DCJ/CAN – ENGO Intervention June 21

Tobias Holle

Thank you for giving us the floor. I’m speaking on behalf of ENGO-CAN and ENGO-DCJ

We align with the intervention of the other rights-based constituencies and explicitly echo the intervention by the WGC to call on Parties to propose the creation of a formal Disability Constituency to represent their interests directly – they need to sit at this very table.

In the last years we have seen a continued assault on civic space, in and outside of the venue with regrettable complicity of the UNFCCC. Freedom of speech and of peaceful assembly are human rights and key for effective climate action at all levels, local, regional, and international, and must be protected in order to ensure meaningful observer engagement in the process which will lead to stronger outcomes. We urge parties to require the Secretariat to protect freedom of expression and peaceful assembly in the Blue Zone and to facilitate advocacy actions that do not unduly restrict the ability of observers to creatively and powerfully communicate their messages.

The crucial tasks of observers can only be fulfilled if they are in negotiation rooms – assuming they received a visa as already stated in our intervention yesterday. Those rooms have to be open, accessible and interpretation needs to be guaranteed. The ticketing system is inadequate and chaotic; there should be space for at least 2 people per constituency in each negotiation. We welcome the promise by the COP30 presidency to include all rights-based observer constituencies in the pre-COP events and look forward to a meaningful engagement.

We thank the parties proposed constituencies to hold their interventions in plenary sessions after the regional groups which is a lasting proposal from constituencies.

At the same time, the intransparency of the badge allocation processes including the allocation of Party Overflow badges is an ongoing issue and limits us in our coordination throughout the year as well as proposing concrete steps in more meaningful engagement regarding the increased number of observer organisations.

We also must recognize that observers representing polluting interests are beholden to advance an agenda that is in direct contravention with the mandate of the UNFCCC. We call on Parties to finally take steps to protect the UNFCCC from the undue and vested interests of the fossil fuel and other emissions intensive industries. This should involve adopting rigorous measures to guide engagement with representatives from non-governmental organizations. These measures should prevent entities with private, polluting interests from unduly influencing or undermining UNFCCC activities and processes through their engagement as representatives of non-governmental organizations; strengthen the process for admission and accreditation of observers within the UNFCCC and its convenings; and draw on established international precedents, including from other UN bodies.

Thank you!