only two routes without direct flights have more airline passengers.

They are between Quito, Ecuador, and New York’s JFK Airport in the US (90,700 passengers in 12 months), and between Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, and Los Angeles, also in the US (90,000 passengers).
( From – Evening Standard )