We need new forms of global diplomacy to transcend the current pathetic bargaining of national and commercial interests
COP28 President Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 2 December 2023. Photo by Amr Alfiky/Reuters
COP28 President Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 2 December 2023. Photo by Amr Alfiky/Reuters
is Philosopher Laureate for the Netherlands and Flanders. He is the author of Congo: The Epic History of a People (2010), Against Elections: The Case for Democracy (2013) and Revolusi: Indonesia and the Birth of the Modern World (2024), as well as a playwright and poet.
On 31 July 2024, an intriguing ceremony took place on Pheasant Island, a tiny sliver of land in the river Bidasoa, marking the border between France and Spain in the Basque Pyrenees. Under a lush canopy of trees, a handful of people disembarked from rubber dinghies and walked towards a monument, the only man-made structure on the island. Most of them were wearing the pristine white uniforms of the French and Spanish navies. The walk was a short one, as the island is only 200 metres long and 40 metres wide.
Near the monument, there were speeches. Floral wreaths were laid down, trumpets, cornets and bugles resounded, and a number of gun salutes were fired. On the flagpole, the Spanish bandera was lowered and the French tricolore hoisted. The island’s anthem – yes, it has one, despite being uninhabited – was played. The atmosphere was a unique blend of solemn military protocol and gleeful exuberance, just like it was the previous year and the years before. Every year on 31 July , France reassumes sovereignty over Pheasant Island, six months after it has been transferred to Spain.
