CARBON TRADING IS NOT WORKING: strict regulation of offset projects is essential for affected Indigenous Peoples
Hopes are not high for the COP 28 conference in Dubai, especially given the presence of a huge number of oil industry delegates, but the meeting has focused attention on a number of serious issues, and could serve as a vehicle for action to right some of the most glaring injustices. The first of these is carbon trading, with its generally poor results and control over large territories in the name of Conservation: in some cases for 90 years or more. Control that is a major problem for the Indigenous People who live in these areas. A prime example is the deals signed by the United Arab Emirates based company Blue Carbon, and a number of African countries. According to the UK newspaper The Guardian, the company has signed deals that cover a fifth of Zimbabwe, 10% of Liberia, 10% of Zambia and 8% of Tanzania, a total of approximately 24.5 million Ha., together with a deal with the government of Kenya that involves an as yet unspecified area, but said to be millions of hectares. Blue Carbon, operated by Sheikh Ahmed Dalmook Al Maktoum, has been in operation for only a year, and has no experience in managing carbon offset deals. As far as can be determined, the company has had no negotiations with the Indigenous Peoples who will be impacted by these deals, nor plans or policies in place to ensure the protection of their rights. The agreement with Kenya highlights the issues and contradictions of carbon trading. On the one hand, William Ruto, the President of the country, has been creating for himself a profile as a energetic African climate defender, championing private sector investment in the continent, even being cited by Time magazine as one of Africa’s climate leaders. At the Africa Climate Conference in June of this year Ruto claimed the continent’s carbon sinks were an “unparalleled economic goldmine”. On the other hand, Ruto’s government has been displacing hundreds of Ogiek people from the Mau Forest Complex in Eastern Kenya, where they have lived for centuries, evictions that according to the Ogiek’s lawyers, are likely a result of the deal with Blue Carbon. The case is symptomatic. Not only were the Ogiek never consulted about the conservation deal with the UAE company, a violation of their fundamental right, but are now considered by Ruto’s government as an ‘inconvenience’, and being displaced with violence. The fact that the Ogiek have found some support in the Judicial arm of the Kenyan State, is positive – a stay order has been issued by the Naroc Law Court – but there is little guarantee the Kenyan government will respect the decision, and if it does, will not later find a way to interpret the ruling according to its own financial interests. Respect for judicial rulings is one of the major problems facing Indigenous Peoples in their dealings with national governments and private sector partners. The problem is hardly restricted to Africa and more needs to be done on an international level to make sure that the rights of Indigenous Peoples are protected, and that legal judgements in their favor are respected. Money is obviously key, and one major motive for the Kenyan government’s interest in private sector funding, is said to be the lack of follow through on past climate financing offered by richer countries. At the 2009 Copenhagen climate summit the figure of 100 billion USD a year by 2020, was pledged to poorer nations to help them cut emissions and adapt to climate change. The figure was reached, but only in 2022. And there is a caveat: in order to meet the goal, many already existing grants and loans have simply been reclassified. As one diplomat pointed out, direct financial aid has not reached 100 billion per year. The problems with carbon offsetting have been more than well documented and the need for regulation is clear. After years of disagreement over possible rules, a UN climate change committee has now been charged with developing standards to be discussed at COP28. However, given the lack of meaningful participation of Indigenous Peoples in the process, and the speed with which the private sector is signing long term carbon trading agreements, the likelihood of meaningful standards being established, however small, will depend on international pressure. LAND IS LIFE therefore calls for strict rules to be put in place at COP 28 to ensure: 1. That carbon offset projects actually do reduce emissions; 2. That governments ensure adherence to the standard of Free, Prior, and Informed Consent of any Indigenous Peoples that would be affected by these projects; 3. That a rigorous evaluation process be put into place for projects such as those of Blue Carbon and similar, together with a robust feedback and grievance mechanism that has the capacity to genuinely influence and shape carbon trading projects, fairly address any complaints arising during the terms of project agreements, and, when necessary, shut down harmful projects. Photo 1: Ogiek house burned to ashes during evictions in November 2023. Land is Life
