Greta Thunberg has been paraded by governments and the UNO as a champion of those forces who oppose accelerated climate change. She is not the first youngster whose face is used by wolves in sheep’s clothing to hide their direct complicity in the war they are waging on the natural environment as well as populations who happen to end up in their crossfire. The case of the Pakistani youth named Malala Yousafzai (who was targeted by the Taliban in October 2012 because she spoke out against gender oppression in Pakistan) is another example of the abuse of youthful political innocence and ignorance, for sinister purposes. Malala ended up being feted by the White House.

We therefore see that the accelerating global climate emergency we all face is being used by all and sundry – including those who are the direct cause of the crises – to propagate agendas that must be carefully and fully scrutinised by progressive forces across the globe. As an example, what and whose purpose does the UNO serve? Acting in numerous instances as an international NGO it is compelled to, on the one hand undertake necessary research on the climate crisis, which has been decades in the making. On the other hand it pretends to act on behalf of the millions of people who are at the receiving end of this crisis.

Neo-liberal governments in their numbers sit in the General Assembly engaging in diplomatic niceties, sometimes rivalry; this, not to overthrow the oppressive international capitalist order but to perpetuate it. The Security Council members’ pre-occupation with global economic and territorial contestation only deepens the plight of millions of workers and peasants across the world. We must be clear on who are with us and who are against us.