This speech was given by Merna Ghaly of the Arab Youth Climate Movement to an empty plenary hall. The country delegates had all snaked away after the shameful acceptance of a decade of inaction. Nevertheless, civil society was still there till the bitter end, and we delivered strong messages of condemnation. We will be back, stronger than before…
This deal is an insult to the world's most vulnerable and to future generations.
The Doha gateway leaves the door wide open to irreversible climate change and slams the door shut on equity.
The most vulnerable and the least responsible nations will suffer greatly for this unjust, unambitious and inequitable deal that completely undermines the objective of the convention and the possibility for achieving for equal access to sustainable development.
What have you done? You have failed to deliver in providing adequate financing, ambitious mitigation targets and an international mechanism that addresses compensation for loss and damages. Instead we are leaving with a text that is as empty as the Green Climate Fund.
Your decisions here will affect the lives of millions. This is tyranny on a global scale.
Developed world: how many people are going to have to die before you take this seriously?
How dare you self-congratulate for all your great work while committing to offensively low mitigation targets. How dare you talk about trust when you have shattered so many agreements? It is clear from today's event that this process is broken. Business as usual is no longer an option when it comes to both the climate and this decision-making process.
NO JUSTICE, NO DEAL