OPEN LETTER REGARDING THE RIGHTS OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLES AT COP 28
Open letter regarding respect for the rights of Indigenous Peoples at the COP 28 meeting, and the need for their full inclusion in all negotiations regarding climate change. November 29th, 2023 To all national representatives attending the meeting of the Parties to the UN Convention on Climate Change in Dubai. Greetings. On the eve of the 28th meeting of the Parties to the UN Convention on Climate Change (COP 28), Land is Life wishes to publically voice its concern about the lack of meaningful participation of Indigenous Peoples in climate negotiations. We believe their front-line role as protectors of much of the world’s natural areas gives them not only the right to be present in debates about the Climate Crisis, but to participate directly at the negotiation table, where their rights have often been ignored. As you are no doubt aware, Indigenous Peoples contribute significantly to the conservation of biodiversity and to the protection of the world’s vital ecosystems and, as a consequence, to reducing the threat of climate change. In large measure this is due to the struggle to maintain the integrity of their ancestral territories, and protect them against the depredations of illegal loggers, miners and major extractive projects that threaten their lives and cultures. Cultures, it should be added, that are unique and priceless, living, human heritage. However, despíte a contribution that will benefit the entire planet, Indigenous Peoples are amongst those most affected by rising temperatures and changing weather patterns and, tragically, in many places they face violence, death, and eviction from their homelands in the name of Conservation and climate change mitigation. These atrocities are often the result of climate change market mechanisms that are only thinly disguised attempts to appropriate their territories. It is possible to cite a number of examples of this type of violation, but perhaps the most egregious are those of the Ogiek People in Kenya, the Mosop Benet in Uganda, and the Maasai in Tanzania, where thousands have been displaced from the traditional lands they have safeguarded for centuries. Unfortunately, these are only illustrations of a much wider problem that leads us to emphasize, once again, that violence and displacement, or any other violation of Human Rights, are totally unacceptable elements of any conservation or climate change adaptation/mitigation project. The decisions to be taken at COP 28 will be fundamental in meeting the needs of the global population, and Land is Life urges all delegates to make sure that action is real and substantial. More specifically, the meeting is a major opportunity to rectify past injustices, and to ensure respect for the rights of Indigenous Peoples, and their full inclusion in all climate change negotiations. Land is LIfe calls for the following measures to be adopted at COP 28 in Dubai: That mechanisms be established for the meaningful participation of Indigenous Peoples in all aspects and all instances of climate negotiations. That those mechanisms be formulated with the participation of Indigenous Peoples themselves. That these mechanisms be transparent, inclusive, and participatory. That adaptive mechanisms, including funding, must be put into place that allow Indigenous Peoples to: a) not only remain on their lands, but b) to institute measures that will ensure those lands are better protected from the ravages of illegal activities and major extractive projects. That funding mechanisms be implemented that allow conservation projects to be initiated and operated by Indigenous Peoples themselves. Funding mechanisms must also be put into place to make sure that Governments of emerging nations do not need to rely on market based ‘solutions’, and are able to meet their emission targets without violating the rights of Indigenous and other marginalized peoples That the right to Free, Prior and Informed Consent be legally enshrined as a precondition for all projects that could affect the traditional territories and cultures of Indigenous Peoples. That the fundamental role of women, and the projects they lead, be recognized and provided with the necessary funding. That the role of market mechanisms, such as carbon trading, be eliminated, and that those agreements already in place be monitored to prove effectiveness in reducing emissions, be transparent and tightly controlled, and contain international grievance mechanisms that allow for human rights violations to be heard, victims compensated, rehabilitation initiated, and non-repetition guaranteed. Where these conditions are not met, projects should be closed down. We are all affected by climate change, and fighting it must be a shared struggle; the most vulnerable peoples, especially the world’s Indigenous Peoples, must therefore be supported and allowed to play the positive role they have always played. Land is Life urges the representatives of States, businesses, and other stakeholders at the COP 28 in Dubai to support the positions put forward by the world’s Indigenous Peoples, and ensure that their vital role in finding effective responses to the challenges of global climate change.. Respectfully, the Board of Directors of Land is Life
