International Indian Treaty Council

International Indian Treaty Council

Declaration of Continuing Independence (1974)

Exposure Draft of Guide for Business on Indigenous Peoples’ Rights – Call for Comments

Several years ago the UN started the Global Compact as an initiative to engage with global business. In December 2012 it released a Exposure Draft of the Business Reference Guide on the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (“UNDRIP”) It has now issued a Call for Comments.

Indigenous Peoples’ Rights

Exposure Draft of Guide for Business on Indigenous Peoples’ Rights – Call for Comments

The UN Global Compact has released for comment the exposure draft of the Business Reference Guide on the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (“UNDRIP”). The exposure draft is open for public comment and consultation until 1 June 2013.

• Download the Exposure Draft of the UNDRIP: Business Reference Guide: English
• Participate in a consultation webinar: 27 February | 9 April | 17 Abril (Español) | 30 April
• Read the media release.

All interested people are invited to submit comments on the exposure draft to undrip@unglobalcompact.org. If you would like to share your comments publicly, please post them to the dedicated discussion thread at the Human Rights and Business Dilemmas Forum. All submissions received will be considered for incorporation into the Guide.

Links to all the above are here.

WIPO Members To Work Toward Treaty On Folklore, Traditional Knowledge, Genetic Resources

From Intellectual Property Watch

6 May 2011

WIPO Members To Work Toward Treaty On Folklore, Traditional Knowledge, Genetic Resources

By Catherine Saez

Building on recent momentum that has produced negotiating texts towards an international instrument to protect folklore, traditional knowledge and genetic resources, delegates to the World Intellectual Property Organization next week will try to clean the texts that still bear signs of division.

The 18th session of the Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore (IGC) is taking place from 9-13 May.

On Monday, WIPO is organising a panel on “Indigenous Peoples’ Collective Rights and Intellectual Property” [pdf] which will host James Anaya, United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, as keynote speaker. The event will also feature Estebancio Castro Diaz, executive secretary, International Alliance of Indigenous and Tribal Peoples of the Tropical Forests, Panamá; Repeta Puna, policy advisor, Office of the Prime Minister, Cook Islands; and Eliamani Isaya Laltaika, coordinator, Tanzania Intellectual Property Rights Network.

Continued at Intellectual Property Watch

Selected Recent Articles

Steven James Anaya--International human rights and indigenous peoples
Ronald Kakungulu-Mayambala
Malawi Law Journal, Volume 4, Number 1, 2010, p.151

SYMPOSIUM: ON THE PROSPECTS FOR THE UNITED NATIONS DECLARATION ON THE RIGHTS OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLES
Pace Environmental Law Review, Volume 28, Number 1, Fall 2010

"Minimum Standards:" The UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
Nicholas A. Robinson
Pace Environmental Law Review, Volume 28, Number 1, Fall 2010, p.346

Cultural and Economic Self-Determination for Tribal Peoples in the United States, Supported by the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
Angelique Eagle Woman (Wambdi A. Wastewin)
Pace Environmental Law Review, Volume 28, Number 1, Fall 2010, p.357

Book Review: L. May: Genocide: A Normative Account New York: Cambridge University Press, 2010. xi, 283 pp. $85.00. ISBN 978-0-521-12296-2
Ross Kleinstuber
International Criminal Justice Review, Volume 21, Number 1, March 2011, p.85-86

Science, Colonialism, and Indigenous Peoples: The Cultural Polities of Law and Knowledge.
Reviewed by Glen Medves
Canadian Law Library Review, Volume 35, Numbers 3 & 4, 2010, p.141

Broken Landscape: Indians, Indian Tribes, and the Constitution— Frank Pommersheim
Reviewed by Angela R. Riley
Journal of Legal Education, Volume 60, Number 3, February 2011, p.569

Jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights Regarding Indigenous Peoples: Retrospect and Prospects
Koivurova, Timo
International Journal on Minority and Group Rights, Volume 18, Number 1, 2011, p.1-37

Indigenous Peoples in Indonesia: At Risk of Disappearing as Distinct Peoples in the Rush for Biofuel?
Colbran, Nicola
International Journal on Minority and Group Rights, Volume 18, Number 1, 2011, p.63-92


Ko Ngā Take Tare Māori: What a Difference a 'Drip' Makes: The Implications of Officially Endorsing the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
Kiri Rangi Toki
Auckland University Law Review, Volume 16, 2010, p.243

