US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry visited India from April 5-8 as part of his three-nation tour to discuss climate change.
During his visit he met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and discussed US-India cooperation on addressing the climate crisis. The two also discussed collaborating on a 2030 agenda for clean and green technologies in the service of the planet.
Addressing the media after his meeting with the Prime Minister, Kerry answered questions on climate change and the India-US partnership on climate. During the exchange, a reporter asked Kerry about his stance climate activist Disha Ravi and safeguarding human rights of climate activists, to which Kerry said that he "welcomes that kind of activism."
"Do governments play a role in encouraging young climate activists? In India a young climate activist named Disha Ravi was recently arrested because she shared her online toolkit about some protest and she was in conversation with Greta Thunberg," the reporter asked Kerry.
"Young people have been the key to pushing a lot of adults in the world to do what adults are supposed to do, which is get the job done," Kerry said. "Different young people around the world have been trying to claim their future. And I personally welcome that kind of activism."
He also used examples from history where young leaders stood up, which he thinks demands freedom and dignity.
"Historically, I think when you look at the history in a lot of democracies, and even where there isn’t democracy, and you look at young people in Eastern Europe and places, who pushed back against the Soviet Union, and adult leaders too who stood up. There is this spirit in the souls of human beings that demands freedom. And respect. And dignity," he also said.
Disha Ravi, a youth climate change activist from Bengaluru was arrested this year and put into police custody on charges of sedition and 'criminal conspiracy.'
Ravi was not only a climate change activist but also showed her support for the ongoing farmers protests in Delhi. She was arrested for a toolkit document, which was tweeted by environmentalist Thunberg as part of her message that she “stood with the farmers”. The 'toolkit; was a compilation of information, hashtags, suggested actions, ideas and contacts for those who wanted to help support the farmers – a common tool of organised protest movements.
Thunberg's tweet was not taken well by people in India, including but not limited to politicians, who saw this as international interference on national matters. Disha Ravi is currently out on bail.
John Kerry's visit came a few weeks prior to US President Joe Biden’s Leaders Summit on Climate scheduled for April 23-24 of which India is also a part.
In addition to meeting with PM Modi, Kerry also met with Prakash Javadekar, Nirmala Sitharaman, and Subrahmanyam Jaishankar among other Union Ministers.
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