 |
Attorney: Kim Gottschalk
Case Update
On September 13, 2007, the United Nations General Assembly overwhelmingly adopted the Declaration
on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. The vote was 143 in favor, 4 opposed, and 11 abstaining. The only votes in opposition were Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the United States. The new Prime Minister of Australia has indicated Australia will support the Declaration. This historic vote comes after 30 years of worldwide indigenous efforts.
The Declaration recognizes that indigenous peoples have important collective human rights in a multitude of areas, including self-determination, spirituality, and lands, territories and natural resources. The Declaration sets out minimum standards for the treatment of indigenous peoples and can serve as the basis for the development of customary international law. The 7th meeting of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous’ Issues will take place at the UN in New York City from April 21-May 2, 2008. The special theme of this session will be climate change.
|
|