DANIEL SANTI, LIDER DEL PUEBLO KICHWA DE SARAYAKU: LAS DEUDAS DEL COP CON LOS PUEBLOS INDÍGENAS
Desde 2016, los Pueblos Indígenas tienen una mayor presencia en los debates sobre cambio climático dentro del Convenio Marco sobre el Cambio Climático de la ONU. Ahora, en el contexto de la COP 28 en Dubai, los Pueblos Indígenas demandan participar de los espacios de decisión. VER VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EndIhnSX6ns&pp=ygUMTEFORCBJUyBMSUZF
THE MARCO TEMPORAL IS UNCONSTITUTIONAL: LAND IS LIFE CONGRATULATES BRAZIL’S INDIGENOUS PEOPLES ON A CRUCIAL VICTORY
On Thursday September 21st, the Brazilian Supreme Court voted against the so called ‘Marco Temporal’, which would have forced the country’s Indigenous Peoples to demonstrate that any territories claimed as traditional, had been occupied by them prior to the Brazilian Constitution of 1988. Court magistrate Carmen Lucia stated that Brazilian Society had an unpayable debt to Indigenous Peoples. Article 231 of the Constitution grants Indigenous Peoples the right to land they have “traditionally occupied”, and according to the National Indigenous Peoples Foundation (FUNAI), 761 territories covering about 1.2 million square kilometers (almost 14% of Brazil’s territory) have in fact been claimed. But of these the government has recognized only 475, despite the fact that the 1988 Constitution also guaranteed that all claims be resolved within five years. The legal argument, promoted by the ‘Ruralist’ block of legislators representing the interests of agribusiness, miners and cattle ranchers, would have made that constitutional right time dependent, and placed the burden of proof on the Indigenous Peoples themselves. Such proof may have been difficult to produce: one of the principal reasons being that many Indigenous Peoples were forced to keep moving in order to avoid conflict with agribusiness, and illegal loggers and miners, the very people that today want to limit their rights There is little doubt that a vote in favor of the ‘Marco Temporal’ would have been disastrous for the country’s Indigenous Peoples, including the Amazon’s 144 Peoples in Voluntary Isolation, who live mainly in territories created to protect them. But the fate of Brazil’s Indigenous Peoples was not the only thing in play, the entire Amazon forest would also have been dramatically affected. Deforestation of the Brazilian Amazon is a global concern, and after the devastating effects of the Bolsonaro government’s policies, in the first year of President Lula da Silva’s third term in office, the world has seen some long desired success in reducing deforestation rates. But under the ‘Marco Temporal’ this would have represented an extremely short term victory in a much longer term war. For example, it has been estimated that up to 95% of Indigenous territories could have been affected, contributing massively to the climate crisis. According to environmental scientist Ana Claudia Rorato of Brazil’s National Institute for Space Research, and conservation biologist Celso Silva-Junior of the Federal University of Maranhão, some 87,000 to 1 million square kilometers of forest could be left unprotected. In other words, left at the mercy of the farmers, loggers, miners, cattle ranchers and others that have fought against recognizing Indigenous territories. Clearing these forests would have caused a massive increase in carbon emissions, and have moved the Amazon closer to a tipping point: a condition which would change the hydrologic cycle and begin a process in which rainforests would be turned into much dryer savanna. In sum, the ‘Marco Temporal’ would have had devastating consequences for both Brazilian Indigenous Peoples, and the Amazon rainforest and its priceless biodiversity. Land is Life applauds the combined efforts of Brazilian Indigenous Peoples and civil society organizations in the fight to avoid an extremely dangerous and short-sighted policy. However, we must continue to be vigilant, as despite this crucial victory the Ruralist legislative block will not disappear, and will surely be working hard to find other ways to achieve its objectives. Fotos @Coiabamazonia
AFRICA CLIMATE WEEK AND SUMMIT ARE OPPORTUNITIES FOR PROGRESS: BUT WHO WILL BENEFIT?
