Lumumba Di-Aping
Encyclopedia
Lumumba Stanislaus-Kaw Di-Aping is a Sudanese diplomat, who is the chief negotiator for the G77
group of developing nations
at the United Nations Climate Change Conference 2009, in Copenhagen
. The Republic of Sudan currently chairs the Group of 77.
He has been described as "a McKinsey and Oxford
-trained radical economist who not only matched the media spin of western countries, but was partly behind George Soros
's plan to use hundreds of billions of dollars of International Monetary Fund
special drawing rights to fund the financial deal."
going to tell his daughters? That their [Kenyan] relatives’ lives are not worth anything? It is unfortunate that after 500 years-plus of interaction with the West we [Africans] are still considered 'disposables'.... My good friends... we’ve got to get together and fight the fight." He suggested a couple of slogans: "One Africa, one degree" and "Two degrees is suicide", following which a demonstration was organised in the conference centre using the slogans and attracting a reported storm of media interest. On 10 December 2009, he made a direct appeal to the USA to join the Kyoto Protocol
and to contribute $200 billion "to save the world".
On 14 December, Di-Aping led the G77-China group in withdrawing cooperation from the negotiations. He stated: "It has become clear that the Danish presidency - in the most undemocratic fashion - is advancing the interests of the developed countries at the expense of the balance of obligations between developed and developing countries...The mistake they are doing now has reached levels that cannot be acceptable from a president who is supposed to be acting and shepherding the process on behalf of all parties."
On 19 December, Lumumba Dia-ping criticised Copenhagen's non-binding pact agreed by the United States, China, India, Brazil and South Africa. He said "[This] is asking Africa to sign a suicide pact, an incineration pact in order to maintain the economic dependence of a few countries. It's a solution based on values that funnelled six million people in Europe into furnaces." His remarks, comparing the climate-change deal reached to the Holocaust, have been condemned by both the UK climate secretary Ed Miliband
and Sweden's chief negotiator Anders Turesson.
climate change conference, Di-Aping had stated that "Developed countries have a massive leadership deficit. It's now up to their leaders to intervene and give a direction to the negotiations rather than waste everyone's time."
Group of 77
The Group of 77 at the United Nations is a loose coalition of developing nations, designed to promote its members' collective economic interests and create an enhanced joint negotiating capacity in the United Nations. There were 77 founding members of the organization, but the organization has...
group of developing nations
Developing country
A developing country, also known as a less-developed country, is a nation with a low level of material well-being. Since no single definition of the term developing country is recognized internationally, the levels of development may vary widely within so-called developing countries...
at the United Nations Climate Change Conference 2009, in Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
. The Republic of Sudan currently chairs the Group of 77.
He has been described as "a McKinsey and Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
-trained radical economist who not only matched the media spin of western countries, but was partly behind George Soros
George Soros
George Soros is a Hungarian-American business magnate, investor, philosopher, and philanthropist. He is the chairman of Soros Fund Management. Soros supports progressive-liberal causes...
's plan to use hundreds of billions of dollars of International Monetary Fund
International Monetary Fund
The International Monetary Fund is an organization of 187 countries, working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world...
special drawing rights to fund the financial deal."
At the United Nations Climate Change Conference 2009
He was highly critical of the so-called "Danish Text", which proposes measures to keep average global temperature rises to two degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. He said, "It's an incredibly imbalanced text intended to subvert, absolutely and completely, two years of negotiations. It does not recognize the proposals and the voice of developing countries". At a meeting of African delegates to the conference, he reportedly stated that: "We have been asked to sign a suicide pact.... What is [U.S. President Barack] ObamaBarack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
going to tell his daughters? That their [Kenyan] relatives’ lives are not worth anything? It is unfortunate that after 500 years-plus of interaction with the West we [Africans] are still considered 'disposables'.... My good friends... we’ve got to get together and fight the fight." He suggested a couple of slogans: "One Africa, one degree" and "Two degrees is suicide", following which a demonstration was organised in the conference centre using the slogans and attracting a reported storm of media interest. On 10 December 2009, he made a direct appeal to the USA to join the Kyoto Protocol
Kyoto Protocol
The Kyoto Protocol is a protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change , aimed at fighting global warming...
and to contribute $200 billion "to save the world".
On 14 December, Di-Aping led the G77-China group in withdrawing cooperation from the negotiations. He stated: "It has become clear that the Danish presidency - in the most undemocratic fashion - is advancing the interests of the developed countries at the expense of the balance of obligations between developed and developing countries...The mistake they are doing now has reached levels that cannot be acceptable from a president who is supposed to be acting and shepherding the process on behalf of all parties."
On 19 December, Lumumba Dia-ping criticised Copenhagen's non-binding pact agreed by the United States, China, India, Brazil and South Africa. He said "[This] is asking Africa to sign a suicide pact, an incineration pact in order to maintain the economic dependence of a few countries. It's a solution based on values that funnelled six million people in Europe into furnaces." His remarks, comparing the climate-change deal reached to the Holocaust, have been condemned by both the UK climate secretary Ed Miliband
Ed Miliband
Edward Samuel Miliband is a British Labour Party politician, currently the Leader of the Labour Party and Leader of the Opposition...
and Sweden's chief negotiator Anders Turesson.
In earlier discussions
Earlier in 2009, at the BangkokBangkok
Bangkok is the capital and largest urban area city in Thailand. It is known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon or simply Krung Thep , meaning "city of angels." The full name of Bangkok is Krung Thep Mahanakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahintharayutthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom...
climate change conference, Di-Aping had stated that "Developed countries have a massive leadership deficit. It's now up to their leaders to intervene and give a direction to the negotiations rather than waste everyone's time."