UN General Assembly
2002

responsibility for what they have done. There are real hazards to low-lying atolls from another by-product of this era of environmental crisis. Rising sea levels caused by global warming will lead to the disappearance of some islands. They will sink beneath the waves. Do not therefore be surprised if in future environmental refugees from Oceania are forced to seek sanctuary elsewhere. The world should also not be surprised at the strong call from the Pacific for the adoption and ratification of the Kyoto Protocol. We praise those nations that have signified their intention to ratify. To those who have not done so, we pose the same question we asked in Johannesburg: Will you display the courage, generosity and largeness of spirit the world needs from you? Will you join fully in saving the Earth from the gross abuse and destruction of its resources? We have done much in the Pacific to secure our ownership of the rich regional tuna fishery. Ten years of combined effort, negotiation, lobbying and painstaking legal drafting led to the adoption of the