African Indigenous Peoples are being seriously affected by the climate crisis. Africa Climate Week (4th– 8th September) and the continent’s first Climate Summit (4th – 6th) offer a chance for action, but serious doubts have emerged about exactly who is controlling the agenda, and whether the decisions taken will favor Africa’s Indigenous Peoples, who are the most impacted and most in need of support. Climate change is a major issue everywhere, but for Indigenous Peoples, many of whom depend on the local environments for their livelihood, the stakes are even higher. In many African countries the issue is critical. In Burkina Faso, for example, where approximately 90% of the population makes its living through subsistence agriculture and livestock, rising temperatures will place a huge burden on those already on the margins of sustainability. Indigenous Peoples and women are particularly at risk. In the more arid northern regions of this land-locked country, where the Peul and Tuareg peoples live, water scarcity has been magnified by the severe drought of 2022, and even a slight rise in temperature could be mortal; while in the south, flooding has wreaked havoc with crops and drinking water supply, even in the capital, Ouagadougou. Subsistence agriculture and livestock are crucial for the country’s Indigenous Peoples, and rising temperatures will no doubt lead to more displacement, poverty, and migration to already overburdened cities. The major question is how to tackle the problem at a national and regional level. Given the context of violence, the recent military Coups D’état of 2022, and other in the region (Mali, Niger and now Gabón), in Burkina Faso it’s not really feasible to expect the national government to take the lead, says Saoudata Wallet, an indigenous Tuareg woman and Secretary General of the Burkina Faso and Mali Tin Hinane Association. In her country, she adds, it is really up to the people, particularly women’s organizations, to keep up the pressure, but even here, the regional violence, which also includes attacks by Islamic extremists, has affected people’s ability to mobilize. One opportunity to make the concerns of indigenous peoples heard, is Africa Climate Week (ACW), which will take place from the 4th to the 8th of September in Nairobi, Kenya, in parallel with the first Africa Climate Summit (ACS) which will also take place in that city between September 4th and 6th. The Summit is co-hosted by The Kenyan government and the African Union, and as of mid-August, 15 African Heads of State and government had confirmed their participation. The events are part of the run up to the 28th UN Climate Change Conference (COP 28), to be held between the 30th of November and the 12th of December in Dubai, capital of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and will provide regional contributions to the first Global Stocktake, seen as fundamental in fulfilling the Paris Agreement goals. Although Wallet agrees most international conferences are forums for declarations rather than actions, she is convinced the presence of women and Indigenous Peoples is crucial for both the Africa Climate Summit and the parallel climate week events. “We have to be there to demand that our voices be heard”, she says, while recognizing that actually getting to the conferences can be a problem given the difficulties some experience in obtaining visas and financing in order to travel. And as she points out, it’s a long way from Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso, to Nairobi. So walking is evidently not an option. As with other international proceedings, the presence and, most importantly the input, of Indigenous Peoples will be crucial to both the success of these events and to that of the COP 28 itself. For Indigenous Peoples, says Wallet, resilience to climate change is rooted in their traditional knowledge and ability to adapt to environmental change based on their in-depth knowledge of the land. However, she adds, a serious obstacle is that Indigenous and women’s voices are generally downplayed, if not ignored entirely. Many Indigenous Peoples in Africa are not even recognized as such by the countries in which they live, in many cases being seen as dividing rather than unifying recently formed States, some even being classified as ‘foreigners’ in their own lands. Women also face major difficulties in the region, says Wallet, due to the violence that has been plaguing the Sahel region, and for anyone with an independent voice, the possibility of a backlash is very difficult to face. Another major fear is that rather than being simply a space for posturing, or in the best of cases actually helping African countries’ vulnerable populations to adapt and survive, the host Kenyan government is looking at the upcoming events as a possibility for investments and boosting the continent’s ‘green economy’. According to Kenya’s environment and climate change cabinet secretary Soipan Tuya, the plan is to “end the ‘blame game’ between developed and developing countries, and to unlock the investments Africa needs to tap into its potential and resources to support global decarbonisation efforts.” All of which raises doubts about who is really going to control the discussions and recommendations. A particular concern is the involvement of U.S. consulting giant McKinsey. An open letter signed by more than 400 African civil society groups has accused the firm of having unduly influenced the summit by “pushing a pro-West agenda and interests at the expense of Africa”, claiming that the summit’s agenda promotes “concepts and false solutions [that] are led by Western interests while being marketed as African priorities”. This, rather than prioritizing the needs of African populations, such as strengthening resilience in the face of rising temperatures, and find finding ways to help poorer countries deal with financial losses and damages due to the climate crisis or even dealing with the issue of fossil fuel phase out. According to Augustine Bantar Njamnshi, of the Pan African Climate Justice Alliance “We had a lot of hope this summit would put African priorities at the heart of climate negotiations, notably adaptation finance. It should have been
