Canada, Australia, and Mexico, address Indigenous issues before the United Nations Human Rights Council

https://www.ohchr.org/en/news/2023/03/human-rights-council-hears-16-dignitaries-it-continues-its-high-level-segment

New Book on the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP)

Forthcoming book on the UNDRIP is available for pre-order at $185.00. It will be published by Oxford University Press on 22 April 2018. Subtitled, A Commentary, it is edited by Jessie Hohmann, Lecturer in Law, Queen Mary, University of London and
Marc Weller, Professor of International Law and International Constitutional Studies, University of Cambridge.

The Economics of Exploitation: Indigenous Peoples and the Impact of Resource Extraction

From CounterPunch by Mark Kernan:

In 1937 George Orwell said that coal mining was the ‘metabolism’ of western civilisation. What he meant by this striking metaphor was that coal was the catalyst for an earlier industrial revolution, just as enzymes act as the life-sustaining catalyst within the cells of living organisms to maintain life. If Orwell were alive today however he would have good cause to reformulate his perceptive observation. For modern mining-the extraction of oil, gas and rich minerals, including, again, coal-is now the alchemic catalyst driving the metabolism of 21^stcentury economic globalisation. Unfortunately however the consequences and effects of modern mining take on a very grim symbolism in relation to the chemical metaphor referenced above. For rather than sustaining life on the planet, instead, much of 21^st century resource extraction now acts as the catalyst in obliterating unique and diverse life systems- in particular, traditional peoples and societies- by harmful extractive processes and practices, and the cumulative social, environmental and cultural impact of those processes.

Continued here: http://www.counterpunch.org/2015/08/20/the-economics-of-exploitation-indigenous-peoples-and-the-impact-of-resource-extraction/

New book: Indigenous Peoples, Customary Law and Human Rights – Why Living Law Matters

At a time when the self-determination, land, resources and cultural heritage of Indigenous peoples are increasingly under threat, this accessible book presents the key issues for both legal and non-legal scholars, practitioners, students of human rights and environmental justice, and Indigenous peoples themselves.

Brendan Tobin, Indigenous Peoples, Customary Law and Human Rights – Why Living Law Matters

Free Download: Restoring Indigenous Self-Determination

E-INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS, MAY 3 2014 Series Editor: Marc Woons

Restoring Indigenous Self Determination E-IRIndigenous peoples find themselves locked in power struggles with dominant states and transnational actors who resist their claims to land, culture, political recognition and other key factors associated with the idea of self-determination. In 2007, the importance of Indigenous self-determination alongside that of nation-states was significantly enhanced when the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Declaration of Indigenous Peoples – suggesting that an important attitudinal shift might now be taking place internationally. This volume’s contributors suggest that much more work is needed in terms of, on the one hand, what Indigenous self-determination means in theory and, on the other hand, how it is to be achieved in practice. Click here(pdf) to download.

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.

GALDU: Resource Centre for the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

A Sami organization sponsored by the Norwegian government:


Their ABOUT US statement:

Resource Centre for the Rights of Indigenous Peoples was established by an order of the Norwegian government. The centre is located in Guovdageaidnu-Kautokeino, in Finnmark county.

The resource centre shall increase information about the rights of Saami and other indigenous peoples.The Centre is independent, governed by an own board.

The Centre is funded by Norwegian Ministry of Labour and Social Inclusions and by Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

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

Minority Rights Group, State of the World's Minorities and Indigenous Peoples, 2009 report

State of the World’s Minorities and Indigenous Peoples 2009

Minority Rights Group’s flagship annual report, produced this year in
conjunction with UNICEF, is on the theme of education. State of the
World’s Minorities and Indigenous Peoples is an invaluable reference for
policy makers, academics, journalists and everyone who is interested in
the conditions facing minorities and indigenous peoples around the
world.

Read more:
http://www.minorityrights.org/990/state-of-the-worlds-minorities/state-of-the-
worlds-minorities.html

Recent Articles

Indigenizing Intellectual Property Law: Customary Law, Legal Pluralism, and the Protection of Indigenous Peoples' Rights, Identity, and Resources Danielle M. Conway Texas Wesleyan Law Review, Volume 15, Number 2, Spring 2009, p.207

Protecting the Traditional Knowledge and Cultural Expressions of Russia's "Numerically-Small" Indigenous Peoples: What Has Been Done, What Remains to Be Done Michael Newcity Texas Wesleyan Law Review, Volume 15, Number 2, Spring 2009, p.357

The Cultural and Intellectual Property Interests of the Indigenous Peoples of Turkey and Iraq Hannibal Travis Texas Wesleyan Law Review, Volume 15, Number 2, Spring 2009, p.415

