by Robert Emmanuel (Antigua Observer) “It cannot be expected that our people will remain silent as their homes are irretrievably destroyed.”
Those were the words from Prime Minister Gaston Browne who addressed members of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) – the UN’s maritime court – as a coalition of small island states seeks an advisory opinion on the obligations of countries to combat climate change.
The action was brought on behalf of the Commission of Small Island States on Climate Change and International Law (COSIS), which is a joint effort of the Tuvalu and Antigua and Barbuda governments, as the Prime Ministers of both countries presented their arguments before the court in Hamburg, Germany.
Prime Minister Browne told tribunal President, Judge Albert Hoffmann, and a panel of judges that as small island countries continue to face the existential threat of rising sea levels, it is vital for the major polluting countries to take action and for international law to protect the most climate vulnerable states.
