ID :
11992
Thu, 07/10/2008 - 10:28
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/11992
The shortlink copeid
NGOs criticize G-8's lack of real action, vow to monitor aid pledges
RUSUTSU, Japan, July 10 Kyodo - Japanese and international nongovernmental organizations on Wednesday criticized the Group of Eight nations for failing to agree on real action to tackle global crises as the leaders ended a three-day summit in northern Japan.
''The G-8 failed to rise to the challenge of a world in crisis, a world that is demanding serious action,'' said Jeremy Hobbs, executive director of international aid agency Oxfam. ''Several governments championed steps forward, but in the end this summit did not deliver the breakthroughs so urgently needed.'' Daniel Mittler, Greenpeace International political adviser, said, ''These have been three wasted days that the world cannot afford. The G-8 has offered nothing new on the food crisis, gave the wrong answer to rising oil prices and put off action on climate change.'' The G-8 leaders agreed at the summit that they would set a long-term goal of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by at least 50 percent by 2050, but only if the rest of the world came on board. They also vowed to help Africa overcomethe food security crisis, but with little in the way of specifics.
Masaki Inaba, chair of the Global Health Committee of the G8 Summit NGO Forum, gave the leaders a general score of B-minus for the substance of their agreements on health-related issues but applauded a new mechanism to monitorand evaluate the progress of the major nations' commitments.
''Until now, there has been no continuous mechanism on G-8 accountability,'' Inaba said. Meanwhile, he pointed out that the leaders are still failing tocommit to clear financial and action plans.
Similarly, Sayaka Funada Classen, a steering committee member of the TICAD 4 NGO network, said, ''For the Japanese, international and other NGOs, what we have to do now is follow-up, in the field of policy and seeing that what they promised is really reaching the people.'' On a more positive aspect, Funada said the G-8 summit, as well as Japan's hosting of the Tokyo International Conference on African Development in May, created the opportunity for NGOs in Japan to gain presence and furtherstrengthen their networks with overseas organizations.
''Japanese society as a whole now recognizes the role of civil society,'' shesaid.
Toko Tomita, a program coordinator at Hunger Free World, echoed Funada, saying, ''We discussed how this network that's been built among civil society in Japan should be carried on and that's very positive.'' Some 100 NGO participants from about 20 countries gathered at the G-8 summit's International Media Center in Rusutsu, a ski resort close to the summit venueof Lake Toya in Hokkaido during the three-day event.
==Kyodo
''The G-8 failed to rise to the challenge of a world in crisis, a world that is demanding serious action,'' said Jeremy Hobbs, executive director of international aid agency Oxfam. ''Several governments championed steps forward, but in the end this summit did not deliver the breakthroughs so urgently needed.'' Daniel Mittler, Greenpeace International political adviser, said, ''These have been three wasted days that the world cannot afford. The G-8 has offered nothing new on the food crisis, gave the wrong answer to rising oil prices and put off action on climate change.'' The G-8 leaders agreed at the summit that they would set a long-term goal of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by at least 50 percent by 2050, but only if the rest of the world came on board. They also vowed to help Africa overcomethe food security crisis, but with little in the way of specifics.
Masaki Inaba, chair of the Global Health Committee of the G8 Summit NGO Forum, gave the leaders a general score of B-minus for the substance of their agreements on health-related issues but applauded a new mechanism to monitorand evaluate the progress of the major nations' commitments.
''Until now, there has been no continuous mechanism on G-8 accountability,'' Inaba said. Meanwhile, he pointed out that the leaders are still failing tocommit to clear financial and action plans.
Similarly, Sayaka Funada Classen, a steering committee member of the TICAD 4 NGO network, said, ''For the Japanese, international and other NGOs, what we have to do now is follow-up, in the field of policy and seeing that what they promised is really reaching the people.'' On a more positive aspect, Funada said the G-8 summit, as well as Japan's hosting of the Tokyo International Conference on African Development in May, created the opportunity for NGOs in Japan to gain presence and furtherstrengthen their networks with overseas organizations.
''Japanese society as a whole now recognizes the role of civil society,'' shesaid.
Toko Tomita, a program coordinator at Hunger Free World, echoed Funada, saying, ''We discussed how this network that's been built among civil society in Japan should be carried on and that's very positive.'' Some 100 NGO participants from about 20 countries gathered at the G-8 summit's International Media Center in Rusutsu, a ski resort close to the summit venueof Lake Toya in Hokkaido during the three-day event.
==Kyodo
