Skip to main content

FM
Former Member

Protecting indigenous peoples' rights 'is protecting everyone's rights' – UN

9 August 2017 – United Nations, http://www.un.org/apps/news/st...D=57330#.WY9DFlGQyM8

A H/mong hill tribe woman in a village of Sin Chai, Sapa, Viet Nam. Women’s labour accounts for the two-thirds of subsistence agriculture in developing countries, yet they often have no rights over the land. UN Photo/Kibae Park

Attachments

Images (1)
  • mceclip0

Replies sorted oldest to newest

Protecting indigenous peoples' rights 'is protecting everyone's rights' – UN

9 August 2017 – United Nations, http://www.un.org/apps/news/st...D=57330#.WY9DFlGQyM8

9 August 2017 – Ten years after the adoption of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, progress in several countries has been made in formally recognizing indigenous peoples, but overwhelmingly they continue to face discrimination, marginalization and major challenges in enjoying their basic rights.

“While indigenous peoples have made significant advancements in advocating for their rights in international and regional fora, implementation of the Declaration is impeded by persisting vulnerability and exclusion, and exclusion, particularly among indigenous women, children, youth and persons with disabilities,” said 40 UN system entities and other international organizations in a joint UN statement, issued on the occasion of the International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples, marked annually on 9 August.

The Declaration, which was adopted by the UN General Assembly on 13 September 2007, establishes a universal framework of minimum survival standards for the dignity and well-being of the world's indigenous peoples. It is the most comprehensive international instrument on indigenous peoples' collective rights, including the rights to self-determination, traditional lands and culture.

Declaration on indigenous rights stands as “beacon of progress”

“The Declaration, which took more than twenty years to negotiate, stands today as a beacon of progress, a framework for reconciliation and a benchmark of rights,” underscored Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples, Mariam Wallet Aboubakrine, Chairperson of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, and the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in a joint statement on the Day.

“But a decade on, we need to acknowledge the vast challenges that remain. In too many cases, indigenous peoples are now facing even greater struggles and rights violations than they did ten years ago,” they added.

Protecting the rights and dignity of indigenous peoples is protecting everyone's rights UNESCO chief, Irina Bokova

Although some countries have taken constitutional and legislative measures to recognize their rights and identities, exclusion, marginalization and violence continue to be widespread.

With this in mind, Irina Bokova, Director-General of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) said that as custodians and practitioners of unique cultures and relationships with the natural environment, indigenous peoples embody a wide range of linguistic and cultural diversity at the heart of our shared humanity.

“Protecting their rights and dignity is protecting everyone's rights and respecting humanity's soul, past and future,” she said, noting that UNESCO's latest Global Education Monitoring Report provides concrete guidance and policy advice for the advancement of indigenous peoples' rights. The agency also launched the Local and Indigenous Knowledge Systems (LINKS) programme in 2002 to support governments in creating synergies between scientific and indigenous peoples' knowledge.

Marking the International Day

As Indigenous experts from Canada, Republic of the Congo, Ecuador and Namibia will celebrate the Day at a special event at UN Headquarters in New York, UN offices globally are also holding events and activities, including in Australia, Brazil, Colombia and Mexico.

The UN partnered with Twitter to create a special emoji for the Day, which, with the hashtags #WeAreIndigenous and #IndigenousDay, will be live from 8 August to 15 September as “a new way to engage broader audiences in promoting indigenous peoples' rights.”

FM
FM
FM
FM
FM
FM
FM
FM
FM
FM

VIDEO: In Bolivia, with an increased demand for labour, indigenous women are joining the construction industry, but are vulnerable to discrimination.

FM

Add Reply

×
×
×
×
×
Link copied to your clipboard.
×
×