Statement by
Carolyn Hannan
Director
United Nations Division for the Advancement
of Women
at
“Taking Wing - Conference on Gender Equality and Women in the
Arctic”
Saariselkä, Finland, 3-6 August 2002
Madame Minister
Excellencies and distinguished participants
Friends and colleagues,
It is a
great honour and privilege to participate in this conference on gender equality
and women in the Arctic. I wish to
congratulate the Government of Finland and the Arctic Council for taking this
important initiative. Although I recognize that the topic is gender equality in
the Arctic Circle more broadly, as a contribution to this conference I would
like to provide an overview of United Nations activities in the context of
indigenous peoples, highlighting areas where women and gender equality issues
have been addressed. I will also
highlight challenges to be addressed in the future, especially in integrating
gender equality issues into work on indigenous peoples.
The formal
activities of the United Nations concerning indigenous issues began in 1970,
with the recommendation by the then Sub-Commission on the Prevention of
Discrimination and Protection of Minorities (now Sub-Commission on the
Promotion and Protection of Human Rights) that a comprehensive study of the problem
of discrimination against indigenous populations be undertaken. This was
followed by the establishment of the Working Group on Indigenous Populations,
which has been meeting annually since 1982.
The Working Group reviews developments pertaining to the promotion and
protection of the human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous
populations and gives special attention to the evolution of standards
concerning the rights of such populations.
Of particular significance is the draft “United Nations declaration on
the rights of indigenous peoples”, which was prepared by the Working Group and
adopted by the Sub-Commission (resolution 1994/45 of 26 August 1994 of the
Sub-Commission), and is currently being considered by the Commission on Human
Rights. It is envisaged that the draft
declaration, which is viewed as having the potential to be one of the most
important human rights documents for indigenous peoples, will be adopted by the
General Assembly before the end of the International Decade of the World's
Indigenous People in 2004. The draft
declaration provides that all the rights and freedoms it recognizes are to be
guaranteed equally to male and female indigenous individuals. It also calls for particular attention to be
paid to the special needs of indigenous women.
Parallel to
these activities, the General Assembly proclaimed 1993 as the International
Year for the World’s Indigenous Peoples (General Assembly resolution 45/164 of
18 December 1990), following which it designated 1994 to 2004 as the
International Decade of the World's Indigenous People (Assembly resolution 48/163 of 21
December 1993). The goal of the
Decade is to strengthen international cooperation for the solution of problems
faced by indigenous people in such areas as human rights, the environment,
development, education and health.
The
International Labour Organization, one of the UN’s specialized agencies, showed
an early interest in the situation of indigenous peoples. Already in 1957, it adopted Convention No.
107 on indigenous and tribal populations in independent countries, and in 1989
adopted the Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention, known as “Convention
169”, which entered into force in 1991.
Convention 169 is unique in specifically addressing the rights of indigenous
and tribal peoples, and deals with, inter alia, the right to possession of land
and territories traditionally occupied by indigenous peoples, the recognition
of their cultural, social and religious values, custom-based law, the right to
health services, and the right to benefit from equal conditions of
employment. Importantly, the employment
situation of indigenous women is addressed under that Convention, with
Governments being required to take measures to ensure that workers belonging
to indigenous and tribal peoples enjoy equal opportunities and equal treatment
in employment for men and women, as well as protection from sexual harassment.
A number of
United Nations conferences have addressed issues concerning indigenous
populations. These include the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment
and Development, which under Agenda 21 adopted by the Conference, granted a
central position to indigenous populations as important players who must be
included in the environmental agenda.
Agenda 21 requested international organizations and
Governments to take a range of measures to incorporate indigenous people’s
values, views and knowledge, including the unique contribution of indigenous
women, in resource management and other policies and programmes that may affect
them. It also requested development agencies and Governments to commit
financial and other resources to education and training for indigenous people,
giving particular attention to strengthening the role of indigenous women. The Vienna Declaration and Programme of
Action adopted by the World Conference on Human Rights in 1993 recognized the
unique contribution of indigenous people to the development and plurality of
society, and recommended that States take concerted steps to ensure respect for
all human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous people, on the basis of
equality and non-discrimination, and recognize the value and diversity of their
distinct identities, cultures and social organization.
