P.M. Shehbaz Sharif. Photo courtesy PID
Stressing that his calls for aid and support to Pakistan amidst unprecedented climate change-induced floods are a call for “climate justice,” Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has reiterated that it is the “responsibility of the developed” world to help overcome the crisis.
“I’ve never seen this kind of devastation, inundation and suffering of our people in my lifetime,” he told Britain’s The Guardian in an interview published on Thursday. “Millions have been displaced, they have become climate refugees within their own country,” he said, stressing that the billions in funds, donations and commitments for further support were “not enough.”
Last month, the prime minister met several global leaders on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly summit and urged them to help Pakistanis suffering the effects of climate change despite being responsible for just 0.8% of global carbon emissions. Reiterating this, he said the issue was one of climate justice. “We are not blaming anybody, we’re not casting allegations, what we are we saying is this is not of our making but we have become a victim. Should I be asked to cast my appeal into a begging bowl? That is double jeopardy. That’s unjust, unfair,” he said.
“The enormity of this climate-induced catastrophe is beyond our fiscal means,” he told The Guardian. “The gap between our needs and what is available is too wide and it is widening by the day,” he added. According to the government’s preliminary estimates, Pakistan has suffered damages amounting to $30-35 billion, but the prime minister noted this could rise as over 30,000km of roads had been destroyed, along with bridges, railways, power lines, and 10 million acres of crops.
Left behind
Responding to complaints that aid and assistance had yet to reach large areas of the country that had been inundated by floodwaters, P.M. Sharif conceded that the enormity of the disaster had prevented the government from doing as good a job as it should have. “But look at the distances alone. Some of these areas were cut off completely,” he said, stressing the Benazir Income Support Program was being used to disburse flood relief funds directly to victims transparently.
While appreciating statements of support from several global leaders, including U.N. Secretary General António Guterres and U.S. President Joe Biden, Sharif said it was more important for them to practically demonstrate their words into actions. “While they are doing a very good job, and we appreciate it, this is not enough. They must come forward with a far better and a far bigger plan to rescue us and rehabilitate us and put us back on our footing,” he emphasized.
No reparations
Despite his calls for “justice,” however, the prime minister said this was not about reparations. “I don’t think talk of reparations is proper at this point in time. What I am saying is that they should take notice of the situation, take responsibility and act speedily before it’s too late, before the damage becomes irreparable—not just for Pakistan, but for the world,” he said, noting that rich nations had committed over a decade ago to commit $100 billion annually for a climate fund to help less developed nations adapt to the climate crisis. “Where’s that money?” he asked. “It’s high time that we question and remind these countries to fulfil their commitments and pledges they have made,” he added.
To a question, Sharif said the government would be talking to “everybody”—including China and the Paris Club—about the possibility of foreign debt moratorium to ensure all available resources were used for flood victims. “What we are asking for is fiscal space but not through the burden of more debt,” he said, though his finance minister, Ishaq Dar, said he would prefer to avoid approaching the Paris Club, adding this would be possible if the global community “cooperates, donates and helps with the reconstruction.”
According to the National Disaster Management Authority, 1,697 people have died due to the floods thus far, while more than nine million have been displaced. It said over 2 million homes had been destroyed, and over 1 million livestock perished, leaving many survivors without any source of livelihood.