indigenous peoples and HR

ogoni case of 2001

nigerian police force destroyed the original place of the ogoni people.

the outcome? AFCHPR said the ogoni case details strict violations of HR

what rights were violated for the ogoni case

article 16 - right to health

article 24 - right to chill environment

article 21 - right to sovereignty over natural resources

article 14 - right to property

article 18 - protection of family

what did the AFCPR say

they didn’t rule this as the responsibility of the corporates to deal w this mess

two branches of indigenous rights

civil and political

social, cultural and economic

civil and political indigenous rights

SD - a1 of ICCPR

right to political participation and representation - a19

right to equality and non discrimination - a16 of ICCPR, a2 of UNDRIP

land and resources - a25-30 of UNDRIP

right to maintain legal and judicial systems - a34 of UNDRIP

culture, religion, language - a11-16 UNDRIP

right to protection from forced assimilation/violence - genocide convention

social cultural and economic rights for indigenous peoples

ILO convention 169/UNDRIP recognizes the relevance of indigenous lands for identity → MUST BE RECOGNIZED

this includes compensation for damages

but the ILO convention and UN declaration don’t rlly say much about indigenous rights for domestic law

mayagna (sumo) awas tingni community vs. nicaragua

group filed a case against nicaragua government for not recognizing the traditional land rights

the govt did a logging concession without consulting the community, violating their rights

multinationalism/plurinationalism

product of 1960s and 70s moral relativism recognized in ILO Convention 169

btw ecuador and bolivia are plurinational

what is the indigenous communities’ tradition regarding the land

its communal! they have the right to live freely in their own territory b/c of their inherent close ties with the land. it’s fundamental and spiritual.

saramaka ppl vs. suriname

further establishes that indigenous people have TIES to the TERRITORY. right to property, article 21, was maintained.

having this communal ownership secures control.

what were the conditons for preventing the exploitation of natural resources

effective participation of indigenous people for any decision process

has to benefit the indigenous people

prior environmental/social impact assessment must be carried out by the capable entities

what is the inter american approach to land rights

indigenous land tenure - valid even without a formal title

even displaced indigenous people have land rights

consultation + consent + compensation

canada’s role in all of this….

evolved overtime

delgamuukw vs. bc

indigenous title must be proven via historical evidence

tsilhqot’in nation vs. BC

indigenous title is acceptable for traditional and economic activities.

yet canadian law allows governments to trump it in some cases which is INCONSISTENT with IAHRS standards