Reflections on Indigenous Participation at COP27
Land is Life’s Latin America Program Assistant, Majo Andrade Cerda, attended the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) in Sharm el-Sheikh over the past two weeks. Along with coordinating our side event on the rights of Indigenous Peoples Living in Voluntary Isolation, Majo attended many discussions alongside Indigenous leaders of movements around the world. Here, she shares her reflections on Indigenous participation at the climate discussions. My name is Majo Andrade Cerda, and I am an Indigenous woman from the Kichwa community of Serena, in the Ecuadorian Amazon. I was one of the many Indigenous participants who had the opportunity to attend COP27 this month. As a young leader of my community, who belongs to the first Indigenous guard led by women in the Napo province of Ecuador, I feel it’s important to share my reflections on the conference’s achievements and failures. Although there were many meaningful side events and discussions in the Indigenous pavilion, negotiations were still held by government representatives, backed by industries, with Indigenous peoples pushed aside. I believe that the United Nations has to adjust their structures so that we, the Indigenous peoples, can share our experiences within our territories directly with those representatives who are making the decisions, and then take collective action. Although we had our own pavilion with multiple side events, space was very limited. It wasn’t a space where we could really be involved in the decision-making process. We can only send reports and hold informal consultations and dialogues. We need to keep working with state representatives to gain mutual understanding of what we need to do as a global society. As a response to being left out, we as young Indigenous peoples are increasingly more involved in fighting for our rights. Movements led by Indigenous youth are growing, as we are constantly finding ways to open more spaces to have our voices heard. However, as the next generation of Indigenous leaders, we don’t have the capacity to bring people from all around the world to hear us; we have to seek out international platforms. In those platforms, however, we are experiencing more barriers, such as language. Our brothers and sisters, delegates from Brazil’s youth for example, are not able to participate fully, due to lack of translation, as Portuguese is not an official UN language. But it’s not just about speeches on the stage — it’s about supporting Indigenous communities and respecting our ways of life. We have to be made visible to the world to say: “We are here, we exist, and we are protecting the environment for everyone, not just for us.” We have the solutions. If you respect our rights, you’re respecting the rights of nature. Failures of COP27 One key failure of COP27 discussions, in my opinion, was that government leaders did not consider the devastating impacts of mining that are hidden behind the rhetoric of a sustainable future. My river, the Napo River, is going to be contaminated by mining because the Ecuadorian government is working towards an energy transition in order to fulfill its climate targets. This will affect all peoples along its path, through the Amazon, into Brazil, because we are all interconnected with one flow of the river, flowing all the way to the Atlantic Ocean. When we talk about climate justice, we need to highlight social justice and Indigenous peoples’ rights. Another failure was that carbon markets were not considered a severe threat. Conservation organizations are seeking funds for climate adaptation, and now for loss and damage, but they don’t consider the origin of these funds. COP27 didn’t manage to have a strategy for that. Carbon markets are false solutions. They keep seeing the Amazon and other tropical forests as commodities. People are buying themselves a good conscience, without having to change their extractive and polluting ways of life. COP27 failed to stop the use of fossil fuels and the consequences will heavily impact Indigenous communities. Lessons learned There are many takeaways from my time at the Sharm el-Sheikh climate discussions. Among them was the understanding that networking among Indigenous peoples is one of the keys to strengthening the movements. We are united now, more than ever before, with Indigenous peoples from the Fiji islands and Malaysia, and we are going to strengthen our bonds with our sisters from Brazil. There’s a lot of struggle in our communities — but we know we are not alone. If something happens to us, I know there are a lot of people who would react. I am more aware than ever before of the important role of women and youth in the movement, both on the front lines