The annual global climate change talks have started in Glasgow but most Pacific leaders can’t get there.
Only four Pacific leaders are able to attend COP26 – Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Tuvalu, and Palau – while leaders from10 Pacific nations remain at home because of Covid travel restrictions.
New Zealand’s community outbreak has prevented Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown from traveling to Glasgow and he says COP26 organisers should allow virtual voting.
To listen to the interview please check RNZ’s website: https://www.rnz.co.nz/international/programmes/datelinepacific/audio/2018818713/cook-islands-pm-perplexed-by-lack-of-virtual-voting-at-cop26
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Deeply disappointing oversights and neglect by the Cop26 planning committee to ensure inclusion and accessibility for all to attend. Forgetting wheelchair access at venues or the online tools for inclusion to ensure representatives who face travel restrictions due to Covid can participate in voting is simply shameful and unacceptable. I hope this isn’t an indication of what to expect from the outcomes of this criticality important event.