Latest news with #NationsPermanentForumonIndigenousIssues
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Indigenous delegates at the UN raise alarm on voluntary isolated Indigenous peoples
This story is published through the Indigenous News Alliance, which ICT is part of. Aimee GabayMongabay Indigenous delegates at the 24th session of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues called attention to the threats faced by Indigenous peoples in voluntary isolation and initial contact, or PIACI. Isolated peoples are affected by the exploitation of natural resources in their territories, drug trafficking, logging, and other illegal economies. Indigenous peoples and organizations at the forum urged states to adopt a territorial corridors initiative and to implement policies, standards and cross-border mechanisms to secure their territories and rights. There are 188 records of isolated Indigenous peoples in South America, however national governments officially recognize 60. At the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues — the world's largest convening of Indigenous peoples — Indigenous leaders from South America are taking the chance to spotlight threats facing isolated peoples (also known as uncontacted people).Deforestation is closing in on some communities in the Amazon and many lack official recognition of records of their existence, say representatives at the 10-day gathering in the United Nations headquarters in New York City. They are holding multiple events in the city, including launching a book with strategies to recognize their presence and sharing solutions to protect the lands they depend on.'There needs to be greater respect, protection and land demarcation for these peoples,' said Bushe Matis, general coordinator of the Union of Indigenous Peoples of the Vale do Javari (UNIVAJA). 'It's important for us Indigenous peoples who came to New York to raise our voices for them.'The rights of isolated Indigenous peoples are guaranteed in international legislation and some national laws, such as the U.N. Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and Convention 169 of the International Labor Organization (ILO Convention 169). However, these are at times violated by states, companies, and invaders searching for land. In some cases, they are unprotected because states, including Venezuela and Paraguay, don't recognize peoples in voluntary isolation and initial contact, also known as PIACI, are threatened by the exploitation of natural resources, drug trafficking, illegal logging, and mining in their lands, say researchers. Contact with outsiders can be deadly because isolated peoples lack immunity to illnesses that are common outside. These threats can also lead to their displacement and the disappearance of the game they depend on to survive.'The issue is of utmost importance because these peoples are the ones who also help protect Indigenous territories with their ancestral knowledge,' said Eligio Dacosta, the president of the Regional Organization of Indigenous Peoples of Amazonas (ORPIA) in Venezuela. 'These peoples have a higher level of spirituality than other Indigenous peoples normally have.'The main proposals Indigenous leaders and organizations have raised at the forum are the recognition of lands vital for isolated peoples and the implementation of protective measures, such as public policies to safeguard their of protectionJamer López, the president of ORAU, a regional organization part of the Interethnic Association for the Development of the Peruvian Rainforest (AIDESEP), said the primary concern of Indigenous leaders and organizations at the forum is to secure the territories their isolated brothers and sisters have ancestrally there has been past progress in Peru, he said the state, rather than guarantee the protection of these communities, has promoted policies of land possession, such as laws that obstruct and prevent the creation of Indigenous reserves for isolated peoples. The government is favoring the interests of big business which want to expand forestry concessions and oil fields in these areas to boost economic growth, López more than 20 years, Indigenous organizations in Peru have petitioned the government to create Yavarí Mirim, a one million-hectare (2.5 million-acre) Indigenous