CLJC search: INDIGENE*

'AN ESSENTIAL GHOST': INDIGENEITY WITHIN THE LEGAL ARCHIVE
Kathleen Birrell
Australian Feminist Law Journal, Volume 33, December 2010, p.81


III. INDIGENOUS PEOPLES' HUMAN RIGHTS IN AFRICA: THE PRAGMATIC REVOLUTION OF THE AFRICAN COMMISSION ON HUMAN AND PEOPLES' RIGHTS
Jérémie Gilbert
International and Comparative Law Quarterly, Volume 60, Number 1, January 2011, p.245-270


Cultural genocide and indigenous peoples: a sociological approach
Damien Short
International Journal of Human Rights, Volume 14, Number 6, November 2010, p.833-848

Indigenous Peoples as International Lawmakers
Lillian Aponte Miranda
University of Pennsylvania Journal of International Law, Volume 32, Number 1, Fall 2010, p.203


Recognising Indigenous Peoples
Environmental Policy and Law, Volume 40, Number 5, 2010, p.217

Statutory interpretation and indigenous property rights
Sean Brennan
Public Law Review, Volume 21, Number 4, December 2010, p.239

Shadow War Scholarship, Indigenous Legal Tradition, and Modern Law in Indian Country
Christine Zuni Cruz
Tribal Law Journal, Volume 9, 2008-2009

The Right of Ethnic Minorities to Free Interpretation in Criminal Proceedings under International Law: With Special Reference to China
Lijiang Zhu
Journal of East Asia and International Law, Volume 3, Number 2, Autumn 2010

Book Review: P. Gaeta(Ed.) The UN Genocide Convention: A Commentary Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009. viii, 590 pp. $150.00. ISBN 978-0-19-957021-8
Mark A. Winton
International Criminal Justice Review, Volume 20, Number 4, December 2010, p.453-454

Review Essay—The Arc of Triumph and the Agony of Defeat: Mexican Americans and the Law
Reviewed by Michael A. Olivas
Journal of Legal Education, Volume 60, Number 2, November 2010, p.354


'IN LAND WE TRUST': THE ENDOROIS' COMMUNICATION AND THE QUEST FOR INDIGENOUS PEOPLES' RIGHTS IN AFRICA
Korir Sing' Oei A. & Jared Shepherd
Buffalo Human Rights Law Review, Volume 16, 2010, p.57

Agency in international climate negotiations: the case of indigenous peoples and avoided deforestation
Heike Schroeder
International Environmental Agreements: Politics, Law and Economics, Volume 10, Number 4, December 2010, p.317-332

SPIRIT FOOD AND SOVEREIGNTY: PATHWAYS FOR PROTECTING INDIGENOUS PEOPLES' SUBSISTENCE RIGHTS
Allison M. Dussias
Cleveland State Law Review, Volume 58, Number 2, 2010, p.273

CLJC search: INDIGENE*

Hawaiian Blood: Colonialism and the Politics of Sovereignty and Indigeneity. By J. Kēhaulani Kauanui
Nicholas Buchanan
Law & Society Review, Volume 44, Numbers 3-4, September/December 2010, p.879-881


The Protection of Minorities and Indigenous Peoples in International Law: A Comparative Temporal Analysis
Castellino, Joshua
International Journal on Minority and Group Rights, Volume 17, Number 3, 2010, p.393-422

Ralph Wilde, International Territorial Administration: How Trusteeship and the Civilizing Mission Never Went Away, Oxford University Press, 2008, ISBN 978-0-199-27432-1, 640 pp.
reviewed by Bernhard Knoll
Vienna Online Journal on International Constitutional Law, Volume 4, Issue 1, March 2010, p.147


A GLOBALLY SUSTAINABLE RIGHT TO LAND: UTILIZING REAL PROPERTY TO PROTECT THE TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLES AND LOCAL COMMUNITIES
Jennifer Lynn Zweig
Georgia Journal of International and Comparative Law, Volume 38, Number 3, Spring 2010, p.769

Who Owns Antiquity? Museums and the Battle Over Our Ancient Heritage, by James Cuno
Reviewed by Phaedra Livingstone
Journal of Arts Management, Law, and Society, Volume 40, Number 3, July-September 2010, p.238


Sovereign States and Self-Determining Peoples: Carving Out a Place for Transnational Indigenous Peoples in a World of Sovereign States
Koivurova, Timo
International Community Law Review, Volume 12, Number 2, May 2010, p.191-212

