Remarks by the Pacific Islands Forum Secretary General – Mr. Henry Puna
14th Global Forum on Migration and Development
Geneva, Switzerland
23 January 2024, 11.30am
Excellencies,
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen.
· I am very honoured to join you all this morning. I bring warm Pacific greetings from the Pacific Islands Forum, representing eighteen independent and self-governing states of the Blue Pacific Continent.
· Firstly, let me acknowledge the organisers of this 14th Global Forum on Migration and Development, together with their partners, the IOM and France as Chair of this year’s Forum, for the invitation and the opportunity to be part of this very important event.
· Excellencies, the Pacific is already living the realities of climate change and its impacts. The Carteret islands in Papua New Guinea became the first island community in the world to undergo an organized relocation in response to climate change related rising sea levels. Kale Island in the Solomon Islands are now submerged, forever.
· In Fiji, several communities have been relocated from their homes due to inundation, with further communities already identified as at high risk of climate change impacts.
· Pacific Leaders therefore continue to call for urgent and upscaled action to address the underlying causes of climate change.
· Leaders recognise “the threats and adverse impacts of climate change and sea-level rise as the defining issue that imperils the lives, livelihoods and wellbeing of Pacific peoples, communities and countries, and undermines the full realisation of a peaceful, secure and sustainable future for our region”.
· This call was again reiterated at our Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting in the Cook Islands, in November of last year.
· If the world had heeded our calls 10, 20 years back – we would not be in this situation where we are contemplating scenarios that require difficult and complex choices concerning our homes, our ancestral lands, and our way of life as we know it.
The Pacific Regional Framework on Climate Mobility
· Very specific to this issue, the Pacific Regional Framework on Climate Mobility is a global first, recently endorsed by Leaders.
· The Framework, developed with leadership from Fiji and Tuvalu, is the first of its kind globally and is the result of over four years of inclusive consultations. It emphasises the fundamental priority of Pacific people to stay in their homes while ensuring mechanisms and pathways to protect the rights and dignity of those who choose to move.
· The nature of climate mobility requires that all voices are heard, and this pioneering Framework speaks to issues and impacts of climate change and disaster related mobility founded on our Pacific context, with the objective of placing our region and our people on a more resilient footing.
· We should not be forced to leave our homes, but as responsible leaders, we are mindful that should the need arise, mechanisms and pathways to protecting the human rights of our people on the move are in place and the rights and dignity of our people are protected.
· Fundamentally, the underlying principles of the Framework emphasise leadership and collaboration. I wish to highlight these important principles and commend the important leadership demonstrated through his important Forum today.
· Excellencies, I wish to also note that the Framework complements our Leaders’ Declaration on the Continuity of Statehood and the Protection of Persons, which emphasizes protection of persons as:
“protecting, promoting, and fulfilling their human rights, including civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, and also protecting their culture, cultural heritage, identity
and dignity, and meeting their essential needs, including through international cooperation”.
· The milestone Declaration then links the protection of persons to States’ important duty in ensuring protection of their people, and that continuity of statehood is necessary and fundamental for that protection to be implemented and to endure.
· Aligned to the 2050 Strategy for the Blue Pacific Continent, the implementation of the Framework will be guided by Pacific values of cooperation, innovation, and respect for diversity and heritage.
· We welcome and look forward to strengthened engagement with partners, civil society, youth, communities, regional and international organizations to help our people navigate the uncertainties arising from the impacts of climate change.
· We must move beyond rhetoric to meaningful action, recognizing that the impacts of climate change are not confined to scientific reports but are etched in the stories and struggles of our people.
· I thank you.
