PRESS RELEASE | January 30, 2022

Photo courtesy of Jimmy Domingo

Climate campaigners wearing colorful tiger masks held a flash mob at the Fil-Chinese Friendship Arch in Binondo Manila Sunday (January 30) to celebrate the Tiger Lunar New Year as the year of action for total coal phase out and rapid development of renewable energy systems in the Philippines and the rest of Asia. 

Led by Asian Peoples’ Movement on Debt and Development (APMDD) and member and partner organizations Sanlakas, Philippine Movement for Climate Change (PMCJ), Oriang Women’s Movement and Partido Lakas ng Masa (PLM) - they called on China to act swiftly on its climate pronouncements and strengthen its leadership in climate action.

Similar actions were also held today in other Asian capitals.

Lidy Nacpil, APMDD coordinator said that “as we enter the Tiger Lunar New Year, we call on Chinese institutions and banks to immediately stop financing and investing in overseas coal projects in line with the announcement of President Xi Jinping last September 2021.”

"...as we enter the Tiger Lunar New Year, we call on Chinese institutions and banks to immediately stop financing and investing in overseas coal projects in line with the announcement of President Xi Jinping last September 2021.” – Lidy Nacpil, APMDD Coordinator 

She further said that “we also urge the Chinese government to stop all subsidies for fossil fuels and strongly support the building of renewable energy systems in Asia.”

On September 21, 2021, President Xi Jinping told the United Nations General Assembly that “China will step up support for other developing countries in developing green and low-carbon energy, and will not build new coal-fired power projects abroad.” During the 30th Asean-China dialogue held in November 2021 these declarations were reiterated.

China is one of the highest contributors to public finance of coal overseas. In Asia, Chinese banks and corporations have financed coal expansion projects in Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Vietnam.

The APMDD is urging Chinese institutions and state-owned enterprises to translate President Xi’s announcement into clear policies and concrete actions regarding its involvement in coal projects in the pipeline in the countries in Asia, and to scale up its support for the much-needed acceleration of the development of the renewable energy systems in Asia.

Nacpil said that “coal is definitely on the way out, but not fast enough. We urge China to make total exit from coal and follow this with a phase out from all other fossil fuels.”

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Lani C. Villanueva
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