CLJC search: INDIGENE*

No search results found

CLJC search: "ETHNIC MINORIT*"

Economic Conditions and Minority Violence: An introduction to “Violent Victimization among Males and Economic Conditions: The Vulnerability of Race and Ethnic Minorities”
Alfred Blumstein
Criminology & Public Policy, Volume 9, Issue 4, September 2010, p.659-663

Violent victimization among males and economic conditions: The vulnerability of race and ethnic minorities
Janet L. Lauritsen and Karen Heimer
Criminology & Public Policy, Volume 9, Issue 4, September 2010, p.665-692

Book Review: The Treaty of Waitangi in New Zealand's Law and Constitution
Carwyn Jones
New Zealand Journal of Public and International Law, Volume 7, Number 2, 2009, p.367


Bridging the Divide between Genomic Science and Indigenous Peoples
Bette Jacobs, Jason Roffenbender, Jeff Collmann, Kate Cherry, LeManuel Lee Bitsói, Kim Bassett and Charles H. Evans Jr.
Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics, Volume 38, Number 3, Fall 2010, p.684-696

CLJC search: INDIGENE*

No search results found

CLJC search: "ETHNIC MINORIT*"

John Wrench, Diversity Management and Discrimination. Immigrants and Ethnic Minorities in the EU (Ashgate Publishing, 2007), ISBN 978-0754648901 (hardback)
Tim Dertwinkel
European Yearbook of Minority Issues, Volume 7, 2007/2008, p.769

INDIGENOUS CHILDREN'S RIGHTS - INTERNATIONAL LAW, SELF-DETERMINATION AND INTERCOUNTRY ADOPTION IN GUATEMALA
Sarah Sargent
Contemporary Issues in Law, Volume 10, Issue 1, 2008/2009, p.1

Getting over the Hump: Establishing a Right to Environmental Protection for Indigenous Peoples in the Inter-American Human Rights System
Travis Thompson
Florida State University Journal of Transnational Law & Policy, Volume 19, Number 1, Fall 2009, p.179


Third Party Petitions as a Means of Protecting Voluntarily Isolated Indigenous Peoples
Nickolas M. Boecher
Sustainable Development Law & Policy, Volume 10, Number 1, Fall 2009, p.58

International Law from Below: Development, Social Movements and Third World Resistance (Balakrishnan Rajagopal)
Reviewed by John Reynolds
Palestine Yearbook of International Law, Volume 15, 2009, p.435


Human Genetic Biobanks in Asia: Politics of Trust and Scientific Advancement By Margaret Sleeboom-Faulkner (Editor)
Reviewed by Don Chalmers
SCRIPTed: a Journal of Law, Technology & Society, Volume 7, Issue 1, 2010, p.216-220

Indigenous Rights and United Nations Standards: Self-Determination, Culture and Land By Alexandra Xanthaki
Reviewed by Marcus Goffe
SCRIPTed: a Journal of Law, Technology & Society, Volume 7, Issue 1, 2010, p.221-225

LAW AT ITS MARGINS: QUESTIONS OF IDENTITY, RIGHTS OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLES, ANCESTRAL DOMAINS AND THE DIFFUSION OF LAW
Marvic M.V.F. Leonen
Philippine Law Journal, Volume 83, Number 4, June 2009, p.787

Human Rights Litigation and Restrictive State Implementation of Strasbourg Court Judgments: The Case of Ethnic Minorities from Southeast Europe
Dia Anagnostou and Yonko Grozev
European Public Law, Volume 16, Number 3, September 2010, p.401

The Abbot's New House: Thinking about How Religion Works among Buddhists and Ethnic Minorities in Southwest China
Thomas Borchert
Journal of Church and State, Volume 52, Number 1, Winter 2010, p.112

Book Review: Decolonization and the Evolution of International Human Rights By Roland Burke, Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania Press, 264 pp. $55 (Cloth), ISBN 081224219X
Frederick Cowell
Law, Culture and the Humanities, Volume 6, Number 3, October 2010, p.455-457

Book Review: Sovereignty, Knowledge, Law By Panu Minkkinen, Abingdon: Routledge, 2009. 186 + x pp. $120.00 (Cloth). ISBN: 978-0-415-47241-8
Ben Golder
Law, Culture and the Humanities, Volume 6, Number 3, October 2010, p.457-458


