Essay by Eric Worrall
I have fond memories of visiting Vanuatu in 2019. My tour guide was in Luganville gave me a free lift back into town, turned down my offer of lunch or beer, and pointed out the best steakhouse in town. People dressed in rags waved their hands and laughed, not bothering me. There are no aggressive thugs. But even heaven has its problems.
‘Teach our children from books, not the sea’: How climate change is eroding human rights in Vanuatu
Published: November 8, 2022 10.59am AEDT
Karen E McNamara Associate Professor, University of Queensland
Rachel Clissold Researcher, University of Queensland
Ross Westoby Research Fellow, Griffith UniversityThere is much at stake over the next two weeks as nations gather at the COP27 climate conference in Egypt. But the stakes are probably highest for the Pacific islands and their people.
A report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change last year said global warming above 1.5℃ would be “disastrous“For the Pacific island nations. Sea level rise could lead to the loss of entire Pacific countries this century.
Such damage is a fundamental threat to the human rights of the people of the Pacific, who, as a research paper reminds us, not merely “victims” of climate change, but “real people with dignity and dreams for the future”.
We conducted research for the government of Vanuatu about how climate change is affecting the human rights of highly exposed populations in the country. We have heard stories of loss and resilience from people whose lives and traditions are being torn apart by this global disaster.
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Find the problem? Every Vanuatu I’ve talked to hates their politicians, they practically spit when they talk about them.
People from Luganville to Port Villa call their parliament “The Number One Corruption House”. “House No. Two Corruption” is their name for huge but mostly empty Chinese-funded loans Vanuatu . National Convention Centerconstruction and maintenance costs have already bankrupted the entire country – to the point that Vanuatu has been forced to cede some of its top tourist attractions to Chinese creditors, gatekeepers and ticket sellers on roads that Previously it was free.
I’m not saying that the people of Vanuatu don’t care about money. The people of Vanuatu are not socialist – they believe in making an honest dollar. But the kind people I met blended the joys of life with their businesses. The people I’ve met would rather that the road be free, but offer drinks along the way.
The tour guides who guided me to the best steakhouse in town helped me a lot. The steak I ate was outstanding, one of the best I’ve ever eaten, cooked to absolute perfection – and costing only $6. The other customers in the restaurant were mostly civil servants. Australia from their conversation.
I don’t know if the Vanuatu government is as corrupt as people have told me. But I certainly believe that Vanuatu’s politicians have messed up the nation’s finances, by borrowing huge loans from China that Vanuatu is struggling to repay. They admitted in 2019 they can’t afford to maintain that expensive giant convention center.
We took doxycycline the entire time we were in Vanuatu, and for several weeks afterwards. My Australian doctor advised another thing the Vanuatuan government had messed with was malaria control.
The government didn’t mess things up in Vanuatu. The street is safe for Westerners to walk. Crime rate comparable to Australia – a remarkable fact, no matter how poor the people are, it’s totally believable when you meet some laid-back locals.
In my opinion, the last thing the people of Vanuatu need is for those politicians to become more powerful, for the climate vans to be dropped into the hands of politicians who have proven inadequate. money capacity.
Update (EW): Added pictures of the best restaurants in Luganville. I felt completely safe during my stay in Vanuatu, even though I was carrying an expensive camera in the blink of an eye.
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