Among the many agencies of the United Nations that deal with indigenous issues, one of the most active is the International Labour Organization (ILO). It currently operates a host of technical cooperation programmes aimed at indigenous populations, including the Interregional Programme to Support Self-Reliance of Indigenous and Tribal Communities through Cooperative and other Self-Help Organizations (INDISCO Programme), which assists in developmental projects, as well as numerous policy-related advisory and informational exchange programmes in Africa, Latin America and Southeast Asia. The ILO has a long history of protecting indigenous workers' rights through the codification and monitoring of international labour standards.
Established in 1919, the ILO is one of the oldest UN specialized agencies and the first international organization to directly acknowledge and address problems faced by indigenous peoples. Its work began as early as the 1920s and was manifested in the Forced Labour Convention (1930), which dealt with the imposition of compulsory labour on native populations. In 1957, the ILO adopted the Indigenous and Tribal Populations Convention, the first international standard specifically devoted to indigenous rights. Although it was groundbreaking in its determination of State responsibility towards indigenous populations, it has been criticized for being patronizing and assimilationist in its approach.
"The colonizers-the majority-have tried to form us in their own image", said Chairman Ole Henrik Magga of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, himself a member of the Saami people of Norway. He explained that "this meant that our own language would disappear, and all our culture, everything that is ours". Thus a new standard, the ILO Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention, was adopted in 1989 as a revision to the 1957 Convention on the protection of civil, political, social and economic rights of indigenous peoples, by removing these integrationist undertones. As the only international legal instruments to date, these two conventions establish a basic framework for indigenous rights, yet their scope is limited as only employers' or workers' organizations may invoke their procedures on behalf of indigenous peoples.
Indeed, indigenous peoples for most of the century were denied representation at international forums that would decide their future. The story of Cayuga Chief Deskaheh, who was refused entry to the League of Nations upon his arrival in Geneva in 1923, is often cited as the first attempt by indigenous peoples to engage the global community.
In spite of this disappointment, Chief Deskaheh was successful in bringing for the first time the case of the Six Nations of the Iroquois to the attention of the media and the general public. But it was not until 1977, with a presentation to the United Nations on the situation of indigenous people in the Americas, that they were allowed to present their own case at the international level. This critical step was a result of a great deal of struggle, reflecting the groundswell of indigenous organizations that were coming together as part of an international grass-roots community.
An investigation into the discrimination faced by indigenous peoples conducted by Special Rapporteur Martinez Cobo during the 1970s, under the auspices of the UN Commission on Human Rights, led to the creation of the Working Group on Indigenous Populations. Launched by the Economic and Social Council in 1982 as a subsidiary of the Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities, the Working Group was initially conceived to monitor the human rights of indigenous peoples and develop normative standards to improve their situation. By 1993, it had completed a draft of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, bringing together the concerns of a vast range of indigenous organizations. Despite their many differences, it was in fact the striking similarities-both in terms of the issues faced by indigenous peoples and the measures they hoped would improve their condition-which allowed the draft to move ahead with such widespread support from these diverse groups.
Clearly, much work remains to be done: the United Nations has yet to adopt the Declaration, while new challenges have arisen with the spread of globalization. Describing this phenomenon as a "new form of colonization", Mr. Magga believes that "what happened on a national level is now happening on an international level". However, it remains that much progress has been made-direct indigenous participation in the Working Group's activities was a major accomplishment, as was the creation of the Permanent Forum for Indigenous Issues-Mr. Magga is optimistic that their work will move forward. "I don't have any easy solutions", he said, "but the UN system is doing wonderful things, by educating people and preserving the richness of cultures." The experience of the Saami is a testament to this and their recognition by the Norwegian Government has led to the promotion of their rights to political organization, as well as the conservation of their social, cultural and linguistic heritage.
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