1992 RIO- TWENTY YEARS LATER

Gwynne Dyer has written a World Affairs column in the Woolwich Observer (June 30/12) that I find eye opening. The title is "No teeth-and no solutions-in final text from Rio+20". The original Earth Summit was also in Rio de Janeiro back in 1992. At that time if you remember the world was full of optimism regarding the environment. The 90's were being termed the "turnaround decade". The reality was a little bit different. It became the decade of the consultant. Studies, talk and reports replaced substantive action. Afterall they were all much less expensive while giving the appearance of addressing environmental problems. Money was to be made just so long as environmental degradation could continue unabated and the ecofreaks could be kept at arm's length. Governments continued their march towards being both private security and public relations for industry.

Gwynne Dyer in detailing environmental destruction states "By the time it starts to hurt large numbers of people in powerful countries, 20 or 30 years from now, most of the politicians who conspired to smother any substantial progress at the Rio+20 Earth Summit will be safely beyond the reach of any law. But eventually there will be a law.". Further Mr. Dyer states "Rarely has such a large elephant laboured so long to give birth to such a small mouse. The declared goal of the conference was to reconcile economic development and environmental protection by giving priority to the goal of a "green" (ie. sustainable ) economy, simply vanished in a cloud of vague generalities.". One of the events leading up to the Rio+20 was the World Congress on Justice, Law and Governance for Environmental Sustainability. There a group of lawyers suggested that "ecocide" should be made a crime. Again quoting Mr. Dyer "One day, after many great tragedies (environmental) have occurred, there will be a law against ecocide. But almost all the real culprits will be gone by then.".