It’s time to fight for climate justice
In SA, the climate crisis is already here. In the past year we have seen devastating impacts that brought home the reality of climate change. In KwaZulu-Natal, floods washed away homes and roads, killing more than 70, displacing nearly 1,500 people. The damage will cost about R1bn to repair. In the Eastern Cape, continuing drought is ravaging the province, leaving many communities without access to water and posing a widespread threat to food security. In August, the University of Fort Hare and Walter Sisulu University had to close because of water shortages. Likewise, throughout the Karoo, a crippling drought is driving agriculture to the point of collapse.
Studies show that as a result of human-caused climate change, SA faces deepening inequality and is already 10%-20% poorer.
Climate change is worsening an already dire situation of deep inequality, poverty and unemployment. The outbreaks of xenophobic violence were the most recent expression of our multifaceted crisis.
On Friday, together with a broad coalition, we will take to the streets of Johannesburg to condemn xenophobic and gender-based violence in SA and call for systemic change to an economic system driving deep social inequality and ecological collapse. We recognised that the xenophobic attacks are linked to the deep inequalities and poverty facing SA.
The xenophobic attacks are also connected to the climate crisis, because increasing climate impacts are eroding traditional livelihoods and driving people from their homes and increasing migration. That’s why climate justice must include immigrant justice.
In the space of just a year, Mozambique was hit by two cyclones, leaving thousands dead, displacing millions, and levelling entire towns. Further inland, Zimbabwe faces a severe drought that has left much of the country reeling from water shortages. In Harare, about
2-million people have been left without water access as the city resorted to turning off people’s taps to deal with the shortages.
While the impacts of climate change are already devastating, the world’s foremost scientific bodies tell us that if we do not act to rapidly transform our societies away from polluting fossil fuels, we will face much worse. SA, as one of the world’s biggest climate polluters, has a responsibility to act — a responsibility that we are currently failing to uphold.
Together, as leaders in the trade union and climate justice movements, we reject the notion that action on climate change is necessarily in opposition to the interests of organised labour and job creation. Rather, if we embrace a just transition to a predominantly socially owned renewable energy future, we can protect workers in sectors like coal and also ensure robust job creation and sustainable economic growth.
Unions like the National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa) and the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) have been calling for a just transition towards a socially owned, renewable energy future for close on a decade. Those calls seem to have fallen on the deaf ears of a government that has been looting Eskom and locking us into a highly indebted, dysfunctional coal-power system, rather than embracing a more affordable, reliable, renewable energy future.
The lack of action by our government is why it is time for us to take to the streets, build a broad and diverse movement, and demand action for a just transition away from fossil fuels. Across the world, we have seen that when labour and the climate justice movements stand together, we can win big on ensuring robust transformative action on climate justice that brings benefits to the many, not just the few.
That’s why the South African Federation of Trade Unions (Saftu) endorsed the call for a global climate strike from Friday to September 27. Saftu has been joined by the Federation of Unions of SA (Fedusa) and unions across the world representing tens of millions of workers. The time for labour and the climate justice movement to stand together is here.
The strikes were called from across the world by children and young people who have been striking at school, demanding action on climate change. They recognise that climate change poses a dire threat to their future, and are standing up, demanding action on climate change.
But young people do not want to stand alone demanding climate justice. Alone they will not be able to secure action needed to ensure a better future for them. That’s why our youth, our children, are calling on everyone to stand with them and join them for the global climate strike. We will be answering their call for solidarity and taking a stand for climate justice. Will you?
Vavi is the general secretary of the South African Federation of Trade Unions. Dr Lenferna is a South African climate justice campaigner with 350Africa.org
● Ranjeni Munusamy is on leave