as well as the daily life in Indigenous communities. It’s time we realize that women have an important role inside the programs and projects we are developing to support Indigenous communities, because sometimes our voices as Indigenous women and youth are silenced and not taken into account. We have to work daily toward supporting each other. As young Indigenous women, we particularly know how to do this, because we work daily in our communities. The future of Indigenous participation After COP27, I am committed to advocating for a paradigm shift, where the environment and the communities cannot be considered separately. Proposals and projects need to come from the communities themselves, and be led by Indigenous peoples, women, and the youth. We are told that funds need to be sent to intermediary organizations as we, as Indigenous peoples, are not capable of managing them. This needs to change. Our parents and grandparents have been working hard for our education, even though it has made us face discrimination and almost lose our languages. But here we are now, as young women, capable of leading and administering our own projects, benefiting not only our communities but also the whole world. I’ve come to realize that most people in cities don’t know how important Indigenous peoples are. I recall talking with many people in Sharm el-Sheikh who came to COP
Land is Life Brings Human Rights Concerns to the Universal Periodic Review in Geneva
While the UN climate negotiations of COP27 are under way in Sharm el-Sheikh, another notable event, the 41st session of the UN Human Rights Council’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is currently taking place in Geneva, Switzerland. Over this two-week session, 14 States have their human rights records examined. The UPR is a UN process intended to improve the human rights situation in all Member States. The process, which held its first meeting in 2008, is based on a review system where States give recommendations to one another on how the human rights situation in each State should be improved. The 41st session, which is currently underway in Geneva, kicked off the UPR’s fourth cycle where States will share the actions they have taken to implement the recommendations received in the three previous review cycles. Indigenous organizations, alongside other civil society actors and human rights institutions, have also contributed to the UPR process in order to have their perspectives included in the recommendations. Land is Life participated in several meetings prior to the 41st session, to address Indigenous rights violations of Ecuador, which is one of the 14 States under review in the current session. In its presentation at the UPR, the State of Ecuador was concealing its failure in fulfilling the human, social, cultural, economic, and collective rights of Indigenous peoples and the recommendations it had received in the previous cycles of the UPR. Read the shadow report that CONFENIAE (the regional organization of Indigenous peoples in Ecuador) submitted to the UPR here. Below you can find a summary of the recommendations regarding human rights of Indigenous peoples that Ecuador received from fellow States in its review. Ensure the right of Indigenous peoples to participate in the decision-making process on matters that affect them through free, prior and informed consent (FPIC). So far, there are no cases in Ecuador where Indigenous peoples’ right to FPIC would have been properly implemented. Put an end to the violence against Indigenous human rights defenders and establish a legal framework for their protection. Provide reparation measures for victims and their families. Indigenous defenders in Ecuador constantly face stigmatization, criminalization, repression, and violence for defending their territories. It was only a few weeks ago that a 24-year-old anti-mining activist and Indigenous defender lost her life. Adopt effective measures to guarantee the rights of Indigenous Peoples Living in Voluntary Isolation (PIACI) over their lands, territories, natural resources and with regard to their culture and ways of life. PIACI are increasingly exposed to extremely high vulnerability. Ecuador’s two last known PIACI, the Taromenane and Tagaeri, are facing growing threats due to the expansion of extractive industries. Adopt and implement effective policies to prevent and address the specific challenges of violence against Indigenous women and girls. Indigenous women, as leaders, knowledge-bearers and culture transmitters face discrimination and violence both for being women and for being Indigenous. Advance the economic, social, and cultural rights of Indigenous peoples. Put an end to the extreme poverty of Indigenous peoples. Take effective measures to preserve Indigenous languages and traditions. Take effective measures to combat all forms of discrimination, especially racism and racial discrimination against Indigenous peoples and Afro-Ecuadorians. On Monday, it was the Philippines’ turn to have its human rights situation reviewed. According to Panaghiusa (Philippine Network to Uphold Indigenous Peoples Rights), the human rights situation of the Indigenous peoples of the Philippines has only worsened since the 3rd review cycle of the UPR. You can read Panaghiusa’s shadow report for the UPR here. “The government, especially the National Task Force, continues to label our rights to land, territories, and free, prior and informed consent as ‘anti-development’ assertions. They