Indonesia govt told not to force through Bali Commitment
Indonesia govt told not to force through Bali Commitment
Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post, Nusa Dua, Bali
The Indonesian government, currently hosting the UN meeting on sustainable development here, should not insist that the final document, called the Bali Commitment, be completed since there are too many contentious issues blocking negotiations, NGOs say.
Martin Kohr, who represented NGOs at the multidialog meeting with ministers on Thursday, said that forcing the completion of the document could damage the image and the reputation of Indonesia as the draft plan of implementations contain "bad things."
"We understand that the Indonesian government would like to have the name of Bali (on the document), but it would be better to stick to the principles and to leave everything in bold rather than have a Bali Commitment that contained unfavorable things," he told The Jakarta Post after the meeting.
The Indonesian government is required by UN resolution to seal the draft plan of implementation for the World Summit on Sustainable Development during the current ministerial meeting in Bali.
Since negotiations have met with so many stumbling blocks, Indonesia has been approaching opposite groups to ensure that the draft plan of implementations is finalized in Bali before the meeting ends on Friday.
Khor suggested that the unresolved points in the draft plan of the implementation be left in bold or brackets and be brought to Johannesburg, where world leaders will have their summit in August and September.
"The name of Bali would be worse. There is no harm in having a few square brackets in Johannesburg," he said.
The meeting lasted for more than an hour, with not that many ministers attended the session, and only a few of them responded to the major groups' statement.
The meeting was attended by representatives of the nine major groups: NGOs, Youths, Women, indigenous people, scientists, local governments, workers, farmers and businesses.
These groups also requested that the draft plan incorporate measures to demand corporate accountability and review the Bretton Woods institutions (the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund).
Youth, Women's, NGOs and indigenous people's groups are demanding that business communities consider the environmental impacts when conducting their activities.
Khor further added that the Bali meeting would be meaningful if it could promote an alternative economic paradigm that opposed current ones, now dominated by the World Bank, the IMF and the World Trade Organization (WTO).
The problems at the World Summit of Sustainable Development would remain the same, that is, that the implementation of sustainable development would again be overshadowed by the World Bank, the IMF and the WTO, he remarked.
The Bretton Woods institutions had stronger influence in the world as their agreements and policies as independent bodies were compulsory and legally binding.
These institutions are considered to represent the interests of multinational corporations and developed countries like the United States.
On the other hand, the United Nations' conventions and summits, like the next one in Johannesburg, which favor developing countries do not enjoy the same kind of authority as the Bretton Woods institutions.
Khor also said that the groups had asked developed countries to support developing countries, especially in dealing with their mounting debts.
"We also warn the governments not to take the partnerships issue as a substitute for political commitments of the developed countries," he remarked.