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| Photo courtesy United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues |
Green Colonialism, Rights of Women and Languages: Priorities of Indigenous in Reports for United Nations
By Brenda Norrell, Censored News, April 27, 2024
NEW YORK -- Fake green projects, the removal of children from their homes, loss of languages, rise of hate speech, and war were among the top concerns cited in the reports by the U.N. Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues as it closed its ten-day session on April 26, 2024.
The rights of women, the need to protect endangered languages and redress for victims of boarding and residential schools were also priorities in the Permanent Forum's reports prepared for the U.N. Economic and Social Council.
Inuit: Children Removed, Women Victims of Doctors
The Permanent Forum prioritized Inuits who are victims of child welfare systems based on psychometric tests adapted to the non-Inuit. The Forum also prioritized Inuit girls and women in Greenland who are victims of the campaign for IUDs.
"The Forum recommends that a human rights-based approach is taken when investigating and addressing the practices and impacts of the so-called IUD campaign affecting Greenland Inuit women and adolescents."
"The Forum urges actions by States to address the racism suffered by Inuit, particularly those residing outside Inuit Nunaat. The Forum is concerned about the high incidence rates of child removals by Child welfare systems legitimized by psychometric tests adapted to the non-Inuit."
Green Colonialism: Immediate Moratorium
Around the world, from the deadly cobalt mines in Africa where children are dying, to the seizures of Indigenous lands in South America for lithium mines, to the western United States, where Paiute, Shoshone, Hualapai, and Quechan are battling lithium mining on sacred lands, the demand for critical minerals for electric vehicles is destroying the lives, land and water of Indigenous Peoples.
The Permanent Forum said in its reports, "The Forum calls upon all entities involved in green economy projects to implement an immediate moratorium until the rights of affected Indigenous Peoples are respected, recognized and assured."
"Concerns were also expressed about green colonialism,' where Indigenous lands are used for green energy projects, such as for the placement of wind turbines, and for the extraction of minerals that are critical for the green transition, in complete disregard for Indigenous Peoples’ rights, including free, prior and informed consent."
Loss of languages
It is the languages that carry the stories, songs and ceremonies. Now, languages, and cultural heritage sites, are threatened around the world.
"The Forum decries the ongoing destruction of cultural heritage sites and the loss of Indigenous Peoples’ languages, urging immediate protective measures through robust legal and policy frameworks aligned with the Declaration."
"Indigenous Peoples' languages in Russia are endangered and may face extinction. It is imperative to enforce the UNDRIP (United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples) to preserve these languages."
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| Photo courtesy UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues |
Rights of Women
The Forum urged the need to focus on womens’ equal participation in decision-making at all levels, specifically recommending that the governments of Canada, Denmark and Greenland follow up and implement recommendations.
The following are excerpts, prepared by Censored News, from the draft documents prepared by the Permanent Forum for the U.N. Economic and Social Council.
Increasing Violence and Hate Speech Toward Indigenous Peoples
"Indigenous Peoples also pointed out the alarming increase in the criminalization, attacks, killings and arbitrary detention of Indigenous Peoples’ leaders and human rights defenders, ignoring Indigenous Peoples’ justice systems. The Forum was informed about hate speech and stigmatizing rhetoric that associates Indigenous movements with illegal armed groups, thereby putting the lives of Indigenous Peoples at risk."
Free, Prior and Informed Consent
"The Permanent Forum recognizes that violations of Indigenous treaty rights, including from mining in the name of climate change mitigation, all too often occur in the treaty lands of Indigenous Peoples in Canada, New Zealand and the United States of America without the free, prior and informed consent of Indigenous Peoples, affecting the right of Indigenous Peoples to health, culture, sustainable development and environment."
War and Displacement
"The Forum is deeply alarmed by the impact of war and armed conflict. The Permanent Forum calls on Member States to put an immediate moratorium on military conscription among Arctic Indigenous peoples."
Crimean Tartar in Ukraine
"The Permanent Forum recognizes the unique challenges faced by the Indigenous Peoples of Ukraine – the Crimean Tatars, Karaites and Krymchaks – as a result of the aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine and the occupation of the Crimean Peninsula, which greatly affects their right to self-determination."