reserve on the Amazon border with Brazil and Colombia that would protect hundreds of isolated and initially contacted peoples in the region. But in February this year, the country's Multi-Sector Commission postponed a meeting to determine the reserve boundaries Ministry for Culture did not respond to our requests for comment by the time of Silva Cubeo, a delegate of the Amazon Regional Roundtable for the Amazonas department of Colombia, told Mongabay a 'very serious concern' in Colombia is that despite having a decree to protect isolated peoples (Decree 1232), to date, there has been little implementation and there is no public policy on the matter, such as a contingency plan in case of Colombia and many other countries in South America, many people in isolation are threatened by organized groups, such as illegal miners and drug traffickers, who encroach on their homes and cause violence and displacement. 'They are being besieged precisely by the chains of crime,' Lena Estrada Añokazi, Colombia's minister of environment and sustainable development, and the first Indigenous person to ever hold the position, said at the forum.'That's why it's urgent to continue to invest more in investigations to find out who these criminals are.'ProposalsAcross South America, states only recognize and guarantee the rights of peoples in isolation whose presence has been officially recorded. In Venezuela, for example, although NGOs have confirmed four records of Indigenous peoples in voluntary isolation, the state has not recognized any of them.'[Venezuela] does not appear on the map of isolated peoples in Latin America,' said Dacosta. 'There are already mining hotspots in each [Indigenous territory] and mining is almost reaching these peoples who do not have this initial contact, who are in isolation.'Dacosta said people in isolation have already been affected in some regions as mining gradually pushes their displacement. At the forum, ORPIA raised the issue with the national government and called for constitutional reform in Venezuela to establish rights for peoples in isolation and initial contact. Currently, they are not included in its constitution, and the country has no established protocols to recognize them in laws and supreme Ministry for Indigenous Peoples did not respond to our requests for comment by the time of International Working Group for the Protection of Indigenous Peoples in Isolation and Initial Contact (GTI-PIACI) launched a report at the forum that lays out a series of principles and guidelines to help governments, Indigenous organizations, and NGOs prove the existence of Indigenous peoples in to the report, there are 188 records of Indigenous peoples in voluntary isolation in South America but only 60 are officially recognized by the state. 'This means that, for the state, 128 records don't exist,' states the report, adding that this lack of recognition denies the rights of these communities. Of these records, Indigenous organizations recognize 31, but they are not included in the official lists. Delegates have also requested that states adopt a territorial corridors initiative, which aims to protect the PIACI and the well-being of neighbouring Indigenous peoples. They have called on governments to coordinate with the Indigenous organizations to implement policy actions, with a cross-border approach, to guarantee isolated peoples' rights and territories. Last month, Colombia created an over 1-million-hectare (2.7-million-acre) territory to protect the Yuri-Passé Indigenous peoples living in isolation between the Caquetá and Putumayo Rivers in the Amazon.'In order to protect them, we must protect the territories they inhabit,' Estrada said. 'We must also protect the Indigenous peoples surrounding the territories they inhabit. If we strengthen the governance of these Indigenous peoples whose territories surround the territories of isolated peoples, we will obviously protect them as well.'Julio Cusurichi, a Shipibo-Conibo Indigenous leader and President of the Native Federation of the River Madre de Dios and Tributaries (FENAMAD) in Peru, wrote over WhatsApp voice messages they want to see the implementation of a control and surveillance system in Peru to protect the PIACI which involves the participation of the communities surrounding these reserves.