The Declaration
and Platform for Action adopted by the Fourth World Conference on Women in
Beijing in 1995 recognized that women can face additional barriers to the
enjoyment of their human rights because they are indigenous people, and made
recommendations concerning the adoption of a declaration on the rights of
indigenous people and the translation of laws and information
relating to the equal status and human rights of all women into indigenous
languages. The twenty-third special
session of the General Assembly, entitled "Women 2000: gender equality,
development and peace for the twenty-first century" (5-9 June 2000) made a
number of recommendations concerning indigenous women, including that
Governments should address the barriers women face in accessing and
participating in politics and decision-making; take concrete steps to address
the impact of violence on them; consider adopting national legislation to
protect their knowledge, innovations and practices relating to traditional medicines, biodiversity and
indigenous technologies; undertake
appropriate data collection
and research; and develop and implement educational and training
programmes that respect
their history, culture, spirituality, languages and
aspirations and ensure their access to all levels of education.
Most
recently, the World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination,
Xenophobia and Related Intolerance, held in Durban, South Africa, in 2001,
dealt with indigenous rights within the framework of racism and racial
discrimination. The Commission on
the Status of Women addressed indigenous women in its Agreed Conclusions on gender and all forms of discrimination, in
particular racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance of
2001, in the lead up to the Durban Conference. The
Durban Programme of Action specifically addressed the situation of indigenous
women, requesting States “to adopt public policies and give
impetus to programmes on behalf of and in concert with indigenous women and
girls, with a view to promoting their civil, political, economic, social and
cultural rights; to putting an end to their situation of disadvantage for
reasons of gender and ethnicity; to dealing with urgent problems affecting them
in regard to education, their physical and mental health, economic life and in
the matter of violence against them, including domestic violence; and to
eliminating the situation of aggravated discrimination suffered by indigenous
women and girls on multiple grounds of racism and gender discrimination”. The Programme of Action also urged States to
incorporate a gender perspective in all programmes of action against racism,
racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance and to consider the
burden of such discrimination which falls particularly on, inter alia, indigenous
women and women from other disadvantaged groups, ensuring their access to the
resources of production on an equal footing with men, as a means of promoting
their participation in the economic and productive development of their
communities.
±¬ÁϹ«Éç human rights
treaty bodies established to monitor international human rights treaties have
raised the issue of indigenous peoples with States parties presenting reports
under those treaties. For example, the
Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination has expressed concern
about the situation of land rights of indigenous populations in Guatemala;
about land ownership, health and education of indigenous peoples in Costa Rica;
and that indigenous women were subject to multiple forms of discrimination in
Colombia. That Committee has also
expressed concern about the situation of indigenous populations in Australia,
Bolivia, Brazil, Cambodia, Chile, Mexico and Uruguay, and made corresponding
recommendations to those States parties. The Committee on Economic, Social and
Cultural Rights has expressed concern about indigenous populations being
displaced from their traditional lands in Bolivia and Panama; about
discrimination against indigenous peoples in Venezuela, including in respect of
land access, housing, health services, sanitation, education, work and
nutrition; and about the limited possibilities for bilingual education for
indigenous peoples in a number of countries; and has made specific
recommendations in these contexts.
The Human Rights Committee has also considered the situation of indigenous peoples in its concluding comments, including emphasizing that indigenous populations in Australia should participate in decision-making on matters affecting them. Additionally, the interface between the rights of indigenous peoples and individual rights has been addressed by this Committee in its consideration of individual complaints. Concerns about discrimination against indigenous children and girls have also been made by the Committee on the Rights of the Child in its concluding observations.
