In Observing International Day, United Nations Draws Attention to Migration, Trans-Border Movement of Indigenous Peoples
Indigenous peoples continue to face discrimination, marginalization, violence and other infringements upon their basic rights, and these challenges are even greater when they migrate outside their traditional territories to urban areas or across international borders.
The 2018 International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples (9 August) “is an opportunity to explore challenges and rapid responses in protecting the rights of indigenous peoples within and outside their traditional territories, and to revitalize indigenous identities and cultures”, more than 40 United Nations system entities and other international organizations said in a joint statement. “It is important to highlight the need to protect indigenous migrants against all forms of violence and economic exploitation as a potential cause and consequence of migration,” they emphasized.
Many indigenous peoples are displaced or migrate from their ancestral lands due to, among other things, the increasing loss of their lands and resources, the impacts of climate change and the arbitrary establishment of national borders that divide their territories. Many of them end up in sprawling urban areas, and in Latin America, at least 40 per cent of indigenous peoples live in urban areas today, according to the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC).
In a separate joint statement, the Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the Chair of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Indigenous Peoples declared: “We wish to remind States that all indigenous peoples, whether they migrate or remain, have rights under international instruments, including the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.”
Article 36 of that Declaration states that indigenous peoples, in particular those divided by international borders, have the right to maintain and develop contacts, relations and cooperation with their own members as well as other peoples across borders. The United Nations General Assembly adopted the Declaration on 13 September 2007, establishing a universal framework of minimum standards for the survival, dignity and well‑being of indigenous peoples. That landmark document is the most comprehensive international instrument on the collective rights of indigenous peoples, including the rights to self‑determination, traditional lands, territories and resources, education, culture, health and development.
Special Event at United Nations Headquarters
During a special event at United Nations Headquarters from 3 to 6 p.m. on 9 August, indigenous experts from Ecuador, Mali, Mexico, Thailand and the United States will highlight the causes, challenges and opportunities of migration and trans‑border movement of indigenous peoples, and discuss various ways forward in promoting and protecting the rights of indigenous peoples in those contexts. Preceding the discussion will be a high‑level segment featuring remarks by Liu Zhenmin, Under‑Secretary‑General for Economic and Social Affairs; Mariam Wallet Aboubakrine, Chair of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues; Rubén Armando Escalante Hasbún, Permanent Representative of El Salvador to the United Nations; and Rosa Montezuma, Miss Panama 2018. Chief Tadodaho Sidney Hill, of the Onondaga Nation in the United States, will deliver the ceremonial call to order.
Partnering with Twitter to Amplify Visibility
To elevate the profile of the International Day on social media, the Department of Public Information partnered with Twitter to create and promote a branded emoji for the hashtags #WeAreIndigenous, #IndigenousPeoplesDay and #IndigenousDay. They will be live from 8 August to 17 September 2018, covering both the International Day, 9 August, and 13 September, the date upon which the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples was adopted.
“We are grateful to Twitter for partnering with the United Nations once again by activating a special emoji for the International Day,” said Alison Smale, Under‑Secretary‑General for Global Communications. “The emoji is a fun way to raise the profile of the International Day and engage broader audiences in promoting indigenous peoples’ rights,” she added.
Colin Crowell, Twitter’s Global Vice‑President of Public Policy and Philanthropy, stated: “Twitter serves the public conversation around the world. Empowering indigenous peoples to share their unique cultures and perspectives in a global conversation using #WeAreIndigenous and #IndigenousDay is consistent with that mission. We are pleased to partner again with the UN to help drive change and amplify awareness about the importance of the International Day.”
About the International Day
The International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples is commemorated annually on 9 August, in recognition of the first meeting of the United Nations Working Group on Indigenous Populations, held in Geneva in 1982. The General Assembly established the International Day in December 1994.
There are at least 370 million indigenous people in some 90 countries around the world. Practising unique traditions, they retain social, cultural, economic and political characteristics that are distinct from those of the dominant societies within which they live.
Launch of Website for International Year of Indigenous Languages (2019)
Languages around the world continue to disappear at alarming rates. According to the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, no less than 40 per cent of the estimated 6,700 languages spoken as of 2016 were in danger of disappearing. The fact that many of these are indigenous languages places at risk the indigenous cultures and knowledge systems to which these languages belong. To draw attention to the critical loss of indigenous languages and the urgent need to preserve, revitalize and promote them at both the national and international levels, the General Assembly proclaimed 2019 the International Year of Indigenous Languages.
The website for the Year is now available here: www.iyil2019.org.
