Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

Carried by the UN General Assembly 13th September 2007, 143-4 (Australia voting against)

 

I think we should call on a range of people to endorse this, especially Article 13 (Pat McConvell, speaking personally, not for AIATSIS). It is of course unlikely that the present Federal Govt. will do that as they voted against the Declaration but others may want to.

 

Extracts

other articles are also relevant to language and culture maintenance but these are the most directly relevant

 

Article 8

1. Indigenous peoples and individuals have the right not to be subjected to

forced assimilation or destruction of their culture.

2. States shall provide effective mechanisms for prevention of, and redress

for:

(a) Any action which has the aim or effect of depriving them of their

integrity as distinct peoples, or of their cultural values or ethnic identities;

(b) Any action which has the aim or effect of dispossessing them of their

lands, territories or resources;

(c) Any form of forced population transfer which has the aim or effect of

violating or undermining any of their rights;

(d) Any form of forced assimilation or integration;

(e) Any form of propaganda designed to promote or incite racial or ethnic

discrimination directed against them.

 

Article 13

1. Indigenous peoples have the right to revitalize, use, develop and transmit

to future generations their histories, languages, oral traditions, philosophies, writing

systems and literatures, and to designate and retain their own names for

communities, places and persons.

2. States shall take effective measures to ensure that this right is protected

and also to ensure that indigenous peoples can understand and be understood in

political, legal and administrative proceedings, where necessary through the

provision of interpretation or by other appropriate means.

Article 14

1. Indigenous peoples have the right to establish and control their

educational systems and institutions providing education in their own languages, in

a manner appropriate to their cultural methods of teaching and learning.

2. Indigenous individuals, particularly children, have the right to all levels

and forms of education of the State without discrimination.

3. States shall, in conjunction with indigenous peoples, take effective

measures, in order for indigenous individuals, particularly children, including those

living outside their communities, to have access, when possible, to an education in

their own culture and provided in their own language

 

Article 15. (Adriano: I think this is particularly relevant for language nests, community consultation/involvement and supports the recommendation for the right to language education)

 

Indigenous children have the right to all levels and forms of education of the State. All indigenous peoples also have this right and the right to establish and control their educational systems and institutions providing education in their own languages, in a manner appropriate to their cultural methods of teaching and learning.

 

Indigenous children living outside their communities have the right to be provided access to education in their own culture and language.

 

 

Article 16

1. Indigenous peoples have the right to establish their own media in their

own languages and to have access to all forms of non-indigenous media without

discrimination.

2. States shall take effective measures to ensure that State-owned media

duly reflect indigenous cultural diversity. States, without prejudice to ensuring full

freedom of expression, should encourage privately owned media to adequately

reflect indigenous cultural diversity.