World Civil Society calls on UN to recognize Indigenous Rights

World's Governments Pressed on Native Peoples' Rights Haider Rizvi, OneWorld US, Fri., Oct. 6, 2006 UNITED NATIONS, Oct 6 (OneWorld) - Global civil society organizations are pressing the 192-nation U.N. General Assembly to recognize indigenous peoples' rights to their land and resources. ''This is an opportunity that must not be lost,'' said Nicholas Howen, secretary-general of the Geneva-based International Commission of Jurists (ICJ). He referred to a proposed Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. The U.N. Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues drafted the document over years of intense diplomacy involving governments, indigenous peoples' representatives, and numerous non-governmental organizations (NGOs). Continued here: http://us.oneworld.net/article/view/140501/1/4536