Indigenous Peoples are key to a healthier planet

Indigenous Peoples are key to a healthier planet

On International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, David Kaimowitz, Senior Forestry Officer at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and Manager of the Forest and Farm Facility, explains why empowering Indigenous Peoples can help fight our climate, nature and health crises.

On 17 February this year, Aruká Juma, the last elder of the Juma people in Brazil’s Amazonian rainforest, died of COVID-19. According to NGO Instituto Socioambiental, he is one of more than a thousand Indigenous People to have died from the virus in Brazil, where COVID-19 has affected more than 150 native groups.

The death of an individual has a huge impact on the small indigenous societies in the Amazon, which sometimes count only a handful of families. But with their passing, we all lose ancient systems of knowledge and practices to live sustainably from, and to protect, our forests and wildlife.

As we mark the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples on 9 August, we need to recognize that Indigenous Peoples are a key to confronting our current planetary emergency. Although they constitute just 6 percent of the global population, Indigenous Peoples hold unique experience and worldviews that can help us combat our crises on climate, nature and global health.

One step in the right direction this year was the launch of the first major report by a United Nations agency that recognizes and rigorously documents that Indigenous Peoples are the best guardians of our forests. The report by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the Fund for Development of Indigenous Peoples of Latin America and the Caribbean presented indisputable evidence that Indigenous Peoples and Afrodescendant forest communities in Latin America address deforestation and biodiversity loss better than anyone else.

By doing so, they also fight climate change. In fact, titled Indigenous territories in the Bolivian, Brazilian and Colombian Amazon avoid between 42.8 million and 59.7 million metric tons of CO2 emissions per year. That’s the equivalent of taking between 9 million and 12.6 million vehicles out of circulation for a year.

And as deforestation is one of the main drivers of the emergence of zoonotic disease, by protecting our forests, Indigenous Peoples are also helping to protect human health and avoid new pandemics.

The Latin America findings have been reinforced at a global scale in a recent study by the World Wide Fund For Nature, which states unequivocally that biodiversity goals are unattainable without the full inclusion of Indigenous Peoples and local communities, whose lands cover around 32 percent of the world’s land surface.

However, for Indigenous Peoples to be able to continue to protect the forest effectively, they need everyone’s support. Countries will have to invest in projects that strengthen the role of Indigenous and Tribal Peoples in forest governance and bolster and recognize communal territorial rights.

We need to compensate indigenous and tribal communities for all the environmental benefits their forests provide and facilitate indigenous forest management. Funding for climate and biodiversity needs to be specifically allocated for these purposes.

And finally, we need to ensure that Indigenous Peoples have a seat at the table. This year there will be four major global meetings at which indigenous voices must be heard.

For the first time, Indigenous Peoples will have their own category of membership at the World Conservation Congress in September, reflecting the increasing recognition of their central role in conservation.

The United Nations Food Systems Summit in September will also highlight Indigenous Peoples’ role in global food systems. Not only are many Indigenous food systems more diverse, sustainable, and nutritious, the rainforests these groups manage help to sustain rainfall, lower local temperatures and serve as carbon sinks, with huge benefits for agriculture elsewhere.

At the United Nations Biodiversity Conference in October, world leaders will be asked to commit to the “30×30” plan, which would protect at least 30 percent of land areas by 2030. This target – less than nine years away – can only be achieved by working together with Indigenous Peoples and respecting indigenous land rights.

Lastly, the role of Indigenous Peoples must be recognized at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in November, since Indigenous Peoples and local communities manage at least 24 per cent of the total above-ground carbon stored in the world’s tropical forests.

This year offers unprecedented opportunities for global leaders to recognize Indigenous Peoples and forest communities for their essential role in averting global crises. It is time to listen, to protect and to join forces with Indigenous Peoples for the sake of the planet.

This editorial was originally published with Reuters Thomson.

Statement by the Prime Minister on the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples

The Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, today issued the following statement on the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples:

“Today, on the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, we celebrate the vibrant and diverse cultures, languages, and traditions of Indigenous peoples here in Canada and around the world. We also reflect on the contributions they have made to societies everywhere, and continue to commit ourselves to ensure that Indigenous rights are recognized and respected.

