The meeting in Copenhagen, Denmark, which will focus on global climatic conditions, may yet be too little too late. The meeting several years ago in Kyoto, Japan, also focused on the same topic. At that time, the scientific community was divided into believers and disbelievers of the concept of global warming. There was no firm accord or world action, largely because the United States did not wish to change its methods of production and, thereby, perhaps lose some competitive advantage.

These discussions tended to centre on the large economies of the world that were intent on gaining some competitive advantage through the climatic bargaining process. Poorer and less developed countries were largely ignored, including those in South America whose Amazon region breathes and purifies much of our world’s impurities. In fact, it was somewhat taken for granted that these countries, which include Brazil and Guyana, would continue on a non-development path as far as that special region was concerned. Given the seemingly uncaring nature of the developed world, it would seem as if the mice have turned and are bargaining for conditionalities which will transfer wealth from the developed world to them, or we will all have to face the reality that slash-and-burn practices will destroy the Amazon Basin and our ability to breathe clean air.

The noncommittal stance of the United States seems only to be adding fury. Internal lobbying and corruption in the United States make it difficult for the Federal Government to take the necessary steps for a much-needed worldwide effort to combat global warming. Once again, we see an undertone of corruption through the influence of government policy for personal gain. The industrial giants keep polluting the atmosphere and will obviously come to a head in Copenhagen.

The situation is quite simple: As sea levels rise due to increasing world temperatures, which cause the Polar ice to melt, those of us in Small Island Developing States will have a lot of swimming to do before most of Continental America. On the other hand, Europe seems to be poorly designed to deal with heat waves, and every time they experience tropical temperatures, thousands of the very young and elderly die. In terms of tourism, our beaches will disappear, but so will their ski slopes. Humanity faces a terrible crisis and has a serious decision to make. However, we do not need to introduce corrupt practices into the bargaining process.

One scenario which is emerging is that a coalition of the small and vulnerable countries is being forged, and a common stance will probably emerge. Regrettably, this may be directed at one of our closest trading partners, the United States. If the USA allows this to happen, then one of the greatest contributors to scientific development will face ostracism by the rest of the world. I do not think that the very generous people of America should allow themselves to be treated as pariahs. The lobby groups which are attempting to foil the decision-making process of their government cannot be allowed to continue their immoral activities.

There is also an issue of balance of power. For argument’s sake, suppose China makes a commitment to an immediate process of “greening”, where would that leave the United States? Such bargaining chips would immediately appeal to the coalition of the poor states including those of Africa, Europe, Asia, South America, Central America, as well as the Small Island Developing States (SIDS). China could stage an impressive coup in this regard, and if I were in their financial position, in a weak world economy, I would certainly play those cards. This one strategic move could immediately remove the USA as the world’s single superpower.

As we continue to discuss corruption in Jamaica, as well as in the rest of the world, there seems to be an underlying factor of systemic degradation. It seems that in the course of developing democracy, there are too many loopholes which appear as the democratic system unfolds by itself. This is not necessarily a fault of democracy, but merely an observation of the process. It is certainly true that in countries that have tyrants as dictators, supported by military power, there also exists considerable room for corruption. The history of Haiti in our own region is a litany of corruption and outright robbery. This is not confined to our region, however, as similar atrocities have taken place across Europe, Africa, South and Central America, and even at the developmental stages of United States.

So, corruption appears to be endemic and seems to be directly proportionate to the power yielded by leaders who lack integrity. On the other hand, some countries with strong leadership who are able to enforce laws seem to avoid corrupt practices. But, to be perfectly clear, these dictatorships are not the most popular with our human rights groups as they administer swift, cruel and terminal justice without appeal. So, thieves have their hands removed, rapists become eunuchs, and murderers are shot dead. Their harsh system seems to be fairly effective in controlling crime, but those of us who still suffer under criminal activities bemoan their human rights practices.

There seems to be some kind of dilemma facing us. Where does aggressive dictatorship end, and where does democracy start? It can easily be argued that neither extreme is what we really want. In view of the crisis that we in Jamaica have to contend with, we have both. The “don” is the tyrannical ruler who dispenses swift justice. The government is the democracy which wishes to debate and take no action. Somewhere between the two extremes we need to find a way to enforce our laws in a strident manner, so as to avoid any semblance of discriminatory practices. I will be the first to admit that it is a thin line. But it is the only way forward for our country. Corruption is not negotiable. Anarchy is not negotiable. The system of awarding contracts on party lines or, worse, awarding contracts to persons who are incompetent and unable to meet the conditionalities of contracts must be stopped.

To say that we must award contracts to “small people” makes no sense unless that injunction is qualified by the word competent. Jamaica has no room for the continual rework and contract overruns which occur when incompetent persons are awarded important jobs.

We must understand that bargaining is an inherently good practice. It succeeds in bringing out the conditionalities which should support best practices. Our fragile evolving democracy can in no way accommodate corruption and must revert to a system of justice administered fairly and quickly by the Government. This requires no debate.

CAP… In this September 15, 2009 photo, an illegal gold mine is seen in a national park forest near Novo Progresso in Brazil’s northern state of Para. The Brazilian Amazon is arguably the world’s biggest natural defence against global warming, acting as a “sink”, or absorber, of carbon dioxide. But it is also a great contributor to warming. About 75 per cent of Brazil’s emissions come from rainforest clearing, as vegetation burns and felled trees rot. (Photo:AP)