Civil society urged to speak out for reparatory and climate justice

Civil society organisations (CSOs) and non-governmental agencies (NGOs) in Barbados and the rest of the region are being urged to raise their voices in demanding reparatory justice and climate justice from the international community.

They are also being encouraged to demand more transparency from their governments on issues related to debt.

The call came on Wednesday from Geneva Oliverie, Development Specialist with the Caribbean Policy Development Centre (CPDC), who indicated that Barbados and other small island developing states were being plagued by a “silent debt crisis”, characterised by high cost of living, excessive taxes and exorbitant fuel prices.

Acknowledging that no one factor was responsible for the high debt levels, Oliverie said while she was not prepared to engage in a blame game one of the key stressors has been “the Caribbean’s colonial history and subsequent years of oppression”.

She contended that regional economies embarked on independence with “debts from our oppressors” and this has been compounded by borrowing to facilitate growth and human empowerment over the years.

“Ironically, we became financially indebted to the same financial powers who profited from the free labour of our ancestors,” Oliverie said while indicating that the wealth taken from the region was then used by the powerful nations to drive an industrial revolution.

“Certainly, we saw a lot of positives coming out of that – nice technologies we enjoy today – but little did we know this would have led to a climate crisis characterised by sustained economic decline, deterioration of infrastructure and unprecedented casualties for our region,” she added.

Oliverie was addressing the opening of a debt consultation and advocacy training at the Barbados Coalition of Service Industries (BCSI) on Wednesday. The event was organised by the Barbados Association of Non-Governmental Organisations (BANGO).

Urging CARICOM residents to call for “climate justice from wealthy, heavily polluted nations threatening our way of life”, Oliverie insisted: “Caribbean countries are due climate justice. We are owed climate justice. We demand climate reparations.”

“We can no longer stand by and wait as we plunge into the hole of unsustainability. We know change is not accomplished overnight but through time and dedication – small steps. As people of the Caribbean, we know that the smallest improvements can take years of planning and certainly another decade for implementation. However, also as Caribbean people we are stubborn and we never give up.

“We don’t want to be silent. We can never fall silent. We must continue to lobby, demand, advocate and petition governments and decision-making world powers for equity, equality and justice even if we must sing the same melody a hundred times before our voices are heard,” she added.

While welcoming the agreement at the United Nations climate change conference (COP27) last year for the establishment of a loss and damage fund for vulnerable countries affected by climate disasters, Oliverie expressed concern that it could take at least two years to iron out the details.

“Consequently, without adequate fiscal space, we the countries most affected are forced to find resources for adaptation, mitigation and addressing loss and damage elsewhere because the fund hasn’t been set up,” she said.

“Likewise, we as citizens are often forced to fund climate response and mitigation needs by going into debt. We cannot continue to expand funds on a climate crisis we did not create. We cannot rebuild better every four years.”

The development specialist said there was a need for a comprehensive and consistently applied mechanism to suspend debt payments when a country is hit by an extreme climate event.

“It is not enough for the international community to offer us loans which further aggravate our already unsustainable debt burden. Further, these loans often carry high interest rates . . . because of our middle to high-income status. Again, we are penalised for factors outside our control,” she asserted.

Oliverie also urged residents to demand transparency and improved governance from their leaders.

“As civil society, we must continue to advocate in the international space. But we must also pressure our governments for increased transparency and participatory decision making on debt-related matters. We have to reiterate our call for good governance, which promotes efficient and effective management of debt, by adopting sound fiscal and monetary policies,” she said.

“Citizens should be notified on the acceptance of loans and informed on how these funds are allocated and the intended impacts on our communities.”

Wednesday’s consultation is the second of three which are designed to empower NGOs and CSOs to consult, develop and communicate sector positions on key issues, policy solutions on debt and its implication for social and economic development. 

(MM)