O.N.E - January 2010

Just back from the UN Summit in Copenhagen, Lot Felizco talks about life as an Oxfam campaigner in 2009…

What did Oxfam Hong Kong get done in 2009? O.N.E revisits the year, month by month.

On this first day, we look back at 2OO9

2 O1O J a n u a r y 一月

F r i d ay 星期五十七日己丑年十一月大

Oxfam News E-Magazine

In the Philippines, where I am

from, the Feast of the Three Kings

is celebrated on the first Sunday of

January. This Feast marks the end of

the Christmas season; people start

directing their attention to the new

year.

Yes, it is the beginning of another

new year, a time that lends itself

well to reflection, to looking back

and planning ahead. We began

the last year with a firm resolve to

contribute to the global campaign for

a fair, ambitious, and legally-binding

climate deal that would see developed

countries dramatically reduce their

greenhouse gas emissions as well as

provide developing countries with

the financing necessary to adapt to

climate change impacts and to reduce

their own emissions. In the context of

the painfully slow climate negotiations

that saw rich countries unwilling to

honour their commitments, Oxfam

said: delay kills. We warned that over

the next six years, the number of

people hit by climate-related disasters

is expected to increase by more than

50 per cent; and that nearly 400

million people, mostly in developing

countries, are likely to be affected by

disasters such as floods, storms and

drought.

And so we set forth with various

initiatives to raise awareness on

climate change and poverty, and

to urge people to lend their voice

to the call for an agreement to be

reached at the UN climate summit

held in Copenhagen in December

2009. In Mainland China, we released

a pioneering report on how climate

change is affecting the country’s

poor regions, and launched the ‘I Do’

campaign against climate and poverty,

which was, incidentally, our first-ever

public campaign in the Mainland.

We supported national campaigns in

the Philippines, Indonesia, as well as

in Bangladesh, and helped organise

regional campaigns in southeast

Asia during key moments of the

climate negotiations. We were invited

into the official delegation of the

Philippines , where we provided

technical support and advice on

the adaptation negotiations. We

supported projects in Bangladesh,

Indonesia, and the Philippines on

community-based adaptation. And in

Hong Kong, we organised many public

events throughout the year, supported

a motion debate in the Legislative

Council, organised a celebrity visit to

Bangladesh to witness the impacts

of climate change there, and helped

establish the Coalition to Combat

Climate Change. The Oxfam Trailwalker

2009 also carried the theme of fighting

climate change to fight poverty. We

highlighted how Hong Kong emits

twice the global per capita average

of carbon dioxide, and therefore, how

we, as a community, bear responsibility

for climate change.

Given all these efforts, it is not

without some heartache that I look

back at how the Copenhagen summit

failed to deliver an agreement,

effectively pushing the timeline

for a legally-binding deal to the

end of 2010. And not only that, in

Copenhagen, developed countries

tinkered with the process in such

HOpea way that it has heightened even

more the atmosphere of distrust and

divisiveness that plagues the climate

negotiations.

As Shorbanu Khatun, a climate

migrant at the summit with Oxfam said:

“I came all the way from a displaced

persons camp on the flooded coast

of Bangladesh to see justice done for

the 45,000 people made homeless by

cyclone Aila. How do I tell them their

misery has fallen on deaf ears?”

But we can help ensure that our

leaders will eventually listen. The

past year was a landmark year for

mobilisations on climate change – 18

million people have signed up to the

call for a global deal; the 100,000-

strong march in Copenhagen was the

largest the country had ever seen. We

must say to our leaders: we are not

done yet. We must continue to act, so

that we can continue to hope.

Lot Felizco is the director of policy, campaigns a n d c o m m u n i c a t i o n s o f O x f a m H o n g Kong. In December 2009, she attended the Copenhagen summit as an adviser on the Philippine delegation. She has been based in Hong Kong with the agency since 2002.

By Lot Felizco

O.N.EJanuary2O1O �

Lot Felizco (centre) with the team of Oxfam Hong Kong campaigners at the Copenhagen Summit (left to right): Wayne Law, Xiao Xin, Stanley So and Wang Binbin

“Climate Crisis” – a poster for a 30-second video about climate change and poverty


JAN

What will the year 2010 bring? This girl seems uncertain. A young student in Nghe An, Vietnam, she seems

to want to know, to learn. The year 2009 marked the agency’s 20th year of working in Vietnam, and the

breadth of experience was recorded in the book, TogeTher for Change, in a Vietnamese and English

edition. The agency has assisted almost 1,000,000 people in about 1,000 communities across the country.

It is the agency’s second largest programme, after mainland China.

