Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People

Subject : International Relations

Section :United Nation

Concept :

An organization representing the Chin Kuki Mizo communities living in India, Bangladesh and Myanmar has sought the help of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in ending the “policy of extermination” of ethnic minorities inhabiting the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) of Bangladesh.
It claimed that Dhaka’s action is clearly in violation of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People.

About the Declaration:

The Declaration is a comprehensive statement addressing the human rights of indigenous peoples.
It emphasizes rights of indigenous peoples to live in dignity, to maintain and strengthen their own institutions, cultures and traditions and to pursue their self-determined development, in keeping with their own needs and aspirations
Other U.N. bodies address indigenous rights through Conventions such as the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) Convention No.169 and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) (Article 8j).
UN Declarations are generally not legally binding.
It was drafted and formally debated for over 20 years prior to being adopted by the General Assembly in 2007. It was started in 1982 when the UN-ECOSOC established the Working Group on Indigenous Populations.
Adopted by a majority of 144 states in favour, 4 votes against (Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States) and 11 abstentions.

Rights ensured by the Declaration:

The Declaration, however, is widely viewed as not creating new rights.
It addresses both individual and collective rights, cultural rights and identity, rights to education, health, employment, language, and others.
Recognizes subsistence rights and rights to lands, territories and resources.
All human rights and fundamental freedoms as recognized in the Charter of the UN, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the rest of international human rights law.
Right to be free from any kind of discrimination.
Right to self-determination– By that right they can freely determine their political status and pursue their economic, social and cultural development.