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Philippine Government Urged to Ratify Paris Agreement

Monday, 7 November 2016 04:42 GMT

Women gather bundles of young rice, which were spared by the strong winds of Typhoon Haima in the municipality of Baggao, Cagayan, northern Philippines. (Credit: Genevieve Estacaan/Oxfam)

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* Any views expressed in this opinion piece are those of the author and not of Thomson Reuters Foundation.

On the opening day of the 22nd Conference of Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP22), civil society organizations have called on the Philippine government to ratify the Paris Agreement on climate change and "stand with Filipinos and other people all over the world, who are suffering the most from extreme weather events, rising sea levels, and other impacts of climate change."

According to the online petition launched by Aksyon Klima Pilipinas and Green Thumb Coalition, in partnership with Oxfam in the Philippines, although the Paris Agreement is not perfect, it is what the most climate-vulnerable countries like the Philippines have to work with to ensure they are supported as they shift towards a greener, more sustainable, and more resilient economy.

"By ratifying the agreement, the Philippines will be able to effectively engage in processes that would address the gaps in the treaty, and help ensure support in terms of funding, technology and capacity building to help us lower emissions and adapt to the impacts of climate change," noted the statement. 

Such impacts include rising sea levels and extreme weather events like super typhoons and the 2015/2016 super El Niño that is continuing to affect 60 million people all over the world.

The Paris Agreement entered into force on Friday, 4 November 2016. This means that the Agreement, which calls for international action to limit global warming and support the most vulnerable countries adapt to the impacts of climate change, is now legally binding on 94 countries that have so far officially ratified it.

As of today, the Philippines is not one of those countries.

The statement finally noted that "throughout global climate negotiations, the Philippines has been recognized as a strong voice in calling for climate justice, or demanding that rich countries that are historically responsible for causing climate change provide adequate support to countries that are struggling to adapt to climate change. It is in this spirit that our country should uphold the Paris Agreement."

 

*Airah Cadiogan is Climate Policy and Campaigns Officer for Oxfam in the Philippines

You can support the petition by signing here: https://act.oxfam.org/asia/philippines-ratify

The petition was launched by Aksyon Klima,  a network of over 40 organizations working on climate and the environment, and the Green Thumb Coalition, a united front of 37 national alliances, associations and organizations calling for greater attention from government on the issue of climate justice, in partnership with Oxfam in the Philippines.

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