Wednesday, December 16, 2009 at the Bella Center– Erin Schutte

Security was at its tightest today as protestors attempted to storm the conference center, the metro station shut down, and even registered observers with their secondary passes were denied entrance the Bella Center after one unnamed delegation supposedly let in some delegates through a back door.  Fortunately, I got inside the center at about 8:15 AM this morning before all of this commotion got out of hand.

The feelings of urgency and frustration harbored over diplomats in COP15 as they reach the final days of the conference, and they still have not agreed on a document in that all delegations are willing to commit.   Inside the plenary, where the president of the conference moderates the discussions, delegates are working frantically to agree on text to submit to the Heads of State arriving in Copenhagen as early as today.  I was extremely fortunate to be one of the few NGO representatives to be present inside the high plenary where many presidents, prime ministers, and chief negotiators gave speeches arguing each of their country’s position.

I entered the plenary at ten this morning during the short time security forces allowed NGO observers access to the negotiations room.  “There is still no consensus on many key issues,” Madame President (of the conference) stated in her opening words.  This tone carried on as delegates spoke from their seats and called out concerns of their nations.   “I have the feeling of dread that we are on Titanic and sinking fast,” announced a delegate from the small island of Tuvalu.  “It is time to launch the lifeboats and save the process. Consider the legal text and move forward.” Tuvalu, a member of The Alliance of Small Island States, already sees devastating effects of climate change on is homeland due to rising sea level, and therefore has become one of the most firm advocates of acting fast here in Copenhagen.

In opposition to small countries that rarely have an international voice in any aspect of international agreements are generally the large superpowers of the developed world that also happen to be leaders in greenhouse emissions.  South Africa expressed the voice of the G77/China alliance, and stated that the “Text is not yet in the form to be ready for consideration.”  This is actually because the AWG-KP, the group working on amending the Kyoto Protocol, had worked throughout the night editing their text for an agreement, and most delegates had still not seen the changes made.  Other alliances include the Bolivarian Alliance, Arab states, Least Developed Countries, among many more who contribute to the fragile web of negotiations.

Discussion continued like this until the President closed the session and announced that the Prime Minister of Denmark will take over the position of presidency in order to welcome the Heads of States as the arrive in the next couple days.  This announcement that the president was resigning spread like wildfire throughout the conference and the media, but in actuality it is a very procedural thing and was not unexpected.

Because everything was running behind time at this point, the session I was sitting in on quickly rolled over into the next session, considered the “high plenary”.  At this point, for anyone to enter the room they had to have a special badge, which I didn’t have, so I just stayed put in my seat.  I was so thrilled that they moved from one session to another so I was able to view this next session of Heads of State taking the podium and voicing their countries’ views on climate change and what step should be taken at this stage, right now.  I could hardly sit still I was so excited, and I sent an email saying just the same and that I would stay in the room as long as I could…even if it meant no bathroom or food breaks.  I was so engaged in the talks, and I could not believe that I was actually being exposed to international relations and diplomacy at this most ground-breaking level.

A few minutes later, a man sat down behind me and asked if I was an NGO.  I told him yes, and I thought I was a goner.  Rather, this kind-hearted Danish Protection Officer whispered, “You’re going to be okay.  I read an email you sent, and I figured you may want a break.  I’ve already talked to the guard in the back, and he’ll let you back in.  You can even leave you things here, because you will get back in.  And, I promise I’ll stop reading your emails.”  I shouldn’t have been surprised that every email sent in this venue was being monitored for security issues by top Danish Protection Officials.  I was shocked by his offer though, and I quickly slipped outside to get some candy from a vending machine for lunch, and made it back in where the man had saved my seat.  He wished me a good day and went on his way.  I guess that’s what you call an act of kindness, or just plain lucky on my part.

The high plenary consisted of one Head of State after another—Sudan, Ethiopia, Grenada, Lesotho, Sweden, Senegal—and then there was a protest.  Two demonstrators chanted on stage before the security guards grabbed them and got them out a back exit door.  The speakers continued with Australian Minister of Climate Change Penny Wong addressing the urgency of the Copenhagen conference.  “Transparency is central, and in the next 3 days we must seal the deal,” she said.  The President of Mali followed her and the most exciting speech was saved for last with President of Venezuela, Hugo Chavez.

Venezuelan President, Hugo Chavez, speaking in the High Plenary on Wednesday.

Chavez spoke less about the specifics of climate change than his support of the protestors, and he criticized the powerful countries of China—and especially the US—very harshly. “We won’t be able to reduce material consumption if we don’t ensure that the powerful come down a few steps and bring equality.  We need to consume less and distribute things better,” Chavez argued.  He argued for a single agreement to come out of Copenhagen, and was adamant that the only way to do this is through socialism.  “Capitalism is the road to hell” were Hugo Chavez’ parting remarks.

This concluded the 5^th High Plenary Session, and everyone was ushered out of the room for a security check.  This meant no reentrance for me, but rather than leaving the area completely, I hung around the reception area with the delegates just to see what would happen next.  A middle-aged man and a young blonde woman sat down beside me and we started visiting; I learned that the she was the youngest Minister in her country’s history, and he also was a diplomat.  We talked casually for a while about a wide variety of topics—besides for the typical talk of how negotiations were going, she showed me photos of her meeting Arnold Schwarzenegger the night before (“Arnie” as she giddily called him) and I discussed American football (Go Vikings!) with the man.  Soon, they started scheming about a way to include me in their Delegation in order for me to enter the next session of the plenary.  I couldn’t believe I was just offered a spot inside a nation’s delegation and a seat towards the front of these negotiations.  Unfortunately though, they weren’t even able to enter the plenary for this session because of such high security standards, so the three of us had to make our exit.

Next, I went to a Side Event put on by the United Nations, where Secretary General Ban Ki Moon planned to speak. He was a bit late because he was needed inside the negotiations, but he genuinely apologized and said with a sigh, “Well, I guess it is better to be late than never.”  He gave updated progress on negotiations during the past few hours, and commended the unprecedented and overwhelming response by world leaders even though negotiations have been moving really slowly.  This seemed to be a common conclusion after each day of the conference, and I can only imagine how frustrating it must be.  However, I agree with the passionate and cautiously optimistic Secretary General when he concluded, “Every country has domestic problems and national agendas, but this is a global challenge, and we need a global response.”  And even though this is my last opportunity to experience the conference first hand, there are still a few more days for world leaders to work frantically towards consensus, and hopefully, lasting commitment.

Erin Schutte is a Sophmore at Yale University majoring in Political Science and Modern Middle East Studies