Sir Ronald Sanders has written a commentary EVERYONE should read. EVERYONE in the Caribbean and especially EVERYONE here in the Cayman Islands.

We have published it here today under the title “Name and blame the polluters”.

The polluters are the countries who are polluting our atmosphere and keep on doing so with no regard for anyone. In the USA we have a stubborn President who is either brain dead over the global warming problem and refuses to believe it is a problem, or he has a an ulterior motive that belies his common sense.

Sir Ronald writes:

“The world is now set to storm its way through the 2 Celsius limit set by the much-vaunted but inadequate agreement reached in Paris in 2016.

“Small island states and countries with low-lying coast-lands in the Caribbean and elsewhere are in jeopardy. They ought to reject promises from the industrialized nations and, instead, insist on concrete action to address the looming danger. Accepting promises of future action does no more than giving additional time for the industrialised polluting countries to do nothing while conditions deteriorate fatally for small countries.

“In a recent report to the UN Human Rights Council, Professor Philip Alston, the Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights stated: ‘Sombre speeches by government officials at regular conferences are not leading to meaningful action as States continue to kick the can down the road. The essential elements of climate change were understood in the 1970s, and scientists and advocates have been ringing alarm bells for decades. Yet States have marched past every scientific warning and threshold, and what was once considered catastrophic warming now seems like a best-case scenario’.”

Therefore, it is not just Donald Trump. At least we all know where he stands on the problem There is no problem. The other leaders speak the good talk, promise everything including the kitchen sink, everybody claps, pats on the back, smiles all around, and everyone goes home feeling warm inside.

It is very hot outside and getting hotter..

Sanders: “A kind of ‘climate apartheid’ is developing which will lead to rich countries insulating themselves from extremes of weather while locking-out from their borders people seeking to escape heat stress, vector diseases, lack of water supply and little capacity to grow food.”

Sir Ronald asks this question: “What steps are Caribbean governments taking to prepare for the hurricane season? To what extent have hurricanes and tropical storms held back Caribbean countries’ economic growth and social development over the years? What short-term and long-term measures should countries in the region implement to better deal with the preparation for, and recovery from, natural disasters?’.

Have you heard one of our elected government MLA’s bang their drums, go on the talk shows ranting and raging, getting up in the LA and shaking their fists, etc. etc.? Oh, yes. On every subject you can think of. Except our polluters.

Sir Ronald warns us , “Faced with the challenges of living in current conditions, few persons contemplate nightmare scenarios in what looks like the distant future. The problem is that a future, determined by climate change, is no longer distant. Across the world, nations are sleepwalking into the climate catastrophe that lies ahead.

“Every time that representatives and negotiators for developing countries and small island states accept that a handout here and there from industrialized nations to ‘build resilience’ is better than nothing, they merely postpone the hour at which their countries will no longer be salvageable.”

Why are we silent about it? Why aren’t we rattling our sabers or more realistically waving our machetes? Why aren’t we organising another and more meaningful Peoples Initiated Referendum on naming our polluters and making our government answerable why they are doing nothing to save us from catastrophe?

I leave you with Sir Ronald’s final words:

“The governments of developing countries, especially small ones, can’t force the governments of industrialised countries to pay, but they should at least trumpet that grudging handouts are not reparations and declare loudly that inadequate funding cannot sustain the future. Polluters should be named and blamed.”

POLLUTERS SHOULD BE NAMED AND BLAMED!!!