Burying Indigeneity: The Spatial Construction of Reality and Aboriginal Australia
Rowland Atkinson, Elizabeth Taylor, and Maggie Walter
Social & Legal Studies, Volume 19, Number 3, September 2010, p.311-330

Policing Indigenous Peoples on Two Colonial Frontiers: Australia's Mounted Police and Canada's North-West Mounted Police
Amanda Nettelbeck and Russell Smandych
Australian and New Zealand Journal of Criminology, Volume 43, Number 2, August 2010, p.356

Reparations for Indigenous Peoples: International and Comparative Perspectives (Federico Lenzerini ed.)
Raymond Steenkamp Fonseca
Human Rights Quarterly, Volume 32, Number 3, August 2010, p.768

The International Labour Organization and the Quest for Social Justice, 1 919-2009, Gerry Rodgers, Eddy Lee, Lee Sweptson and Jasmien Van Daele
reviewed by James Gross
Comparative Labor Law & Policy Journal, Volume 31, Number 4, Summer 2010, p.851

Federico Lenzerini (ed.), Reparations for Indigenous Peoples: International and Comparative Perspectives
Jérémie Gilbert
Human Rights Law Review, Volume 10, Number 3, 2010, p.586-589

There are no such things as universal human rights-on the predicament of indigenous peoples, for example
Ulf Johansson Dahre
International Journal of Human Rights, Volume 14, Number 5, September 2010, p.641-657


Inconvenient marriages, or what happens when ethnic minorities marry trans-jurisdictionally
Prakash Shah
Utrecht Law Review, Volume 6, Issue 2, June 2010, p.17-32

Book Review - Patents and Technological Progress in a Globalized World — Liber Amicorum Joseph Straus
Firth, Alison
European Intellectual Property Review, Volume 32, Issue 4, 2010, p.184-368

After Genocide: Bringing the Devil to Justice, by Adam M. Smith and Building the International Criminal Court, by Benjamin N. Schiff
reviewed by Rosa Aloisi
Judicature, Volume 93, Number 5, March-April 2010

Keynote Address: Indigenous Peoples and Global Climate Change: Intercultural Models of Climate Equity
Rebecca Tsosie
Journal of Environmental Law and Litigation, Volume 25, Number 1, 2010, p.7

CLJC search: INDIGENE*

Hawaiian Blood: Colonialism and the Politics of Sovereignty and Indigeneity by J. Kehaulani Kauanui
Katharine Bjork
PoLar: Political and Legal Anthropology Review, Volume 33, Number 1, May 2010, p.170-172

Indigeneity in the Courtroom: Law, Culture, and the Production of Difference in North American Courts by Jennifer A. Hamilton
Larry Nesper
PoLar: Political and Legal Anthropology Review, Volume 32, Number 2, November 2009, p.349-352

Book Review: YLVA HERNLUND AND BETTINA SHELL-DUNCAN (eds), Transcultural Bodies: Female Genital Cutting in Global Context. Piscataway, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2007, lix + 373 pp., ISBN 0813540259, £67.50 (hbk)
J. Steven Svoboda
Social & Legal Studies, Volume 19, Number 2, June 2010, p.258-260

Canada Endorses the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

Ref. #2-3429

OTTAWA, ONTARIO, November 12, 2010 – The Government of Canada today formally endorsed the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in a manner fully consistent with Canada's Constitution and laws. Canada's Ambassador to the United Nations, Mr. John McNee, met with the President of the United Nations General Assembly, Mr. Joseph Deiss, to advise him of Canada's official endorsement of the United Nations Declaration.

"We understand and respect the importance of this United Nations Declaration to Indigenous peoples in Canada and worldwide," said the Honourable John Duncan, Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development and Federal Interlocutor for Métis and Non-status Indians. "Canada has endorsed the Declaration to further reconcile and strengthen our relationship with Aboriginal peoples in Canada."

"Canada is committed to promoting and protecting the rights of Indigenous peoples," said the Honourable Lawrence Cannon, Minister of Foreign Affairs. "Canada's active involvement abroad, coupled with its productive partnership with Aboriginal Canadians, is having a real impact in advancing indigenous rights at home and abroad."