brand Indigenous and Bangsamoro communities as ‘red and terrorist areas’, resulting in militarization, aerial strikes, and evacuation of communities. It persistently brands our leaders and organizations as terrorists. It also creates fake and false surrenders to support this ridiculous narrative. These lead to extrajudicial killings, trumped-up charges, threats, and harassment against members and leaders of national minority organizations.” – Beverly Longid, Igorot woman, Global Coordinator of IPMSDL Below you can find a summary of the recommendations regarding human rights of Indigenous peoples that the Philippines received from fellow States in its review: Take all necessary measures to protect the lives and rights of human rights defenders and journalists, and ensure that they can carry out their work safely, free from intimidation, harassment, red tagging, and other forms of violence. Ensure freedom of expression and media freedom. Global Witness has identified the Philippines as the third most dangerous country for human rights defenders globally. Conduct in-depth, impartial, independent, transparent, and effective investigations of the deaths and human rights violations of human rights defenders and journalists. Take all necessary measures to prevent further extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances or other human rights violations of defenders. Between 2016-2021, according to Panaghiusa, 126 Indigenous individuals lost their lives in extrajudicial killings, 227 were illegally arrested, 478 were illegally detained, 27 were tortured and 6 forcibly disappeared. Furthermore, 97,118 Indigenous people were forcibly evacuated from their territories. Ensure full and meaningful participation of Indigenous peoples at all stages of development projects affecting them. Growing mining, dam construction, and agricultural plantations continuously violate Indigenous peoples’ rights to lands, self-determination, and FPIC. Ratify the ILO Convention 169 on Indigenous and Tribal Peoples, and ensure that laws, policies, and programs aimed at protecting the rights of Indigenous peoples are effectively implemented. Following the Philippines’ review, human rights defenders, activists, Indigenous leaders and lawyers held a protest to demonstrate that the State of Philippines had just grossly lied about its human rights situation. “We are here to challenge the UN system and represent ourselves, our community, our people, and the real situation on the ground. The Philippine government is not representing us. Instead, they are representing the interests of the imperialists, the plunderers of Indigenous territories.” – Windel Bolinget, Chairperson of the Cordillera Peoples’ Alliance
Land is Life Celebrates CEDAW’s General Recommendation No.39 on the Rights of Indigenous Women and Girls
The UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) released its General Recommendation on the Rights of Indigenous Women and Girls last week. The recommendation is the first-ever binding instrument focused specifically on the rights of Indigenous girls and women. CEDAW is a UN treaty body, under the auspices of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, that monitors the implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women – the most important international treaty regarding women’s rights. Even though the treaty was ratified in 1981, this is the first time that CEDAW has issued a General Recommendation that pays attention to the particular situation and realities of Indigenous women. In 2004, the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII), encouraged by a group of Indigenous women, called on the CEDAW to begin a process to develop a general recommendation on Indigenous women. General recommendations are suggestions or clarifications directed to States regarding specific issues affecting women to which the Committee thinks more attention and resources should be devoted. In 2009, to push this initiative forward, the Tz´ununija´ Indigenous Women’s Movement from Guatemala prepared a shadow report to the CEDAW on the situation of Indigenous women in their territory. CEDAW responded three years later and held a week-long workshop in Wayuu territory in Colombia. This event, organized by Indigenous women from the region, was a space for developing a deeper understanding of CEDAW and formulating strategic alliances. The workshop was followed by a ten-year process of meetings, consultations, dialogues, and research that finally resulted in the General Recommendation No.39, released last week. The General Recommendation is the first-ever binding instrument that centers around eliminating the intersectional discrimination and human rights violations faced by Indigenous women and girls. It acknowledges their role as leaders, knowledge-bearers, and culture transmitters, and pays attention to their intrinsic connection to their territories, as well as the collective dimension of their rights. The recommendation addresses the lack of implementation of their rights to self-determination and autonomy as one of the root causes of their discrimination. Land is Life applauds General Recommendation No.39, and especially the grassroots efforts of Indigenous women who tirelessly pushed the process forward for almost two decades. We call on the State parties to effectively start fulfilling the obligations stated in the recommendation, so that Indigenous girls and women worldwide can live free from discrimination.