Experts Available for Interviews
Mariam Wallet Aboubakrine – a Tuareg medical doctor from Tombouctou, Mali, and current Chair of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. She holds a medical degree from the University of Tizi‑Ouzou (Algeria) and a master’s in Humanitarian Action from the University of Geneva, focusing on interventions in crisis: armed conflict, marginalization/exclusion and natural disasters. Ms. Aboubakrine is a member of Tin Hinan, a women’s association working for the defence, promotion and development of indigenous peoples in Africa, the Tuareg in particular. She has worked on many issues related to health, such as nutrition, malaria prevention and education on sexual and reproductive health among the Tuareg. She has participated in trainings on International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention 169 and the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Ms. Aboubakrine has also volunteered with African non‑governmental organizations (NGOs) for advocacy on human rights at sessions of the United Nations Human Rights Council and in the Universal Periodic Review. In addition, she is an independent consultant on gender issues, health and conflict resolution/peace agreements in indigenous communities.
Amy R. Juan – from the Tohono O’odham (Desert People) Nation of south‑west Arizona in the United States, she graduated from Tohono O’odham Community College and helped to establish its Borderland Studies Programme, which promotes local and indigenous science and research on the impacts of Border Policy on O’odham lands and people. She is a founding member of the Tohono O’odham Hemajkam Rights Network, a grass‑roots collective advocating for O’odham rights and freedom of movement across borders, as well as for an end to the militarization of border communities and the protection of O’odham lands and members in Mexico. Ms. Juan is a member of the Indigenous Food Knowledge Network Steering Committee, and an advisor for the I’iolgam Youth Alliance. She is also the CEO of Sovereign Remedies, which specializes in training on restorative justice practices, traditional O’odham food and medicine education and youth‑led organization and leadership. Ms. Juan currently works for the International Indian Treaty Council (IITC).
Prasert Trakansuphakon – of Karen origin, he is an indigenous studies specialist in Thailand and South‑East Asia. He holds a PhD in sociology and has extensive expertise, both in the academic world and in civil society, as a researcher and senior indigenous NGO activist. He served as Director of the regional Indigenous Knowledge and Peoples Network in Mainland Montane South-East Asia (IKAP) for many years, and is the current Chairperson of the Pgakenyaw Association for Sustainable Development (PASD) as well as the Inter Mountain Peoples Education and Culture in Thailand Association (IMPECT). Mr. Trakansuphakon also serves on the Advisory Board Committee of the Asia Indigenous People Pact Foundation (AIPP).
Toa Elisa Maldonado Ruiz – an indigenous Kichwa woman from Otavalo, Ecuador, she is a sociologist with a mention in Development (PUCE ‑ Ecuador); a Master of Social Anthropology (CIESAS ‑ México); and a master’s candidate in Culture Studies at the Universidad Andina Simón Bolívar in Ecuador. Her research work has focused on youth, transnational migration, trade networks, identity and intra‑ethnic tensions among the Kichwa people of Otavalo. Ms. Maldonado’s occupational experience includes designing public policies and projects focused on indigenous peoples, collective rights, the rights of youth, the rights of nature and environment, educational processes and conflict resolution. She is a director and manager of intercultural projects, engaged in the protection and guardianship of the rights of Ecuadorean citizens in the context of migration in Central America.
Carlos Yescas – a researcher, entrepreneur and food advocate, he has worked with food producers in Latin America, Europe and the United States for more than 15 years and is recognized as the leading Latin American expert working with rural and artisan cheese producers. As a researcher, Mr. Yescas explores questions of collective rights and communal knowledge. He focuses on Latin American food politics, heritage and denominations of origin/geographical indications regimes. He has published on such varied topics as migration, indigenous peoples, race/ethnicity and transnational affiliation, and, most recently food policy and heritage. Mr. Yescas is the author of Indigenous Routes: A Framework for Understanding Indigenous Migration (Geneva: International Organization for Migration 2008) and co‑author of Mexican Consular Diplomacy and Indigenous Migration: A Pending Agenda (101 Revista Mexicana de Política Exterior 2014).
Contacts
For media queries and interviews, please contact Martina Donlon in the United Nations Department of Public Information at tel: +1 212 963 6816, or email: donlon@un.org.
For more information on the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, please visit: www.un.org/en/events/indigenousday.
To view a joint statement by the Inter‑Agency Group on Indigenous Peoples’ Issues, please visit: http://bit.ly/idwip2018.
To view a joint statement by four United Nations experts, please visit: https://bit.ly/2niKeSV.
On Twitter, follow: #WeAreIndigenous #IndigenousDay #IndigenousPeoplesDay @UN4Indigenous.
To view a live webcast of the event, go to: http://webtv.un.org on Thursday, 9 August. The press conference will be at 1 p.m., followed by the special event at 3 p.m.