Duterte demands climate justice at ASEAN as typhoons lash Philippines

President Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday called on Southeast Asian countries to demand accountability from rich nations responsible for climate change, as a series of storms battered the country in a particularly brutal typhoon season.

Duterte made his appeal against the backdrop of Typhoon Ulysses battering several provinces in Luzon, causing widespread flooding and leaving millions without power. Ulysses is the third powerful storm to hit the Philippines over a three-week period and the eighth that has caused widespread damage in the past two months.

“We must amplify our voices to demand climate justice from those most responsible for this existential challenge we face today. Developed countries must lead in deep and drastic cuts in carbon emissions. They must act now, or it would be too late. Or if I may say addedly, it is too late,” he said at the plenary session of the virtual 37th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit and Related Summits.

The President said the rich countries must deliver on their commitment to finance and invest in “innovative adaptation solutions in the developing world” so that “we too can have a fair shot at progress and sustainable development.”

“This is their moral responsibility from which there should be no escape. Otherwise, it would be a great injustice – a double blow to those who bear the brunt of the adverse consequences of their past actions and present inactions,” he said.

Duterte gave a similar call before the United Nations General Assembly in September when he asked parties to the 2015 Paris climate accord to honor their commitments. The agreement aims to cut greenhouse gas emissions to limit the rise in global temperatures to below two degrees Celsius.

But Duterte had earlier questioned how climate change commitments could be enforced given the lack of a governing body and sanctions against countries that fail to do their part.

In his address to the ASEAN leaders, Duterte recalled the onslaught of Super Typhoon Rolly early this month.

“With timely disaster preparedness measures, we were able to save many lives. But the typhoon left a trail of destruction in infrastructure and property. This represents a setback for our development agenda, particularly in the affected regions,” he said.

According to Duterte, the calamity was a reminder of the “urgency of collective action to combat the effects of climate change.”

“We must further enhance our cooperation on disaster risk reduction management to reinforce our capacities, both at the national and regional levels,” he said. —JST, GMA News