Rainforest Foundation Norway, Rainforest and Climate Conference, Victoria Tauli Corpuz

Rainforests and Climate Change: Making Sustainable Development

Possible

Indigenous Peoples' Rights and International Law: Implications for

International Climate Policies Oslo, 18 June 2009

Victoria Tauli-CorpuzChair, UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues

Exec.Director, Tebtebba (Indigenous Peoples' International Centre for Policy Research and

Education)

Outline

Climate Change, Justice, Equity and Human Rights

International Human Rights Law and Indigenous Peoples Rights

Implications for International Climate Change Policies

Ways forward

Climate Change, Justice, Equity and Human Rights

• Climate Change: evidence of how the past was mismanaged and how the future is being mismanaged. (Failure of development)

• Justice and equity: between generations, between the developing and developed worlds; between rich and poor: (Historical debt)

• Challenge: equitable distribution of responsibilities and rights underpinned by values of stewardship, cross-generational justice and shared responsibility.

Climate Change, Justice and Equity and Human Rights

• Allowing the poor and indigenous peoples to bear brunt of climate change problem they did not create = high level of tolerance for inequality and injustice.

• A critical human rights concern and obligation under international law.

• Challenge: think differently about human interdependence, development, living well

Climate Change, Justice and Equity and Human Rights

• Mass environmental displacement, the loss of livelihoods, rising hunger, and water shortages caused by climate change can unleash national, regional and global conflicts and security threats (Peru,Philippines, PNG,etc.)

• Climate change poses a direct threat to a wide

range of universally recognized fundamental rights, such as the rights to life, food,

adequate housing, health, and water.

Climate Change, Justice and Equity and Human Rights

• Global warming responsible for more than 160,000 deaths a year from malaria and malnutrition; a number that could double by 2020. (WHO, 2003)

• The health of indigenous peoples' traditional lands and waters,plants and animals upon which they depend for survival gravely threatened,

• Mitigation, Adaptation, low-carbon, green development pathway also have human rights implications

•

International Human Rights Law and Indigenous Peoples Rights

1923 – Deskaheh: League of Nations

1945 – UDHR 1966 – International Covenant of

Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR-1976)

1966 – International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR, 1976)

1965 – ICERD

International Human Rights Law and Indigenous Peoples Rights

1957 – ILO Convention No. 107 on Indigenous and Tribal Peoples in Independent countries

1989 – ILO Convention No. 169 (ratified by 20 countries)

13 Sept. 2007: UNGA adoption of UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

Main elements of the Declaration

19 preambular paragraphs

46 operational articles

Minimum international standards to ensure survival and dignity of Ips

Does not create special rights for indigenous peoples, merely interprets IHL as it applies to indigenous peoples

UN DECLARATION ON THE RIGHTS OF INDIGENOUS

PEOPLES

Article 3: Right to self-determination

Arts. 10,11, 19,28,29,32: Free, prior and informed consent

Arts. 26-31 – rights to lands, territories and resources

Article 32: right to determine and develop strategies and priorities for use of LTRs.

Articles on Free, Prior and Informed Consent

Article 10 – cannot be forcibly removed from lands, territories and relocated without FPIC.

Article 11- redress for IPs whose cultural, intellectual, religious and spiritual property taken without their FPIC

Article 19 – FPIC before adopting administrative policies and legislation

Articles on Free, Prior and Informed Consent

Art. 28 – right to redress for lands, territories, resources, which were confiscated, taken, occupied, used or damaged without their FPIC

Art .29 – no storage or disposal of hazardous materials in IP lands without FPIC

Article 32- FPIC prior to approval of any project affecting their LTRs

General Recommendations and Comments of UN Treaty Bodies

• Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) General Recommendation No. 23:(1994)

4(c) indigenous peoples' pursue sustainable economic and social development compatible with their cultural characteristics;

(d) Ensure that no decisions directly relating to indigenous peoples' rights and interests are taken without their informed consent;

Invoking the UNDRIP

Belize Supreme Court Decision which invoked UNDRIP in Maya vs. Govt. of Belize (Oct. 18, 2007): logging issue

Inter-American Court on Human Rights Judgement: Saramaka Peoples vs.Govt. of Suriname (Nov. 2007)

Failure to recognise and secure indigenous and tribal peoples’ rights to own and control their traditional lands, territories and resources, and active violation of those rights through grants of logging and mining concessions.

UNDRIP as national law and as part of constitutions and guidelines

-National laws on IP Rights and Constitutional amendments:

-Bolivia – UNDRIP made a national law (Nov. 2008), New Constitution (passed in Feb. 2009)

-Ecuador's New Constitution

-UN Development Group (UNDG) Guidelines on Indigenous Peoples' Issues (2009)

A 2003 joint study by the World Health Organisation and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine states that global warming may already be responsible for more than 160,000 deaths a year from malaria and malnutrition; a number that could double by 2020.

International Human Rights Law and Climate Change

2005: ICC petition in 2005 against the United States in the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights,

• asserted that changes in the availability of traditional food sources and the increased risks from changing ice and weather conditions have violated their rights to life, family and privacy under the American Convention on Human Rights.

Implications for international climate change policies

Human-rights based approach and ecosystems approach to climate change policies and programs including REDD

Such approaches brought human beings and biodiversity back to the centre of the discussion and enrich international efforts in addressing climate change.

UNDRIP and ILO Convention No. 169;

frameworks to underpin climate change policies and programs affecting IPs

Implications for international climate change policies

- UNPFII's Reports on Oil Palm Plantations (2007) and on Impacts of climate change mitigation measures on Indigenous Peoples (2008)

- OHCHR Report on Climate Change and Human Rights (2009)

- Use of CERD Early Warning and Urgent Action Procedure by AMAN to question R-Plan of Indonesia (2009)

Ways Forward

Active and effective engagement in CC processes; design of REDD,implementation

Capacity building on HRBA and EA: IPs,Govt.,UN, NGOs

Dialogues Networking Independent national and international

independent monitoring bodies Training on Treaty Bodies and grievance

mechanisms of other bodies, e.g. WB, ADB,etc.

Ways Forward

Coherence of International Laws: HR, Environment, Trade and Finance and building of coherence at national level

Role of UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues

UN Special Rapporteur on Indigenous Peoples

HRC Expert Mechanism on Indigenous Peoples' Rights.

Ways Forward

• Stop criminalization of indigenous peoples and forest peoples' protests

• Set up conflict resolution and mediation processes and strengthen redress mechanisms

• Strengthen indigenous peoples communities, organizations, movements and campaigns at all levels.

Ways Forward

• Full participation of indigenous peoples and forest-dwelling peoples in Forest and Climate Change processes, programmes and projects at all levels including REDD.

• REDD as an integral part of wholistic low-carbon, green development pathway

should be underpinned by human rights and rights of Mother Earth.

Dakkel ay Iyaman!

Maraming Salamat!

THANK YOU VERY MUCH!

www. tebtebba.org www.un.org/esa/socdev/unpfii

Email: [email protected]