I would
like to focus in particular on the Committee on the Elimination of
Discrimination against Women (for which the Division for the Advancement of
Women provided substantive servicing). The Committee has addressed the
situation of indigenous women in many of its concluding comments on the reports
of States parties. The Committee has expressed concern about discrimination
faced by indigenous women in Mexico, noting that their health, education and employment
indicators were below the national average, and was concerned that indigenous
women were innocent victims of violence in conflict areas in that country. It has expressed concern about illiteracy
of indigenous women in Panama and about violence against indigenous women,
including sexual violence, and their poverty and lack of access to
contraception in Peru. The Committee has expressed concern about indigenous
women in its concluding comments on Australia, indicating that violence, life
expectancy, unemployment and health of such women remained problems; raised the
issue of discrimination against indigenous women in its concluding comments on
China, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region;
and expressed concern about
discrimination against Sami women in its concluding comments on Finland and on
Sweden. It has also expressed concern
that the rights of hill-tribe women and girls in Thailand may not be
effectively protected by national laws. In all these circumstances, the
Committee made specific recommendations to the States
parties concerned to address its concerns.
In 1994, the Human Rights Committee adopted General Comment No. 23 on article 27 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The General Comment addresses the link between indigenous communities and their homelands and provides that the rights protected under article 27, such as the right to enjoy a particular culture, may consist of a way of life which is closely associated with territory and use of its resources, which may particularly be true of members of indigenous communities, and that culture manifests itself in many forms, including a particular way of life associated with the use of land resources, especially in the case of indigenous peoples. Additionally, the interface between the rights of indigenous peoples and individual rights has been addressed by this Committee in its consideration of individual complaints.
United Nations entities
have organized numerous consultations and workshops, and adopted policies and
guidelines on the issue of indigenous peoples.
For example, the UNDP “Policy of Engagement”, adopted in 2001, underlines the main principles guiding UNDP
engagement with indigenous peoples. It
is to be noted that under the area conflict prevention and peace building, UNDP recognizes
the extra vulnerability of indigenous women in crisis situations and the
important role women play in building peace and bridging differences, and
stresses that concerted effort is needed to reach out to include indigenous women
and their organizations in conflict-resolution strategies and post-conflict
rehabilitation. UNDP’s policy recognizes
that indigenous women tend to experience triple discrimination being
poor, female, and indigenous and that it is critical that they play a central
role in decision-making processes, as well as in the design, planning,
implementation and evaluation of relevant programmes and projects. The policy stresses the importance of
empowering indigenous women and promoting gender equality within indigenous
communities.
Other initiatives have been undertaken by the
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the
World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)
(particularly on reproductive health issues), the World Intellectual Property
Organization (WIPO) and the World Bank.
Two important developments have
occurred within the United Nations in recent years that deserve special
attention here. The first is the
appointment by the Commission on Human Rights in 2001 of a Special Rapporteur
on the situation of human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous people
(resolution 2001/57 of 24 April 2001 of the Commission on Human Rights). The
mandate of the Special Rapporteur is to gather, request, receive and exchange information and communications on
violations of the human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous peoples;
to formulate recommendations and proposals on measures and activities to
prevent and remedy such violations; and to work in close relation with other UN
entities and mechanisms. The Special Rapporteur is to take into account a gender
perspective while carrying out his/her duties, paying special attention to
discrimination against indigenous women.
The first report
of the Special Rapporteur was submitted to the fifty-eighth session of the
Commission on Human Rights in 2002. The
report describes the major issues involving
indigenous rights, including those relating to land, territory, the environment
and natural resources; the administration of
justice and legal conflicts; poverty, standards of living and sustainable
development; language, culture and education; and self-government, autonomy,
political participation and the right to self-determination. The Special
Rapporteur stresses that discrimination and marginalization, particularly
involving women and children, is a persistent problem; that women and children
are particularly affected by the lack of citizenship documents, which render
them more vulnerable to exploitation; and that indigenous women suffer terribly
from violence that occurs in many indigenous lands.
