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From: UNNews <UNNews@un.org>
Date: 23 May 2013 18:00:01 -0400
Subject: UN OFFICIAL HIGHLIGHTS POSITIVE TRENDS IN AFRICA TO PROTECT
INDIGENOUS PEOPLE'S RIGHTS
To: news11@ny-mail-p-lb-028.ptc.un.org
UN OFFICIAL HIGHLIGHTS POSITIVE TRENDS IN AFRICA TO PROTECT INDIGENOUS
PEOPLE'S RIGHTSNew York, May 23 2013 6:00PMA United Nations official
today stressed that Africa has taken positive steps to protect the
rights of indigenous people, adding that the continent must continue
making progress and avoid repeating mistakes made by other regions.
"Africa has been consolidating and strengthening the legal framework
protecting indigenous people," Senior Specialist on Indigenous Tribal
Peoples' Issues for the International Labour Organization (ILO),
Albert Kwokwo Barume, said at a Headquarters press conference being
held in connection with the 12th session of the UN Permanent Forum on
Indigenous Issues. .
"We have a large number of African countries that supported the UN
Declaration [on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples]," he continued,
noting countries implementing domestic laws, like Congo has done. In
addition, the Central African Republic has become the first African
member country of the ILO to ratify the agency's Convention 169, which
is a legally binding treaty which deals specifically with the rights
of indigenous and tribal peoples, Mr. Barume said.
Adopted by the General Assembly in September 2007 after more than two
decades of debate, the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
sets out the individual and collective rights of those peoples, as
well as their rights to culture, identity, language, employment,
health, education and other issues.
Mr. Barume also noted that the African Commission on Human and
People's Rights has been "playing a leading role on indigenous
people's issues in Africa." He underlined that the Commission had
particularly helped to conceptualize what being 'indigenous' means in
Africa, something that has been controversial in some countries.
"Today, that concept has a clear, well-defined, and non-controversial
understanding," he said.
Around 2,300 indigenous participants have gathered at UN Headquarters
in New York to discuss culture, education and health during the 12th
session of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues.
This year, the two-week forum will particularly focus on youth,
indigenous groups in Africa and the importance of strengthening ties
with international financial institutions.
Mr. Barume said the current session on Africa is an opportunity for
African countries to learn from good practices in other regions, as
well as an opportunity for them to share their successful experiences
with the world.
"We have seen different attempts of trying to educate indigenous
children, but indigenous people have the right to make the choices of
the education they want to give their children because they have the
right to self-determination," he said. "In that sense, Africa must
avoid making the same mistakes that other countries have made in the
past."
Also participating in the forum were the Legal Adviser to the
President of the Republic of the Congo, Laurent Tengo and Simon
William M'Viboudoulou, Member of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous
Issues.
Responding to a number of questions, including one on visits of UN
Special Rapporteur for Indigenous Peoples' Rights James Anaya to
Africa, in particular to Namibia, Mr. M'Viboudoulou said that, when
Mr. Anaya had visited the Republic of Congo, the country had been in
the process of establishing its laws on indigenous peoples. The
State's openness to dialogue had helped to improve the situation of
its indigenous population, including implementing the Special
Rapporteur's recommendations.
"We all know the problems facing the indigenous people of Namibia", he
said of that particular visit. However, it was important to consider
that accepting Mr. Anaya's visit – and engaging in dialogue on the
issue – showed political will on the part of the Namibian Government.
He was confident that things would soon change for the San, one of
that country's indigenous groups.
Asked what was being done to educate mainstream populations about the
rights of indigenous peoples, Mr. Tengo responded that there was a
longstanding belief in many countries that indigenous people were part
of the nation, and that there was no reason to take particular
measures to protect them. The first challenge was to break away from
that thinking.
The second challenge, he continued, was the state of underdevelopment
that generated poverty and intolerance. Indigenous peoples lived
mostly in poverty, and changing that would require the political
courage to take proactive measures. In addition, indigenous peoples
themselves needed to "take their destiny in their hands" and defend
their own rights, he said.
On the same question, Mr. Barume stressed the need to address
historical injustices against African indigenous peoples, in
particular with regard to the annexation of land. Acknowledging those
injustices was the first step, he underscored, as "you cannot correct
a mistake that you do not first recognize". It was also critical to
legally address those wrongdoings, and then to implement laws and
educate the mainstream community.May 23 2013 6:00PM
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