A-G: We need to be climate sensitive
The Attorney-General and Minister for Economy, Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum stressed that we need to be climate sensitive.
Mr Sayed-Khaiyum made the comment after officiating at the AsiaPacific Judicial Conference on Climate Change Adjudication at the Sheraton Fiji Resort in Denarau, Nadi yesterday.
The two-day conference was attended by more than 100 participants from judiciaries from at least 27 countries.
He said climate change was not a matter that was only concerned with small island states, the Pacific and coastal cities and towns and countries.
“We need to be able to understand fully the extent and the impact of climate change in the legal space,” Mr Sayed-Khaiyum said.
“Across jurisdictional perspectives, there are a number of issues we are trying to look at regarding the impact of climate change on national boundaries. Recently former Prime Minister of Australia suggested that perhaps, one of the Pacific island countries could be granted citizenship if Australia was granted territorial rights over the sinking island state. “When you have certain island countries that are only 12 feet above sea level and they have a string of islands and those islands start going under water, where do we start measuring the EEZ from? Do you measure the EEZ from the sunken islands or do you go back and measure from the islands that are actually above water?.”
He said because of the issue of the rising sea level, coral reefs were being damaged or obliterated. “The inability for our natural way of life to be able to cope with this catastrophic degradation of our environment has an enormous impact both on the land and the sea,” he added.
The conference ends today.