Toronto Star: Gloom turns to doom in Copenhagen

[marmar]

Gloom turns to doom in Copenhagen
With world leaders arriving, police battle protesters and negotiators fail to find agreement

Allan Woods
Ottawa Bureau

Published 21 minutes ago


OTTAWA–Gloom has started turning to doom here at a climate change summit where failure is becoming the expectation and breakthrough would be the surprise outcome.

At a grand opening ceremony where United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki Moon, Britain's Prince Charles and Danish Prime Minister Lars Rokke Rasmussen warned countries that compromise must pave their path if a climate agreement is to be signed by Friday.

Connie Hedegaard, the former Danish climate minister, resigned the conference presidency to allow Rasmussen to take the reins of the meeting as world leaders began arriving. Hedegaard was to continue overseeing closed-door negotiations.

Outside the conference centre, Danish police fired pepper spray and beat protesters with batons as hundreds of protesters tried to disrupt the conference. Police said 230 protesters were detained.

Following the opening ceremony, there was yet another dismal signal.

This one came from Ban Ki Moon himself. ............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.thestar.com/news/sciencetech/environment/copenhagensummit/article/739488--gloom-turns-to-doom-in-copenhagen?bn=1

[Captain Hilts]

1. The Star has covered this issue well. nt