Central and South America and Caribbean: Hate Speech
"Indigenous Peoples also pointed out the alarming increase in the criminalization, attacks, killings and arbitrary detention of Indigenous Peoples’ leaders and human rights defenders, ignoring Indigenous Peoples’ justice systems. The Forum was informed about hate speech and stigmatizing rhetoric that associates Indigenous movements with illegal armed groups, thereby putting the lives of Indigenous Peoples at risk."
Australia: Harsh Incarceration and Suicides of Youths
"The Forum E/C.19/2024/L.7 2/4 24-07348 expresses deep concern over the high incidences of suicide, trauma from harsh incarceration conditions, and adverse experiences in out-of-home care affecting Indigenous children and adolescents in Australia and globally."
New Zealand: Harsh Measures Against Maori
"The Permanent Forum heard alarming reports from Māori Indigenous Peoples that the Government of New Zealand had departed from the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi (Treaty of Waitangi) and taken measures against the rights of Indigenous Peoples, including the disbandment of Te Aka Whai Ora, the Māori health authority. The Forum urges the State and Government of New Zealand to uphold the distinct rights of Māori Indigenous Peoples."
US and Canada Line 5
"The Permanent Forum reiterates that the Enbridge Line 5 oil pipeline jeopardizes the Great Lakes and poses a real and credible threat to the human rights of Indigenous Peoples in Canada and the United States. The Forum reiterates the call it made at its twenty-second session for Canada and the United States to decommission Line 5."
"The Forum is concerned about the impacts of climate change in the Sahel, Great Lakes region, which has triggered armed conflict and displacement and heightened the vulnerability of Indigenous Peoples."
Rights of Rapa Nui People and Kanuk
"The Permanent Forum urges the Governments of Chile and France to adhere to their international obligations under the Declaration, and to engage in meaningful dialogue with the Rapa Nui People (Chile) and the Kanak People of New Caledonia (France) and resolve ongoing conflicts."
Honduras and Indonesia
"The Permanent Forum notes the proactive measures of the Governments of Honduras and Indonesia to integrate Indigenous Peoples’ rights within national land rights and environmental conservation frameworks."
West Papua
"Furthermore, the Forum reiterates its concerns regarding the ongoing situation in West Papua, in particular the violence and discrimination against Indigenous Peoples, and implores the Government of Indonesia to allow independent monitoring by the United Nations."
Bolivia
"The Permanent Forum welcomes the initiative of the Government of the Plurinational State of Bolivia to adopt a law on free, prior and informed consent."
Pacific: Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women and Girls
"The Forum is also concerned about reprisals against Indigenous youth land and environment defenders in the Pacific facing the destruction of their sacred sites and ecosystems."
"Also, the impacts of the extractive industries on Indigenous women and girls, noting the report of Hawaii on Murdered and Missing Indigenous women and girls."
Sami
"The Permanent Forum is concerned over the decision of the Supreme Administrative Court of Finland to include 65 individuals not recognized by the Sami community in the Sami Parliament’s electoral roll."
Africa
"The Forum welcomed progress made by Ghana, Namibia and the Democratic Republic of Congo to advance Indigenous Peoples’ rights in their countries."
"The Forum notes that the concern expressed elsewhere in this report on the extraction of critical minerals applies equally to Indigenous Peoples’ in Africa."
Boarding Schools and Residential Schools
"The Permanent Forum recognizes that, where Indigenous children have been placed in boarding and residential schools without first obtaining the free, prior and informed consent of the affected Indigenous Peoples, there have been dramatically grave negative impacts on the well-being and identity development of Indigenous students, on their families, and on the communities and cultures of Indigenous Peoples in numerous places around the world, including Australia, Canada and the United States of America, as well as in French Guiana."
"The Forum recommends that that States find mechanisms to redress the harms caused by boarding and residential schools, and engage in effective reconciliation efforts. With respect to French Guiana specifically, the Forum calls upon the Government of France establish a truth commission to investigate the conditions of boarding and residential schools in France and its overseas territories. The Government of France should adopt measures for healing, reparation and rehabilitation. The commission should guarantee gender equality in terms of inclusion and ensure the full participation of the Indigenous Peoples affected."