“Canada was built on the ancestral land of Indigenous peoples. First Nations, Inuit, and Métis have shaped our history and identity as a country, yet for centuries, they have endured systemic racism and discrimination. As Canadians, we must confront our mistakes, learn from them, and work to right past and current wrongs.

“The theme of this year’s International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples is ‘Leaving no one behind: Indigenous peoples and the call for a new social contract’. It invites us to take a hard look at our existing systems, to engage and partner with Indigenous communities through a true nation-to-nation, Inuit-Crown, and government-to-government relationship, and to take meaningful steps to end the injustices and challenges these communities continue to face today. By working together, we can build a new social contract that recognizes Indigenous peoples’ inherent right to self-determination and self-government, advances social and economic equality, and protects Indigenous laws, lands, cultures, and languages.

“As Canadians continue to learn about the impacts of colonialism and come to terms with the tragic findings of remains of children near former residential schools across the country, we acknowledge that we still have a lot of work to do to advance reconciliation. Last month, the Government of Canada signed a historic Coordination Agreement with Cowessess First Nation – Treaty 4 Territory – and the Province of Saskatchewan on child and family services. This agreement ensures the community can effectively exercise their jurisdiction and make their own decisions about what is best for their children and families. Earlier this year, we also announced new funding to fully implement the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action, including to address the systemic racism and barriers faced by Indigenous peoples in Canada’s legal system. Seventy-six of the report’s 94 Calls to Action fall under the sole or shared responsibility of the federal government, and over 80 per cent of them have been completed or are well underway. We will continue to work in consultation and partnership with Indigenous peoples, provinces, territories and other partners to address the Calls to Action, bring about transformative change, and improve outcomes for Indigenous communities. We are also committed to continuing to provide Indigenous communities across the country with the resources they need to address the terrible legacy of residential schools, to honour the children who never returned home, and to support survivors, their families, and communities affected.

“Last June, the Parliament passed the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act. This legislation is a historic step forward in Canada’s relationship with Indigenous peoples. Developed with Indigenous partners and organizations, it creates a clear path toward fully recognizing, respecting, and protecting Indigenous rights and equality. Implementing the Declaration will help us remove institutional barriers, build stronger relationships, close socio-economic gaps, and promote greater prosperity for Indigenous peoples – and all Canadians. This work will complement other important initiatives already underway, including legislative commitments around health and community policing, and the development of an Indigenous Justice Strategy. It also builds on the recent launch of the Federal Pathway, the Government of Canada’s response to the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. The Federal Pathway is providing the government with a comprehensive roadmap to address the root causes of gender-based violence against Indigenous peoples along four interconnected themes: culture, health and wellness, human safety and security, and justice. This important work will allow for the creation of fair, equitable, and inclusive systems that respect the rights of Indigenous peoples, and protect women, girls, and two-spirit and LGBTQ people now and in the future.

“As we continue the fight to end COVID-19, we also acknowledge that many Indigenous communities have been disproportionately affected by the pandemic. We are committed to continuing to work closely with Indigenous health care professionals and communities, provinces, and territories to address the health, economic, and social impacts of the pandemic through distinctions-based, community-led solutions.

“Canada cannot move forward as a country if First Nations, Inuit, and Métis continue to be held back by colonial structures, systemic racism, and discrimination. As we celebrate the contributions Indigenous communities have made in forming the nations we know today, we continue to work with them in full partnership to advance reconciliation in a tangible way and ensure Indigenous peoples can succeed and prosper.”

Nepal: Indigenous peoples the silent victims of country’s conservation ‘success story’

Nepal’s Indigenous peoples have suffered a litany of human rights violations over the past five decades as a result of abusive conservation policies, said Amnesty International and the Community Self-Reliance Centre (CSRC), in a new report published today.

The report, Violations in the name of conservation, documents how the establishment of National Parks and other “protected areas” has resulted in tens of thousands of Indigenous peoples being forcibly evicted from their ancestral lands and denied access to areas they depend on for subsistence. Focusing on the examples of Chitwan and Bardiya National Parks, the report highlights how the enforcement of these policies has frequently led to cases of arbitrary arrest, torture, unlawful killing and forced evictions from informal settlements.

“Nepal is often held up as an exemplary conservation success story. Unfortunately, that success has come at a high price for the country’s Indigenous peoples, who had lived in and depended on these protected areas for generations” said Dinushika Dissanayake, Deputy South Asia Director at Amnesty International.