Photo: Aidan Dockery

FeBThe illustrator of this big, cuddly

bear doesn't usually mark

Valentine's Day. In 2009, he did,

with this bear. He feels ‘the animal

brings a feeling of warmth, peace

and tolerance,’ and maybe that is

what Fair Trade is all about. For

Be My fair ValenTine, the bear

featured on an Oxfam Fair Trade

gift box full of chocolate, incense,

giftcards and candles.

www.fairtradehk.org

Artist: Bigsoil

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MAR These women star in Sisters on the Planet, an Oxfam film on CliMaTe Change which

premiered in Hong Kong on 8 March 2009, inTernaTional WoMen's Day.

www.oxfam.org.hk/climatechange

ApRIn the game Make a liVing, everyone has a low-

paid job. As in Monopoly, players can acquire as-

sets, yet it is not easy: opportunities on offer may

be expensive, and tax reductions may not apply. The

Oxfam game is designed to be part of Hong Kong’s

Liberal Studies curriculum.

To order: www.cyberschool.oxfam.org.hk/resources.php?cat=8&id=8

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SAHENA pReSIDeNT, WOMeN’S COMMITTeeKUNDeRTAR, BANGLADeSH

There are ten disaster

committees in this area, and

the women elected me to

become the leader of ours…

The fact that we have united

to form this group is really

a matter of pride for us

women. We are not born to

suffer. We are born to fight.

Photo: Amin/Oxfam

MURIELSeNIOR MeMBeR, eNVIRONMeNT MINISTRY, BRAZIL

Women traditionally take

care of agriculture. They

ensure the stability of the

family, they feed people, and

they need to deal with many

things at the same time…

As supporters of their

families, they are the anchor

of the territory. Break this

stability, and all we'll have

left are shattered societies.

Photo: Tatiana Cardeal/ Oxfam

MELISSA TeACHeR, LONDON, eNGLAND

My job is to make the

children aware and empower

them to do something. It's

not to make them think 'Oh,

this is awful', but to make

them see they can have a

voice, they can be powerful

and they can make a

difference.

Photo: Caroline/ Oxfam

MARTINAFARMeR, JIe, UGANDA

In the past, there were lots

of trees and they used to

give us lots of fruit. Now

the land is bare… We're

experiencing extreme

drought... Even the few

livestock we still own aren't

getting enough water…

I get so anxious. There

aren't enough words to

express the pain to you.

Photo: Geoff Sayer/Oxfam

MAY

12 May 2008 – the day of China’s massive

earthquake. The agency response began

within an hour. Within a month, the

agency had assisted 300,000 survivors;

within three months, about 600,000

people. By 12 May 2009, the agency’s

HK$135 million reconstruction plan was

in place. Throughout, the participatory

approach remained: working together

with poor people, especially with women,

ethnic minorities and very remote

villagers. These Qiang minority women

in rural Sichuan (pictured) participate in

project design.

Photo: Wang Binbin / Oxfam Hong Kong

JUN

On the hot summer afternoon of

5 June, WorlD enVironMenT Day,

we placed two human sculptures of

ice in the middle of Hong Kong's

Central District. Inside the ice, the

words: Don't be cold-hearted and

impassive – your emissions kill.

Hong Kong emits twice the global per

capita average of carbon dioxide.

www.oxfam.org.hk/climatechange

Photo: Boogie Chiu


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JUL

July 2009 saw two publications:

gooD fashion, a free guide on corporate social

responsibility for Hong Kong’s huge garment industry,

is available from Kwok Ho Wong

([email protected]).

For the annual Hong Kong Book Fair in July, which

drew about 900,000 visitors in 2009, we launched

These are The BasiCs. Published in Chinese, the book

demonstrates how hard it is for low-income countries to

provide education, health care and other basic services.

To order oxfam books: www.oxfam.org.hk/public/bookstore/list


AUG

Disomenica Basanayake, 64, grows nutmeg and

other spices in Sri Lanka. In the past, she sold to

an intermediary, who would keep much of the

profits and rarely paid on time. Nowadays,

she sells directly to Fair Trade groups, and in

August 2009, the spices were available at Oxfam’s

fair TraDe PaVilion of the annual

hong kong fooD exPo. "Fair Trade has brought

tremendous change to our family," she says.

"It has made our lives much more comfortable and

brought smiles back to our faces… We are proud

of our Fair Trade products.”

There are now over 100 Fair Trade outlets in Hong Kong: www.fairtradehk.org

Photo: Au Sik Hung

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Sep The last week of September 2009 was very busy for Oxfam. On the 26th, TyPhoon keTsana

blasted through the Philippines and a few days later hit Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia.

On the 30th, two disasters hit: a massive tsunami flattened entire communities in Samoa,

and a 7.6 magnitude earthquake struck Sumatra. Here, Filipino families hit by Ketsana are

happy to be soon receiving aid, and the Oxfam response is continuing.

To donate: www.oxfam.org.hk

Photo: Oxfam

OCT

Ten well-known public figures, such as

Leung Man-tao (pictured), joined the call

for a MiniMuM Wage. Hong Kong has one

of the highest costs of living in the world,

one of the largest income disparities, and

a high poverty rate. In October 2008, the

Hong Kong SAR Government announced

that a minimum wage would be legislated.

In October 2009, the process is ongoing.