The Protection of Indigenous Women and Girls
"The Forum calls for the revision of discriminatory laws affecting Indigenous women. The Forum invites UN-Women, WHO and UNFPA to partner in identifying and documenting good practices of culturally appropriate health interventions from their work in developing countries, including supporting Indigenous women and girls in exercising their health and reproductive rights. The Forum requests that the entities compile a comprehensive progress report, to be submitted at the 2025 session of the Forum."
"The Permanent Forum supports the initiatives that empower Indigenous women, recognizing their roles as custodians of biodiversity and Indigenous knowledge. Programmes should address the specific needs and leadership roles of women within Indigenous Peoples’ communities in order to ensure equitable participation in all funded projects."
Indigenous young people
"Indigenous young people are proactively championing Indigenous Peoples’ right to self-determination, intertwining traditional knowledge and ecological stewardship with modern governance to ensure that Indigenous Peoples’ world views E/C.19/2024/L.4 24-07098 3/4 are integral in shaping policies at all levels. It is vital to enhance legal frameworks, policymaking processes and international collaboration to ensure the full and effective participation of Indigenous young people in self-determination efforts.
"Indigenous young people face significant barriers, including discrimination and marginalization, which critically impede their ability to practise and sustain their culture, traditions, languages and identities. The Forum draws attention to the high rates of suicide among Indigenous young people in some countries, and reiterates its call for States to increase support for culturally appropriate prevention programmes and leadership development.
"The Permanent Forum recommends that Member States and the United Nations system develop and support educational and leadership programmes tailored to the needs of Indigenous young people, enabling them to fulfil their potential as leaders and protectors of their cultures and territories.
"The Permanent Forum urges Member States to make significant investments in bilingual and culturally appropriate primary, secondary and higher education programmes, including mobile education initiatives for nomadic and semi-nomadic communities. Furthermore, the Forum calls upon Member States to establish effective mechanisms to ensure Indigenous young people occupy central roles in policy and political arenas and to break down barriers to their full political participation and leadership."
Right to Remain in Isolation
The rights of Indigenous Peoples in voluntary isolation and in initial contact continue to face grave threats of dispossession and destruction of their ancestral territories, as well as the risk of genocide, owing to the lack of recognition of their rights.
"These threats include encroachment by extractive industries and the rapid E/C.19/2024/L.4 4/4 24-07098 imposition of monocultures, deforestation, violence, and the presence and proselytism of missionaries, including Mennonite groups."
Critical Minerals
"The Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues recommended to the higher United Nations body, the Economic and Social Council, the adoption of draft decisions, including those in voluntary isolation and initial contact in the context of the extraction of critical minerals."
Protection of Languages
"Education systems must be culturally safe, be based on Indigenous Peoples’ world views and support Indigenous Peoples’ languages. The Permanent Forum reiterates the urgent need for Member States to protect Indigenous Peoples’ languages, both spoken and written, during the International Decade of Indigenous Languages, through the integration of these languages into daily activities by adopting appropriate laws and policies drafted in close collaboration with Indigenous Peoples."Biological Diversity
"The Forum calls for the prioritization of Indigenous-led initiatives to ensure the equitable participation and involvement of Indigenous Peoples in decision-making, including in the Conferences of the Parties to, and processes under, the Convention on Biological Diversity, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification in Those Countries Experiencing Serious Drought and/or Desertification, Particularly in Africa."Note: The lengthy documents include a wide variety of recommendations regarding funding, banks, freedom of the press, and other global Indigenous issues."
Intellectual Property Rights
"The Permanent Forum urges the States members of the World Intellectual Property Organization to ensure the full participation of Indigenous People, including developing safeguards to protect their knowledge and adopting a treaty to protect Indigenous Peoples’ genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge and medicine, at the Diplomatic Conference on Genetic Resources and Associated Traditional Knowledge to be held in 2024."
Note: The draft reports prepared by the Permanent Forum for the U.N. Economic and Social Council include extensive recommendations on financing for Indigenous Peoples, freedom of the press, and many other global issues.
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1 comment:
Thanks for the ongoing coverage, not least of all regarding green colonialism and the confluent struggle to protect human rights and ecological sanity as brought into focus through the concerns and efforts of indigenous communities around the world.
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