A consultation on climate change in Manipur and COP28 of UNFCC organised by Centre for Research and Advocacy Manipur (CRAM), Youth’s Forum for Protection of Human Rights (YFPHR) and Go Green Group, Manipur at Manipur press club on Saturday adopted several resolutions for ensuring climate justice.
The consultation resolved to review the Manipur State Action Plan on Climate Change and other climate policies to ensure its compliance with gender friendly, human rights and sustainable development goals in its implementation.
It also resolved that the government of India, multinational corporations and international financial institutions should recognise indigenous people’s self-determined rights over their land and resources before targeting their land and resources for all development processes.
All MoUs for mega dams, oil exploration, mining, agri-business(Palm Oil) pursued without their consent should be revoked for possible adverse impacts on environment, people and climate in Manipur.
Some of the resolutions are that the government should stop classifying large dams as a renewable and green solution for climate change as large dams are no solution for climate change and should review and rescind its plan to promote palm oil plantation in Manipur and North East given its documented adverse impacts on people, environment and climate in other places;
It also resolved to repeal neoliberal policies, such as Forest Conservation Amendment Bill,2023,Manipur Palm Oil (Regulation of Production and Processing)Act, 2021,Manipur Hydro Power Policy, 2012,North East hydrocarbon vision 2030, EIANotification, 2020,etc.
Further the consultation resolved that International Financial Institutions and corporates should stop financing unsustainable development projects and false climate solutions with social, environment and climate impacts; climate finance should desist funding social and environmentally damaging projects.
It was also resolved that all climate change mitigation and adaptation related policies should ensure compliance with indigenous people’s rights as per UN Declaration on Indigenous Peoples Rights, 2007; COP 28 of UNFCCC should desist from any decisions to promote false climate solutions that serve corporate bodies interest for profiting by plundering peoples land and resources; support the global call for concrete commitments with dedicated resources to address the loss and damages due to impacts of climate change, especially in the light of increased disaster in Manipur; stop targeting human rights defenders and communities advancing just development and climate justice; Indigenous people’s traditional sustainable management of land and natural resources, including role of women, youths etc and their low consumption and carbon oriented way of life must be promoted in all development decision making processes that can affect their land, lives and future.
Addressing the gathering, secretary of Centre for Research and Advocacy, Manipur Jiten Yumnam shared that Manipur is affected by climate change, leading to increased disaster, diseases, high temperatures, flood, drought etc. Unsustainable development projects caused destruction of land, forest, water bodies and thus affected the livelihood of indigenous peoples and worsening climate change.
The COP 28 of UNFCCC should desist from any decisions to promote false climate solutions and unjust energy projects, he said.
Loktak Fisheries Welfare Association Chaoba Heisnam shared that the Loktak project affected more than 50,000 hectares of land and led to loss of traditional rice varieties. Loktak wetlands have become much shallower due to sedimentation, he said. He mentioned that the life of Loktak Project has been extended further by another 25 years despite the call by affected communities to decommission the project.
The National Hydroelectric Power Corporation even tried to seek carbon credits from the Loktak Project from the Clean Development Mechanism of UNFCCC by falsely claiming the project as climate friendly, he added.