The second
major development is the establishment by the Economic and Social Council of
the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues in 2000 (Economic and Social Council
resolution 2000/22 of 28 July 2000), whose purpose is to serve as an advisory body to the Council with a
mandate to discuss indigenous issues relating to economic and social
development, culture, the environment, education, health and human rights. The Forum is to provide expert advice and
recommendations on indigenous issues to the Council, as well as to programmes,
funds and agencies of the United Nations; raise awareness and promote the integration
and coordination of activities relating to indigenous issues within the United
Nations system; and prepare and disseminate information on indigenous
issues. The Forum held its first
session in May 2002.
Amongst the many side events at the first session of the Forum was a
panel on empowering indigenous women.
I would like to now briefly mention some
challenges and areas for further reflection and action. A concern that is frequently raised is the
gap between existing human rights legislation and the de facto situations facing
indigenous peoples. This presents a
challenge to international mechanisms for the effective protection of human
rights, in particular petition procedures, for example the Optional Protocol to
the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women,
now ratified by 41 States parties.
A related
issue is the capacity of collective rights to coexist with individual
rights. This is a complex issue which
raises many questions, for example whether the adherence to indigenous
institutions and practices might, under certain circumstances, violate
individual human rights, including those of women and girls. There is much debate on the issue, but
commentators have argued that the debate should not focus on whether these sets
of rights can coexist, but rather on how to achieve coexistence. They have suggested that coexistence is
possible and that where apparent conflicts occur, strategies should be devised
to deal with the conflicts.
While the numerous activities of the United
Nations system relating to indigenous peoples have at times addressed women and
gender equality issues, there needs to be a more systematic approach to
incorporating a gender perspective. A
number of important opportunities for increasing the focus on gender equality
need to be fully taken advantage of. Firstly, the fact that the mandate of the
Special Rapporteur calls for attention to gender perspectives can be built
upon. The first report of the Special Rapporteur to the Human Rights Committee
does give some attention to gender perspectives and this should be followed up.
Efforts could be made to ensure that two of the studies proposed – one on human
rights issues, particularly economic and social rights, regarding indigenous
children, especially girls, and one on old and new forms of discrimination
against indigenous people with a gender perspective – provide a good overview
of the most important gender equality issues. In addition to focusing on these
two specific studies relating to women and girls, efforts could also be made to
ensure that all other topics recommended for study are also looked at from a
gender perspective through study of existing materials, information gathered
through questionnaires, and the high-level international seminars proposed by
the Special Rapporteur.
Secondly, at the recent first session of the
Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, participants raised a number of critical
gender issues in relation to health, education, employment, violence, conflict
situations and the multiple dimensions of discrimination against women, and
these concerns were reflected in the report to ECOSOC. A number of the key
recommendations made in the report should be given further attention from a
gender perspective. These include the invitation to the United Nations system
organizations to routinely disaggregate data on indigenous peoples generally,
and indigenous women and children specifically; the proposed technical seminar
on women’s health and the study on immunization and vaccination; the
development of a website on indigenous issues; and the proposed study of
mandates, policies and programmes of specialized agencies of the United Nations
system in the area of environment that relate to indigenous peoples. In each of
these initiatives arising from the first session of the Permanent Forum, gender
perspectives should be made explicit. Finally, the Permanent Forum has decided
to make indigenous children and youth a focal point of work in the years to
come. It will be important to promote routine disaggregation of data and to
ensure that the specific needs of both girls and boys are identified and
addressed.
The Division for the Advancement of Women
intends to approach the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues to suggest that
the Division and the Forum convene a panel on indigenous women, which could be
held during the second session
of the Permanent Forum in the spring 2003, to discuss how gender perspectives
can be fully incorporated into all aspects of the work of the Permanent Forum.
I wish you
a very successful conference and look forward to taking the findings and
recommendations back to the United Nations.
I thank you.