Home > Press releases > 2002
07 Jun 2002
Friends of the Earth International (FOEI) today blew the whistle on the outcome
of the Earth Summit talks in Bali, calling it a defeat for the
world's poor and a foul result for the global environment. FoEI has charged
governments with failing to listen to the public and ruthlessly pursuing the interests
of multinational corporations and the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
The Bali talks were meant to establish a final action plan on sustainable
development, to be signed off by Heads of State and Government at the
forthcoming Johannesburg Earth Summit in August. However as negotiations drew to a
close, governments were finalising details on a 'Bali Commitments' agreement that failed to
adequately address key concerns.
FoEI singled out the United States for criticism for attempting to force through
its free trade agenda and doing everything in its power to prevent agreement
on legally binding commitments. Instead it successfully pressed for voluntary 'partnerships'.
Australia, Japan and Canada were backers of US blocking tactics. Norway, on
the other side, insisted on binding measures.
The talks were also marked by the suppression of public protests by the Indonesian
authorities. Thousands of protesters, and even a local fishers' flotilla,
were intimidated by security forces and forced to abandon their demonstrations.
Indonesian groups are set to sue the authorities for infringing their
constitutional rights.
For the Earth Summit to be rescued, governments in the North must urgently
change their trade policy. The EU in particular expected developing countries to support
a global move towards green goals such as expanding renewable energy, but were
not able to address all their concerns about the unfair and inequitable trading
system. Only if the free trade agenda is dropped by the North, can
the Earth Summit still deliver any positive outcomes. Measures to control big
business were crippled in the talks by the US and EU and key
issues such as the ecological debt owed by the North to the South
were not even acknowledged.
Daniel Mittler, Earth Summit Coordinator comments:
"The US administration and its friends might as well come from Mars for
all they care about the future of our planet. The fight for a
better agreement will be taken to Johannesburg. Voluntary partnerships will not deliver sustainable
development. Indecision, intransigence and lack of ambition must be replaced by vision and
leadership."
Contact details:
Friends of the Earth
26-28 Underwood St.
LONDON
N1 7JQ
Tel: 020 7490 1555
Fax: 020 7490 0881
Web: www.foe.co.uk/feedback.html
Media team