Nepal is often held up as an exemplary conservation success story. Unfortunately, that success has come at a high price for the country’s Indigenous peoples Dinushika Dissanayake, Deputy South Asia Director at Amnesty International

“From the 1970s onwards, Nepal’s governments have adopted an approach to conservation that has forced Indigenous peoples off their ancestral lands and severely limited their ability to access traditional foods, medicinal plants and other resources. Heavy-handed enforcement of these policies has subsequently resulted in numerous cases of torture or other ill-treatment and unlawful killings.”

Forced evictions

National parks and other “protected areas” cover almost a quarter of Nepal, with the vast majority located in the ancestral homelands of Nepal’s Indigenous peoples. Decades after their establishment, many Indigenous peoples who were evicted remain landless and at risk of further forced evictions from the informal settlements where they now live. They have not been provided access to alternative livelihoods or compensation for their losses.

Amnesty International and CSRC have documented several recent incidents of forced evictions and attempted forced evictions by national park authorities, including in Chitwan and Bardiya. On 18 July 2020, authorities at Chitwan National Park forcibly evicted ten families from the Chepang community, who had been displaced due to floods and landslides and were living in a buffer zone – an area designated to provide local people with access to forest resources - outside the park boundary.

Amnesty International and CSRC found that the park had given the families a verbal notice only a week before the eviction, contrary to international standards and requirements under Nepal’s new Housing Act. An official investigation into the incident was launched by the Ministry of Forests and Environment later that month but despite repeated requests, Amnesty International and CSRC have not been able to obtain information about the results of the investigation.

In Bardiya National Park, some Indigenous peoples have continued to pay malpot, a land revenue tax, despite not having had access to their land for decades, after floods and a change in the river course resulted in the land being considered as part of the national park. They told Amnesty International and CSRC that they do so in the hope that they will once again be able to access their land, and because malpot receipts are required to claim compensation for crop damage.

Access to food and resources

The National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act (NPWC) 1973 remains the overarching law governing “protected areas”. The law restricts hunting, grazing, tree cutting, land cultivation or forest use, and bans all building in a national park or wildlife reserve, measures which have severely impacted and dramatically altered Indigenous peoples’ way of life.

Apart from those living in Buffer Zones with access to Buffer Zone forests, Indigenous peoples who have resettled outside the Buffer Zones are barred from visiting national parks, leaving people already deprived of access to their homes, land and other forest resources to fend for themselves and pay costs they can ill afford, potentially resulting in food insecurity and health and housing concerns.

Due to lack of alternative livelihoods, financial hardship and inability to meet household costs, many Indigenous peoples evicted from their land have been compelled to become sharecroppers (bataiya), cultivating other people’s land in return for 50 percent of the harvest.

The bataiya system, which is governed by social rather than legal norms, has serious human rights implications. Locals interviewed in Banke and Bardiya districts reported that they frequently experienced exploitation by landlords, including having to do household work or collect fodder and fuel wood without payment.

Arbitrary arrest and detention, torture and other ill-treatment, and excessive use of force

Indigenous peoples are frequently arrested and detained for entering national parks and reserves. Many of them have faced ill-treatment, and sometimes torture, at the hands of army personnel deployed in the parks. Some have died as a result, including 26-year-old Raj Kumar Chepang, who died after being beaten by army officers in Chitwan in July 2020.

For almost half a century, Indigenous peoples in Nepal have been failed by governments that were constitutionally-bound to uphold their rights Jagat Basnet, Executive Director of CSRC

The domestic legal framework fails to clearly define and restrict the Nepal Army’s powers to arrest and detain and use force in national parks and other “protected areas”. A recent study in the buffer zone of Chitwan found that the Nepal Army’s role in conservation is expanding, with national parks becoming increasingly militarized.

“For almost half a century, Indigenous peoples in Nepal have been failed by governments that were constitutionally-bound to uphold their rights. To start repairing this damage, Nepal’s authorities must recognize Indigenous peoples’ rights to their ancestral lands and allow them to return,” said Jagat Basnet, Executive Director of CSRC.

“This must be accompanied by legal amendments that guarantee the right of Indigenous peoples to participate fully in the management of conservation areas, and an inclusive and participatory process to agree appropriate compensation for the wrongs inflicted by Nepal’s authorities.”