The former prime minister of Tuvalu, Enele Sopoaga, who hosted Pacific leaders including Scott Morrison and Jacinda Ardern at the Pacific Islands Forum in August has told a special Pacific edition of Q&A he was taken aback by Scott Morrison’s behaviour in the diplomatic meetings.
Unfortunately prime minister Scott Morrison of Australia [was] expressing views that completely denies there is climate change happening already in the Pacific. As chairman I was taken a little bit aback, he said.
There was some strong resistance on the call from Pacific Island leaders for more concrete works to reduce greenhouse gases, but to particularly cut down and stop new coalmines in Australia, said Sopoaga.
Throughout the forum Scott Morrison repeatedly spoke of the evident impact of climate change on Tuvalu, but said Australia was a good international partner on climate change and was on track to reduce its emissions in line with Paris targets.
The ABC filmed the episode at the University of South Pacific in Fiji’s capital of Suva earlier on Monday, the first time Q&A has been filmed in the Pacific, and one of the few times the program has been filmed outside Australia.
The episode was dominated by the climate emergency, as Pacific leaders spoke of the impact on their nations and challenged Australia on its response.
In response to a question about the impact of the climate crisis on low-lying islands like his own nation of Tuvalu, Sopoaga said: If the world doesn’t reduce emissions as called for by the IPCC special report we will face the situation where island countries like Tuvalu, Kiribati, Marshall Islands and others will be submerged into the sea by 2060, this is a scary scenario and it is very, very serious.
I certainly hope that not only the Pacific, but those that have polluted the atmosphere and caused global warming will come to react and do the right thing in response to the special report.
Virisila Buadromo, an advocate for women’s and human rights in Fiji, urged Australia to take more action.
I think Australia, as the largest country in the region, the richest country in the region, as well as, you also happen to be the largest emitter of carbon in the region, I think that it’s important that if you are part of our family, you need to stand with our family to fight against climate change.
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