World
A devastating Category 5 cyclone shred through the Pacific island nation of Vanuatu this weekend, which aid workers say decimated well over half of the capital of Port Vila, as well as homes across the islands. President Baldwin Lonsdale went so far to say that the country would be forced to “start anew,” given the extent of the damage. Cyclone Pam’s death toll is still unknown, since telephone and power lines have yet to be restored.
Vanuatu is made up of several dozen tiny islands, many of which are presumed to have fared worse than Port Vila. As one restaurant owner told NBC News, Port Vila’s buildings are at least made of concrete - unlike the huts on the other atolls. Other reports have painted a similarly grave portrait: schools, crops, and public utilities were obliterated in the storm’s wake.
While President Lonsdale immediately allocated a portion of the state budget toward recovery and relief efforts, it is unlikely to be enough on its own. Venuatu is one of the least developed countries in the world, with a GDP of less than $1 billion. (For comparison, nearby Australia’s is over $1.5 trillion.) As a result, the international community will be footing a portion of the bill - Australia reportedly pledged $5 million already, and has teamed up with New Zealand to provide equipment for search, rescue, and relief efforts. The Red Cross and UNICEF have also committed to providing humanitarian relief services.
But Cyclone Pam is more than just a natural disaster. It is a demonstrable effect of worldwide climate change, which scientists and development experts have long warned will hit Pacific Island states the hardest. Countries like Venuatu, Kiribati, Tuvalu and the Marshall Islands are miniscule, impoverished, low-seated, and isolated in the middle of a turbulent ocean, making them incredibly vulnerable to the effects of global warming.
The imminent threat posed to the developing nations of Oceania raise global questions that go beyond aid in the immediate aftermath of a cataclysm. The Pacific Islands are expected to be rendered uninhabitable when the water from melted ice caps eventually overtakes them. Estimates vary on how long this might take, but sea levels are already rising at alarming rates. (One photo series from last year shows how much of Kiribati has been flooded over the past several years, with homes at times partially submerged in several feet of water.)
The looming fate of Venuatu and its neighbors raises the question of what exactly the world owes to the victims of global warming. In the case of Oceania, this discussion often invokes Australia and New Zealand, the region’s wealthiest and most developed states. While Australia and New Zealand provide moderate aid to their poorer neighbors, they have been slow to act decisively. Australia has been criticized by islanders for failing to take initiative to improve the plight of victims who stand to lose their homes. New Zealand made headlines in 2013 when it rejected an application for asylum filed by a refugee from Kiribati. The applicant unsuccessfully argued that he had been thrust from his coastal home by global warming, which constituted human prosecution since it is a man-made problem.
In 2014, Auckland finally granted asylum to a resident of Tuvalu, who officially became Oceania’s first successful applicant citing climate change. Look for tragedies like the cyclone in Venuatu to reignite the debate - and in the process force more developed nations to decide what role they'll play in this worsening humanitarian crisis.