Continues at http://www.ainc-inac.gc.ca/ai/mr/nr/s-d2010/23429-eng.asp

Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples: Third Session 12-16 July 2010

The Third Session is now under way in Geneva:http://www2.ohchr.org/english/issues/indigenous/ExpertMechanism/3rd/index.htm

The Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples is a new United Nations mechanism on the rights of indigenous peoples. This mechanism has been created by the Human Rights Council following an informal meeting on the most appropriate mechanisms to continue the work of the Working Group on Indigenous Populations.

The Expert Mechanism is a subsidiary expert mechanism of the Human Rights Council with a specific mandate. Composed of five experts, the Expert Mechanism will provide thematic expertise on the rights of indigenous peoples to the Human Rights Council, the main human rights body of the United Nations. This expertise will be provided in the manner and form requested by the Council:

* The thematic expertise will focus mainly on studies and research-based advice;
* he mechanism may suggest proposals to the Council for its considerations and approval, within the scope of its work as set out by the Council.

The Expert Mechanism held its first session from 1 to 3 October 2008 at the United Nations Office in Geneva. The second session has taken place from 10 to 14 August 2009 and the third session will take place from 12 to 16 July 2010, at the United Nations Office in Geneva. Registration for the Expert Mechanism is now open and the deadline is 25 June 2010. For further information please see the accreditation page.

Finally, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights has been requested to provide human, technical and financial assistance to the Expert Mechanism for the effective fulfilment of its mandate. The Office can be contacted for further information.

HREA Distance Learning Programme

The Human Rights Education Associates offer distance learning courses:

http://www.hrea.org/index.php?base_id=274

Press Conference by Special Rapporteur on Indigenous Rights

Department of Public Information • News and Media Division • New York Press Conference by Special Rapporteur on Indigenous Rights The adoption of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples two years ago signalled the “strong commitment” of the international community to remedy historical ills and combat the ongoing denial of rights, correspondents were told at a Headquarters press conference today. The Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights and fundamental freedom of indigenous people, James Anaya, who took up his mandate in May 2008 and delivered his first report to the General Assembly’s Third Committee today (see Press Release GA/SHC/3954), described a range of activities aimed at monitoring the human rights of indigenous people worldwide, including visiting and investigating cases of alleged human rights violations in Brazil, Nepal, Chile, Australia, Botswana, Russian Federation and Colombia. Responding to a question posed by a correspondent regarding his overall impression of human rights achievements in the Russian Federation, Mr. Anaya said he had been impressed by “progressive legislation and laws on the federal and regional levels”. However, he stressed the need to consolidate and secure the implementation of these laws, as conditions were still very difficult for indigenous peoples there in terms of health, life expectancy and other human indicators. He also noted the need, in the Russian Federation and elsewhere, to strengthen indigenous people’s participation in the design and implementation of the programmes designed to benefit them. When asked what kinds of violations were taking place and in which countries, Mr, Anaya responded that he had received allegations from countries throughout the world. The main issue was to note the general pattern of ongoing violations of the rights of indigenous populations, including the right to lands and resources, cultural integrity, and physical security. He said these rights were lacking in places in Latin America, Africa, Asia and other regions. On a positive note, he added that most Governments acknowledged this disparity and were willing to engage in a discussion. Problems remained, however, and structural elements needed to be addressed within each country to ensure equality. Another correspondent, speaking to situations in Latin America, asked whether Governments there were willing to work with indigenous peoples to address issues such as natural resources and their extraction by transnational companies. Mr. Anaya replied that it was difficult to generalize about any one region, but that certain common patterns could be seen in Latin America. Although all countries in that region supported the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, an “enormous gap” existed between recognition and the day-to-day reality. The activities of transnational companies, particularly the extractive industries, remained a common challenge throughout the region with regards to indigenous rights. A further opening of dialogue was needed, he said, between Governments, indigenous peoples, and transnational companies. A consensus must be arrived at by all those concerned, and all parties must be open to various possibilities, in the spirit of cooperation, respect, and a desire to find practical solutions. This posed a “significant challenge”, since many problems were “systemic patterns of violation that dated back literally centuries”, and was hard to reverse. However, he said that, little by little, movement towards that reversal was being made. Governments and indigenous peoples alike should “inject a spirit of optimism”, he said, as a sense that “possible solutions” existed would speed progress. Also speaking to the gap between policies and reality, a correspondent asked whether the last 10 years had seen a reduction of this gap, and what Mr. Anaya’s recommendations were regarding the more urgent challenges. Mr. Anaya said that the gap had actually gotten wider in recent years. This was due to the fact that there was now much greater recognition of indigenous people’s rights, while situations on the ground had “not changed much”. Bridging that gap, or attempting to bridge it, remained at the heart of the Special Rapporteur’s work. Asking how indigenous peoples could take more of an active role in discussions in the Third Committee and elsewhere throughout the Organization, one correspondent pointed out that they were “not like whales or trees, but can have a voice”. Mr. Anaya said he wished that more indigenous journalists and media participated in the relevant United Nations events, and encouraged “colleagues in the indigenous media” to take a more active role. However, he said that the United Nations was widely known as “a system of States”, and, therefore, structural elements were in place that were difficult or impossible to change. However, he noted that some States were including indigenous people in their delegations, and this was “one place to start”. He applauded the actions of Norway, which had included a member of the indigenous Sami people in its delegation who spoke “under the banner of Norway while speaking against Norwegian policy”. When asked about the stark contrast between the living conditions of some indigenous peoples in Canada and the rest of the population, Mr. Anaya responded that, throughout the world, indigenous people suffered the harshest conditions, and that, in many ways, this was a marker of which groups were indigenous. It was “highly troubling” that such conditions often existed, even in developed countries, he said. In circumstances found from the Russian Federation to Canada, he said many times programmes to remedy the situation were launched with good intentions, but did not fit in with “social and political differences”, and were often “laced with paternalism”. Responding to another question, he said that climate change was also a matter of deep concern, as indigenous peoples were suffering the most from its effects, including in the arctic and in small island nations. However, he lamented the fact that animals at risk in the arctic often generated greater media attention than the people there. “You hear more about polar bears and whales than about the people”, he said, a fact that was “deplorable”. Another correspondent pointed out that Botswana’s “official position was that all people of that country were indigenous to Africa and had no separate indigenous groups. Mr. Anaya said it was not his position to dispute that, as it was the prerogative of individuals to identify themselves. However, he said he had expressed to that country’s leaders that he was interested in “particular indigenous groups” that were suffering inequalities, and intended to proceed on that basis. Regarding the situation in Australia, Mr. Anaya said communities that were in their own “country” were the “most healthy”, while those near urban areas tended to suffer greater stress. He added it was, therefore, necessary for Australian indigenous groups to maintain a connection to “their land” to restore the communities’ health “in a holistic way”. He also said that country’s Government was “very aware” of the gap that needed to be bridged, and was carrying out a campaign around bridging that gap in terms of social and economic welfare, basic human indicators, and having a secure culture within a multicultural State. Another correspondent raised the issue of indigenous peoples being driven from areas for environmental purposes, such as the preservation of wildlife or the creation of national parks, as was done when pygmies in Central Africa were expelled from their homes with a view to protecting the gorilla populations. Mr. Anaya stressed that “the rights of gorillas are not the same as the rights of human beings”. Indigenous peoples needed to have a say in such “environmental movements”, he said, and their views should only be overridden under “very exceptional circumstances”. Many times in the past the rights of these groups were trampled in the name of conservation. He strongly hoped those days were over. * *** *

Draft Report on the Periodic Universal Review: New Zealand

The U.N. Human Rights Council Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review issued its Draft Report on the Universal Periodic Review: New Zealand and recommended strengthening protection for the Maori.

Australia to sign UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

Australia to Become Signatory to the United Nations Declaration on Rights of Indigenous Peoples
Posted: Friday, 13 March 2009, 9:56 (EST)

According to 2009 Australian of the Year, Professor Mick Dodson, the Rudd Government would reverse the position of the previous Howard administration to sign the United Nations Declaration on Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

After the Formal Apology to the Stolen Generations, the Federal Government has committed to establish and implement policies to reduce the gap between non-indigenous Australians and indigenous Australians.

Continued here:http://au.christiantoday.com/article/australia-to-become-signatory-to-the-united-nations-declaration-on-rights-of-indigenous-peoples/5711.htm

Comments on the Declaration

The UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples: Towards Re-empowerment

JURIST Guest Columnists S. James Anaya of the Rogers College of Law, University of Arizona, and Siegfried Wiessner of St. Thomas University School of Law say that the UN General Assembly's recent landslide adoption of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples is a milestone in the re-empowerment of the world's aboriginal groups, and that, in important parts, it reaffirms customary international law in the field ...

Continued at http://jurist.law.pitt.edu/forumy/2007/10/un-declaration-on-rights-of-indigenous.php