Land is Life Celebrates Indigenous Peoples’ Day in the United States
Today, in the United States, we celebrate Indigenous Peoples’ Day. It is a day that for far too long had been celebrated as Columbus Day, commemorating Christopher Columbus’ landing in the Bahamas in 1492, which for his fellow Europeans marked the discovery of the “New World”. Since the 1940s, Indigenous Peoples have spoken out against dedicating a day for honoring the enslavement, theft, violence, and massacre of Indigenous Peoples across the Americas which was the direct result of European invasion. In 1977, at the International Conference on Discrimination Against Indigenous Populations in the Americas, held in Geneva, Switzerland, Native Americans demanded the replacement of Columbus Day with a day that would express solidarity with Indigenous Peoples of the Americas. This kicked off a movement that, in 1992, led to the city of Berkley, California, to declare the day as “Day of Solidarity with Indigenous People”. Since then, 19 states, and over 50 cities, have rejected official celebrations of Columbus Day and replaced it with Indigenous Peoples’ Day. In 2021, President Joe Biden proclaimed the day as Indigenous Peoples’ Day to “honor America’s first inhabitants and the Tribal Nations that continue to thrive today”. However, the proclamation did not make it a federal holiday – which Columbus Day still is. Today, Land is Life joins the celebration and honoring of Indigenous Peoples and their cultures. We encourage all states of the US to officially recognize this day as an act of respect to Indigenous Peoples who are the guardians of the Earth. Celebrating Columbus alongside Indigenous Peoples’ Day is paradoxical and should not be tolerated. “Indigenous Peoples’ Day reminds us that we are all Indigenous! Regardless of where we live, our gender, race, age, religion, or species, we are all made of the same basic elements of life: Earth, Fire, Water, Air and Ethers. Somewhere in our genetic lineages we come from a small tribal community who knew how to respect the Earth for all that she provides – she is the life giver of all. And today with mass environmental destruction, it is time to return to that basic understanding of how to live and be on this earth as stewards for our future generations. Thank you for supporting Indigenous peoples around the word whose ways will help everyone return to a more simple and peaceful life.” – Lisa Grayshield, PhD, Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California, Washiw Zulshish Goom Tahn-Nu, Lake Tahoe, Nevada
Land is Life Highlights the Importance of Digital Security for Indigenous Activists
The need for improved security of Indigenous activists has never been greater. Over the past few years, Land is Life’s team and network have experienced first-hand intimidation, harassment, and even violence at the hands of governments and other interests. Digital threats are one of several security issues that Land is Life tries to address in its work. Since its founding, Land is Life has made it a priority to accompany Indigenous leaders under threat, as well as provide funding, legal aid, medical care, and other resources to assist Indigenous defenders, their families, organizations, and communities. Our Indigenous-led Security Fund, for example, is based on small, flexible grants that are quickly and directly disbursed to communities, with few bureaucratic requirements. In recent years, the role and importance of internet and digital technology has grown remarkably in the work of Indigenous peoples in defending their lands, human rights, and the environment. The digital divide, however, is still a major issue. The gap between Indigenous peoples and non-indigenous populations regarding access to the internet, affordability of technology, and digital literacy, is generally wide. The issue was further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic: “When COVID hit, the offices of our partner organizations had to close their doors and most Indigenous leaders went back to their territories in rural areas. Many of these regions lack access to the internet which meant that the defenders lost a crucial tool to continue their work, including monitoring of their territories, information sharing among Indigenous networks as well as communications to a broader range of allies. In many cases, there was also a lack of devices, such as phones. As a response, Land is Life provided our partner communities in the Amazon region with cell phones, portable internet connection, as well as laptops, so that the defenders were again able to continue their work in their territories. This is also a gender issue. Indigenous women and men tend to have unequal access to the internet or technology. During the pandemic, women activists, in particular, were affected in terms of their security, due to lack of access to the internet or technology. Our digital security strategy allows us to identify and helps us to resolve these issues.” – José Proaño, Land is Life’s Latin America Program Director In addition to the digital divide, another challenge for Indigenous communities tends to be a lack of knowledge about digital security. Indigenous defenders are often vulnerable to online threats, such as phishing, spyware, surveillance, trolling, and disinformation campaigns. With this in mind, Land is Life, together with Citizen Clinic, developed a Digital Security Guide for activists. Although this guide was specifically crafted for indigenous organizations in Cameroon, Kenya, and Uganda, the information it contains and the tips for safer use of the internet and technology is applicable for activists and organizations across the world. Below is a link to our guide. Please use it to increase your security awareness. Digital Security Guide for Activists