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Tuvalu

Continued from page 12 ence remotely as you would in a place like Tuvalu and I think
technology has arrived at a place where we can do that.”
citing the examples of governments in exile during times of While this work is linked to the response to climate change,
war, and more controversially, the status of Taiwan, which has the benefits are immediate, as the public gets more efficient
diplomatic relations with Tuvalu. He says the challenge for service, the Minister said.
Tuvalu is what happens if it loses its territory to sea level rise Tuvalu is also looking to leverage its .tv country top level
and its people are forced to relocate. domain name as part of this initiative. The domain name,
“Can we still exist as a state under international law? Could which is used for many entertainment and online streaming
we still have our rights to our maritime zones, to our coun- services, is an important revenue source for the country.
try’s top level domain name, which provides finances to the Tuvalu recently signed GoDaddy Registry as the new registry
government?” service provider for Tuvalu’s .tv Country Code Top-Level
The connected issue of the status of Tuvalu’s maritime Domain. Under its previous agreement with Verisign, Tuvalu
boundaries, is vitally important. Pacific Islands Forum leaders received US$5 million annually for use of the domain, but
have recognised that once states have lodged the boundaries Tuvalu’s government has said it wants to gain more advan-
for their baselines, they are then considered permanent. tage from the name. More than 458,000 websites use the .tv
Tuvalu is grappling with the possibility that its low water- domain name, including Amazon’s video streaming service,
mark will shift inland with sea level rise. Twitch.
“The legal issue here is because under UNCLOS (UN Conven- “It’s an asset that we have because we are a state. If Tuvalu
tion on the Law of the Sea), the baseline is defined as the low was not a state, we would not …be entitled to top level do-
watermark. The baseline is where you draw all your maritime main name and so this is why this is all interconnected. So we
zones from, your territorial waters of 12 nautical miles, your want to push for statehood because there are benefits that
EEZ of 200 nautical miles, it’s all drawn from your baseline,” come with it, and it secures the future of every Tuvaluan,”
Kofe stated. Kofe said.
He said two approaches are possible, the ‘softer’ one being
to “reinterpret existing rules and state practice in favour of Climate advocacy
retaining statehood and maritime zones”. Tuvalu and Kofe himself have already proved their creden-
The second would be to initiate changes to the internation- tials as climate advocates (he has been nominated for the
al law framework to accommodate states that are vulnerable 20022 Nobel Peace Prize for his virtual advocacy at COP26),
to climate change. However Kofe said changing international but Kofe said it is important the region takes a more strategic
law at that level would be a challenge, which is why Tuvalu is approach to advocacy.
taking the bilateral route. “It cannot be only at these meetings [e.g. COPs] where
“So the more countries that come on board, then the more these things are done,” he said.
we are contributing to the establishment of new international “Our experience from previous COP meetings is we come
norms. It may seem breaking rank to some, breaking away with high expectations, but we leave disappointed, we con-
from the norm, but I think history has told us that once you tinue to fall short of the expectations that we have. So I think
break away, it is just a matter of time when other countries it is time to change our strategy.
follow,” he said of this strategy. “We need to not only target leaders and those important
Tuvalu is also reviewing its Constitution, with a view to meetings, but we need to look at a more holistic approach
aligning national laws with the “legal propositions” it is push- [that] would be targeting the general public because it is the
ing internationally, and Kofe suggested this is something all general population that puts leaders in those positions, and
Pacific Island countries should be looking to do. the public that puts leaders under pressure to come up with
stronger climate action and policies to address the issue of
Building Tuvalu in cyberspace climate change.”
The third pillar of ‘Future Now’ deals with Tuvalu’s digital Kofe said part of this strategy is nominate people from
ambitions. our region to important roles in the international climate
Kofe said if Tuvaluans are forced to relocate from their infrastructure. As one example, Tuvalu’s long-term climate
country due to climate change, “You need to have systems in negotiator and expert, Dr Ian Fry was recently appointed to
place to ensure that they continue to function as a communi- the newly established position of UN Special Rapporteur on
ty, as the government, wherever they move to. It’s important the promotion and protection of human rights in the context
that these things are in place to ensure that migration is with of climate change. Tuvalu has also announced that it is nomi-
dignity. It protects the interests of those that are forced to nating former Governor General, Sir Iakoba Taeia Italeli for
migrate.” the role of Commonwealth Secretary-General, and has urged
He continued: “We want to be able to operate and function Pacific Island members of the Commonwealth to support his
as a government from wherever we are. And so, this involves candidacy.
digitising our government services. It also includes digitising
cultural knowledge. So that you can have the… same experi- editor@islandsbusiness.com

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