Yahoo
19-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
United Nations Indigenous forum considers moving outside US
Pauly DenetclawICT Delegates to the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues – one of the largest annual gatherings at UN headquarters in New York City – may decide to move future meetings outside the United States because of the current political climate. Fears about treatment of international visitors and difficulty or delays in gaining visas to travel into the U.S. are already reducing attendance at this year's meeting, which is set to start Monday and run through May 2. Now members are considering moving the event altogether. 'We're concerned about the ability of Indigenous people from around the world to actually make it in the country and not be harassed,' Geoffrey Roth, Standing Rock Sioux, one of 16 members of the Permanent Forum, told ICT Friday. 'Considering the safety of Indigenous peoples and their ability to actually make it to meetings and participate in a meaningful way,' he said, 'I think it's time to move, and that's my personal opinion.' Roth has heard from delegates and representatives that it's not a safe time to travel to the United States, and they're scared to do it. On top of that, visas are being denied or delayed, impacting those who can participate — especially those from countries in Africa or from Russia. The chair of the forum, Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim, an Indigenous Mbororo woman from Chad, issued a letter on April 15 calling on all member states to issue visas in a timely manner and give unimpeded access for Indigenous participants. Ibrahim cited Article 25 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights that guarantees the right for every citizen to take part in public affairs, as well as Articles 2 and 26, which affirms nondiscrimination of using such rights. 'A different level of concern' Each spring for more than 20 years, the floor of the United Nations General Assembly Hall has become a homecoming for Indigenous leaders, activists, delegates and representatives for the opening ceremony to the Permanent Forum. Indigenous people who are separated by oceans, continents, rivers and colonial borders become friends and colleagues — working together to strengthen Indigenous rights locally and globally. 'It's extremely important we have all of these voices come together, and we speak with as unified a voice as possible in the global perspective,' Roth told ICT. Since 2002, the Permanent Forum, a high-level advisory body to the UN that is known as PFII, has held an annual meeting at the United Nations headquarters in New York City. It has grown to become the second-largest event held at 760 United Nations Plaza. The annual meeting has become known as a global platform for Indigenous people to push for dialogue, cooperation and concrete action on issues that impact their communities. This year, however, forum members have already discussed the possibility of moving the annual meeting out of the United States — permanently. 'I think we're seeing a whole different level of concern about traveling here and being safe while in New York and while at this meeting,' Roth said. One member of the forum has had their travel visa delayed for a second year in a row. This is unusual, considering that members are nominated by either a government or chair of the Economic and Social Council, one of the main organs that make up the UN. It's possible the member may not be able to attend this year's forum at all, Roth said. Unable to attend There is a history of Indigenous people from countries that are adversaries of the United States having their visas denied or delayed. However, the issue has become more widespread and prevalent. Four months into President Donald Trump's new administration, international arrivals have plummeted. Some are angered by Trump's tariffs and rhetoric. Others are alarmed by reports of tourists being arrested at the border, denied entry into the country, or detained for questioning for several hours to days. Roth said folks haven't explicitly mentioned Trump's policy but the proposal to relocate the forum is likely to be presented. 'I anticipate a recommendation to move it,' Roth said. 'But I'm not sure if that's going to happen or not. We'll see through the deliberations. It will also be important for us to hear from Indigenous people that did make it. But I am receiving a lot of messages that individuals just aren't going to be making it this year.' Roth is worried that participation is going to plummet this year, which will impact the success and work of the forum. The purpose of the annual meeting is to gather interventions, which are essentially calls to action, that will be used in a report to the United Nations. If the 16 members agree to recommend moving the meeting, it would be included in the annual report to the UN and implemented. Ultimately, it would take several years because of how far ahead the UN events are planned. The Permanent Forum does have the authority to change venues, per the Economic and Social Council Resolution 2000. It states that the 16-member board 'decides that the Permanent Forum shall hold an annual session of ten working days at the United Nations Office at Geneva or at United Nations Headquarters or at such other place as the Permanent Forum may decide in accordance with existing financial rules and regulations of the United Nations.' The annual reports provide expert advice and recommendations to the UN system. The forum members, based on interventions, advocate globally for Indigenous rights and the implementation of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, known as UNDRIP. 'We're not going to have as many Indigenous people here that we typically would, and we're not going to have that perspective from those people as well,' he said. Voices unheard Indigenous communities in the Democratic Republic of Congo, for example, are experiencing severe human rights violations because of mining development. Congolese Indigenous people gave testimony to the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues that resulted in a call to action. Ibrahim, the forum chair, called on the Congo government to intervene and for the UN to investigate human rights violations. The forum wouldn't have known this was happening if Congolese Indigenous people weren't able to advocate for their communities. Indigenous people from Russia have already told Roth that there will be a much smaller group attending this year. This means hunting, fishing and mining issues from those communities won't reach the international stage that the forum offers. This story contains material from The Associated Press. Our stories are worth telling. Our stories are worth sharing. Our stories are worth your support. Contribute $5 or $10 today to help ICT carry out its critical mission. Sign up for ICT's free newsletter.