Photo: Tai Ngai Lung

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NOVoxfaM TrailWalker, one of the world’s largest

sports fundraising events, happens in 10 countries,

but it started in Hong Kong, back in 1981, with the

Gurkha soldiers. In 2009, the first two teams to

finish the 100km challenge were also soldiers, this

time from the Hong Kong Garrison of the Chinese

People’s Liberation Army. In all, 84.7% of the

walkers /runners finished: the first team in 12 hours

and 17 minutes and the final team in 47 hours and

53 minutes ( just seven minutes before the 48-hour

cut-off). Congratulations and Thank You!

www.oxfamtrailwalker.org.hk

Photo: Walter Ding

DeCThe CoMPlainTs Choir, a movement in about 25 cities in the world, took action in Hong

Kong. A key performance was outside the Legislative Council building on 2 December, when

‘LegCo’ debated Hong Kong’s climate policy. This was just days before the UN conference in

Copenhagen. Photo: (right to left) Legislator Audrey Eu, Oxfam campaigner Stanley So, and

Legislator Gary Chan joined in.

www.flickr.com/photos/oxfamhongkong

Photo: Sam Wong

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OxfAM HONg KONg 17th Floor, 28 Marble road, Northpoint, Hong Kong

O.N.E is also on-line: www.oxfam.org.hk/oneEditor: Madeleine Marie Slavick ([email protected])Hong Kong

www.oxfam.org.hk

ONEOxfam News E-magazine is published at the beginning of every month, at

www.oxfam.org.hk/ONE.

To receive a copy in your inbox, please subscribe – it is FREE.

To subscribe: www.oxfam.org.hk/one/subscribe.html

O.N.E (Oxfam News E-magazine) is published monthly by Oxfam Hong Kong, 17th

Floor, China United Centre, 28 Marble Road, North Point, Hong Kong. The publisher

does not necessarily endorse views expressed by contributors. For permission to

reprint articles, please contact us; normally, we grant permission provided the

source is clearly acknowledged. O.N.E is available free to all, in both an HTML and

PDF version, and in Chinese and English.

MOKUNgThe current edition of MOKUNG magazine focuses

on Climate Change.

In Chinese, MOKUNG means both 'infinity' and 'no

poverty' – there are so many things to be done to stop

poverty and its injustice.

Published by Oxfam in Traditional Chinese, MOKUNG

is available for free at various locations across Hong

Kong, by subscription for delivery to any Hong Kong

address for HK$20/year, and on-line at <www.oxfam.

org.hk>.

To subscribe: www.oxfam.org.hk/public/bookstore/?lang=big5

International Human Rights Day, and the Cambodian Human Rights Action

Committee helped lead this march of participants, which included youth, labour

unionists, ethnic minority people from the north-east, UN officials, government

officials, members of parliament, and diplomats from the EU, France, Germany,

UK and USA. The two main messages: “We All Need Freedom of Expression and

Justice” and “Join Together to Embrace Diversity and End Discrimination.”

The event attracted significant attention, from the media and from the

public. The Committee aims to mark the day annually with a national event,

to raise awareness, to validate the call for human rights, to gain recognition

in communities (among NGOs and the government) and to bring attention to

emerging issues affecting people’s freedoms and livelihoods, such as the right

to access land, water and other natural resources.

Founded in 1994, the Cambodian Human Rights Action Committee currently

has 19 NGO and association members, all of whom are independent, impartial,

non-political, non-profit, and operate in Cambodia. The Committee worked

alongside 18 other coalitions, with a total participation of more than 200

groups, to hold the event on Human Rights Day. This year was the largest

Human Rights Day March seen in Phnom Penh for many years and showed the

growing concern from civil society about reductions in freedom of expression

in Cambodia. Oxfam Hong Kong was one of 23 organisations to support the

Committee.

Every day, Oxfam Hong Kong works alongside hundreds of groups around the world, from small NGOs to

international bodies, from government departments of developing countries to community groups based in Hong Kong.

Here are 3 ‘partner organisations’ that we are supporting for the first time.

CAMBODIA • Cambodian Human Rights Action Committee

CHINA • Poverty Alleviation and Development Office of Wudu District, Gansu

• Yi Hang Work Group, Yunnan

For more information, visit: www.oxfam.org.uk/books

3n e W PartnerOrganisations

OxfAM BOOKS

EARTH, AIR, fIRE, WATEROX-Tales is a series of four paperback originals that highlight Oxfam’s work for

the world: Earth (from land rights to farming), Air (campaigning to climate change),

Fire (supporting survivors of conflict) and Water (safe water in emergencies).

OX-Tales features 38 authors – including Hanif Kureishi, Ian Rankin and Jeanette

Winterson – who have donated their writing to Oxfam. In Hong Kong, the books

are available at selected Dymocks, Metrobooks and Page One bookshops.

In this edition of O.N.E, we highlight the Cambodian human rights action

Committee, a coalition of civil society organisations, promoting human rights,

liberal democracy and development in the Kingdom of Cambodia.

At eight o’clock in the morning on 10 December 2009, about five thousand

people walked through the streets of Phnom Penh. It was the United Nations

10 december 2009, PHNOM PENH: about 5,000 people joined this event on the UN international Human rights day / Photo courtesy of Cambodian Human rights action Committee

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O.N.E - January 2010