Academy on Human Rights, American University, Washington College of Law

Human Rights Month (May 18 – June 12, 2009) A month of events dedicated to human rights theory sponsored by the American University Washington College of Law, Academy on Human Rights and Humanitarian Law. The following panels include former presidents of the Inter-American Commission and the Court, as well as representatives from human rights organizations, and academia. Panels May 27: The Role of International Courts: Current Issues and Future Challenges May 29: Ratification of Human Rights Treaties and the Obama Administration June 1: Environment and Human Rights: Developments on Implementation Co-sponsored by the International and Comparative Environmental Law Program, American University June 3: Indigenous Peoples Rights: Current Status in International Human Rights Law June 5-9: IV Annual Meeting on Human Rights: The 50th Anniversary of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights June 5: A Retrospective Look at the Work of the Commission June 8: Freedom of Expression: A Key Issue on the Commission’s Agenda June 9: A Look at the Future of the Commission: How will it Evolve? June 10: Human Rights Violations after 9/11: A Debate about Accountability Details: WCL Room 603, 12:30 to 2:30 Live webcast on our website: www.wcl.american.edu/humright/hracademy/hrmonth.cfm RSVP: www.wcl.american.edu/secle/registration Phone: 202-274-4295 Email: hracademy@wcl.american.edu

Recent Law Review articles on Indigenous Peoples June-Dec 2008

From High Hopes to Disillusionment: Indigenous Peoples' Struggle to (re)Gain Their Right to Self-determination Koivurova, Timo International Journal on Minority and Group Rights, Volume 15, Number 1, 2008, p.1-26 Possessing the Pacific: Land, Settlers, and Indigenous People from Australia to Alaska, by Stuart Banner Eamon Lorincz Harvard Environmental Law Review, Volume 32, Number 2, 2008, p.597 Fencing Off the Eagle and the Condor, Border Politics, and Indigenous Peoples Angelique EagleWoman Natural Resources & Environment, Volume 23, Number 2, Fall 2008, p.33 The Impact of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples on Wisconsin Tribes Jon Beidelschies Wisconsin International Law Journal, Volume 26, Number 2, Summer 2008, p.479 Who are the Indigenous Peoples of Canada and New Zealand? Natalie Coates Journal of South Pacific Law, Volume 12, Number 1, 2008, p.49-55 Indigenous Sovereignty: A Reassessment in Light of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Siegfried Wiessner Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law, Volume 41, Number 4, October 2008, p.1141 Climate Change and Human Rights: Issues and Opportunities for Indigenous Peoples Emily Gerrard University of New South Wales Law Journal, Volume 31, Number 3, 2008, p.941

UN Secretary General's message on the International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples

New York, 9 August 2008 - Message on the International Day of the World's Indigenous People In 1994, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 9 August as the International Day of the World's Indigenous People. There were many reasons for this decision, but the fundamental motivation was the Assembly's recognition of the need to place the United Nations clearly and strongly behind the promotion and protection of the rights of indigenous peoples, in order to put an end to their marginalization, their extreme poverty, the expropriation of their traditional lands and the other grave human rights abuses they have faced and continue to encounter. Indeed, the suffering of indigenous peoples includes some of the darkest episodes in human history. Important as it was, proclamation of the day was only a prelude to a greater milestone: last fall's adoption by the General Assembly of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. The Declaration is a visionary step towards addressing the human rights of indigenous peoples. It sets out a framework on which states can build or re-build their relationships with indigenous peoples. The result of more than two decades of negotiations, it provides a momentous opportunity for states and indigenous peoples to strengthen their relationships, promote reconciliation, and ensure that the past is not repeated. I encourage Member States and indigenous peoples to come together in a spirit of mutual respect, and make use of the Declaration as the living document it is so that it has a real and positive effect throughout the world. As 2008 is the International Year of Languages, this International Day is also an opportunity to recognize the silent crisis confronting many of the world's languages, the overwhelming majority of which are indigenous peoples' languages. The loss of these languages would not only weaken the world's cultural diversity, but also our collective knowledge as a human race. I call on States, indigenous peoples, the UN system and all relevant actors to take immediate steps to protect and promote endangered languages, and to ensure the safe passage of this shared heritage to future generations.

Minority Rights Group's Online World Directory of Minorities and Indigenous Peoples

MRG's World Directory of Minorities and Indigenous Peoples MRG recently launched the first online database of the world's minorities and indigenous peoples. The World Directory of Minorities and Indigenous Peoples covers 220 of the world's countries and dependent territories, and features profiles of about 700 minorities/indigenous peoples. It is a unique resource for policy-makers, governments, journalists, academics and all those with an interest in the growing field of minority rights. http://www.minorityrights.org/directory

UN General Assembly adopts Declaration on Rights of Indigenous Peoples

United Nations adopts Declaration on Rights of Indigenous Peoples

13 September 2007 – The General Assembly today adopted a landmark declaration outlining the rights of the world’s estimated 370 million indigenous people and outlawing discrimination against them – a move that followed more than two decades of debate.

The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples has been approved after 143 Member States voted in favour, 11 abstained and four – Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States – voted against the text.

A non-binding text, the Declaration sets out the individual and collective rights of indigenous peoples, as well as their rights to culture, identity, language, employment, health, education and other issues.

Continued: http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=23794&Cr=indigenous&Cr1=#

UN General Assembly to vote on the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

**Declaration on Rights of Indigenous Peoples
The Assembly is scheduled to take action on the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples at a plenary meeting scheduled for 10 a.m. on Thursday, 13 September, in the GA Hall. At the same meeting the Assembly will also pay tribute to the Presidents of the 30th and 24th sessions, Mr. Gaston Thorn of Luxembourg and Ms. Angie Brooks of Liberia, respectively, who passed away recently. Ms. Brooks was the second woman to serve as President of the General Assembly.

http://www.un.org/News/briefings/docs//2007/db070911.doc.htm