Francia Marquez on the Relationship Between Climate, Racial and Gender Justice in Colombia, Latin America and the World

DW spoke exclusively with the Vice President of Colombia, Francia Márquez, from COP 27 in Egypt, about the relationship between climate, racial and gender justice in Colombia, Latin America and the world.

Francia Márquez has a life story as a social leader, lawyer, environmental and human rights defender, which has led her to become and emphatically present herself as “the first Afro Vice President” of Colombia. She is also in the process of heading a Ministry of Equity, which will bring the country closer to the “tasty living”, declared as a goal by the government she leads together with President Gustavo Petro.

You attended the 27th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 27) in Egypt to speak, above all, about the relationship of social justice – especially racial and gender justice – to climate change; about the attention that populations historically excluded and impoverished by colonialism, slavery and racism deserve if climate justice is to be achieved.
Why do you consider this emphasis on racial and gender justice so important in addressing the global and local challenges posed by the current climate crisis?

Francia Márquez: For me, as a woman of African descent, my presence here in Egypt is very important at a historic moment when there are great challenges for Africa, but also for Latin America and the Caribbean, for the countries that have suffered colonization and slavery, and which are the same countries that are suffering the consequences of the environmental crisis to a greater extent today.

I grew up in an ancestral territory, I am a descendant of men and women who were enslaved. And, if we look at the reasons why that whole colonial slave system was carried out, which used human beings as raw material to trade them internationally, just as goods are traded today, I believe that this has a lot to do with what is happening here.

Being a granddaughter of those men and women who were expropriated in their human condition and subjected to slavery, I believe that we have a lot of legitimacy today to raise our voices and demand historical reparations. Not only about the damages generated by the colonial and slave system, but also about the damages that continue to be suffered today by the peoples and communities that have had to suffer the consequences of the exploitation or overexploitation of this economic model.

When one sees, in my country, that the life expectancy of Afro-descendant women is lower than that of other women, I believe that there is a historical connection of structural violence, which has not allowed these women to have guarantees for life, just like the rest of society. And that economic system, that market system that enslaved our ancestors and ancestresses, continues to dominate the world.

For me, these are the reasons why it is important to talk about the issue of losses and damages, which in the case of indigenous and Afro-descendant populations are sustained losses and damages, which have been there permanently, undermining the lives of these populations.
What concrete measures do you propose, from this perspective, to curb climate change in the world in general, and in Latin America or Colombia in particular?

First, our government has a clear commitment to climate justice. And, for that, we assume the challenge of an energy transition policy. It is not possible to stop the climate crisis without governments committing to stop emitting greenhouse gases, which are leading the planet to collapse.

Second, it is not enough for us to come to COP 27 to talk about climate justice, to talk about the challenges we face, if the countries responsible for emitting greenhouse gases – the “developed countries”, as they call themselves – do not make the commitment to reduce emissions. No matter how much we – the countries that emit the least, but which are experiencing the consequences – can do, it will not be enough.

This is fundamental to be able to start adapting to climate change. And I think that is where the big discussion lies. What we have seen is that, every year, the COP is held and commitments and agreements are reached, but many of them are not fulfilled. Few countries are really committed to taking on the challenges of climate change.

Thirdly, I believe it is necessary, in terms of adaptation and sustainability, to take into account the ancestral and traditional knowledge of the communities. If both Afro-descendant and indigenous peoples, or peasant communities, have historically placed their knowledge at the service of environmental care and sustainability, I believe it is necessary to give voice, to give strength to that traditional and ancestral knowledge, as a way of contributing.

And fourth, I believe it is necessary to put the discussion of historical reparations on the table, in a path of cancellation of the foreign debt of the “developed countries”, which will allow countries that have been victims of colonialism, slavery and climate change, to improve the living conditions of their communities.

In my country, for example, the ethnic, indigenous and Afro-descendant populations are the most impoverished, those with the greatest number of unsatisfied basic needs. To speak of racial justice for these peoples could mean that Colombia can forgive its foreign debt with several countries that were responsible for both colonialism and the environmental crisis we are experiencing today. That they release the resources that our States pay to their countries in terms of debts and that these resources be invested efficiently and effectively in these ethnic communities, both indigenous and Afro-descendant.

The other thing is the conservation funds. In the case of Colombia, we have an environmental conservation fund for the Amazon, understanding that the Amazon is today an important center in terms of balance and support for the planet. However, there are other regions such as the Pacific, for example, that need to be promoted. The Caribbean is one of the regions that are being most affected, the sea level is rising, hurricanes are intensifying. These are communities that need adaptation funds to be able to face the challenges of the impacts they are receiving.

DW–You mentioned the unfulfilled agreements… What is an event like this COP 27, which you are experiencing now as a politician, with such a fresh past as an activist, good for?

For us as a State it serves us because we position our political vision. Our political vision is one of climate justice, of pushing for energy transition, of decarbonizing the economy, of historical reparations in terms of gender justice and racial justice. And I believe that this COP 27 serves for that, to put the loudspeaker of a nation to sound and reverberate in the world.

It serves some countries to bring resources. That is why this summit is here, in Africa. This is a negotiation process where the regions go as a block. Africa is going to the negotiation demanding, with good reason, that a large part of the adaptation resources to face climate change be invested in Africa, which is the same thing that should happen for Latin America and the Caribbean.

The Caribbean, Latin America and Africa should be together, articulated, because these three regions have been disproportionately impacted by climate change. So that south-south connection is very important. For me, to be here is to be able to build ties of articulation and joint efforts for that.

From Colombia, we are proposing to strengthen our relations with the entire African continent, to start a dialogue with the African Union. The ties with the Greater Caribbean and, of course, with Latin America are fundamental.

That is the sense of being here, beyond the many frustrations, the advances we would like to have and which are not achieved, because it is a disputed process. There is still denialism in terms of global recognition of climate change. And that is still a barrier in many countries and in our society.

DW–There is harsh criticism of President Petro’s government’s stance on reviewing oil licenses. Many fear a downturn in the economy if Colombia sharply reduces oil and coal exploitation. How does Francia Márquez respond to these criticisms?

I believe that we are always going to be a government that is criticized. Criticism is always there, as long as we go in favor of justice, in favor of life, in favor of peace, in favor of dignity.

The economic issue our country is going through is not only due to internal discussions or decisions. For example, the fall of the dollar is due to global financial issues. Today, there is a global economic problem that is affecting Colombia and the whole world. And, of course, when we talk about the transition of the mining-energy model, we are not saying that one day we arrive and the next day there is nothing, but that it is a process.

I believe that humanity has to get ready for that. Not only Colombia, but if we want to continue to exist and if we want to guarantee that life continues to exist on this planet, we have to start making that transition. We have decided to start and that is a necessity. I do not believe that the economy is going to fall apart any more than it has already fallen apart as a result of the crisis.

The pandemic is a demonstration of the effects of the environmental crisis. And today the planet has an economic problem as a result of what the pandemic generated. The question is: how many more pandemics will we as humanity be able to endure? And how many more pandemics will the economic system based on extractivism endure?