Statements & Urgent Appeals

Appointment of the Indigenous Peoples’ Expert from Asia for the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) for the 2020-22 Term Her ExcellencyInga Rhonda KingPresident of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)And Ambassador and Permanent Representativeof Saint Vincent and the Grenadines to the United NationsUnited Nations HeadquartersNew York, USA 30 July 2019 Your Excellency, Warm greetings from indigenous sisters and brothers from across the world! We refer to the letter dated 18 April 2019 submitted by AIPP to Your Excellency on behalf of 26 organizations of Asia from 14 countries, whose representatives met in Malaysia on 3-7 March 2019, ...

Prepared by: Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact (AIPP) and Asia Indigenous Peoples CaucusDelivered by: Nalori Dhammei Chakma We, indigenous peoples in Asia, have been conserving our mountains, forests, rivers, seas, rangelands and deserts for millennia through our customary laws and sustainable conservation practices. For example, in Malaysia, indigenous peoples practice a traditional ‘Tagal’ system to manage and promote sustainable use of rivers, fisheries, forests and watersheds. In Indonesia, indigenous peoples have customary rules or ‘Sasi law’ to manage natural resources, including seas and rivers. In Thailand, indigenous Karen people practice a traditional ritual known as “Lue thi” to conserve river and aquatic animals. ...

Prepared by: Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact and Asia Indigenous Peoples CaucusDelivered by: Mr. Neingulo Krome, Secretary General, Naga Peoples Movement for Human Rights In the recent years, there have been examples of recognition, reparation and reconciliation initiatives that specifically dealt/deal with the rights of indigenous peoples in Asia via various forms, including the 1997 Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) Accord in Bangladesh; the Framework Agreement of 3rd August 2015 (Naga Peace Accord 2015) and other groups in Northeast India; the 2015 National Ceasefire Agreement and ongoing peace process in Myanmar;  the promulgation of the Constitution of Nepal after more than a 7-year ...

Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact (AIPP) and Asia Indigenous Peoples CaucusDelivered by: Jacqueline Cariño Indigenous peoples in many Asian countries experience similar situations of displacement, eviction and forced migration within and across borders. These are due to various historical and contemporary factors and issues, including the following: Non-recognition of indigenous peoples’ rights in many Asian countries. This leads to development aggression and displacement by dams, mining, energy projects, logging, plantations and tourism projects. A few recent examples of displacement due to the construction and commissioning of dams are the Sardar Sarovar dam in the Narmada River and the Mapithel dam in Thoubal ...

11 July 2019 Dear Indigenous Brothers and Sisters in Asia, Warm greetings from AIPP! It is with regret we inform you that Mr. Abdon Nababan, AMAN (the Indigenous Peoples’ Alliance of the Archipelago), Indonesia, whom you have supported and voted for, has not been appointed as the expert member to the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) by ECOSOC. Instead, Mr. Phoolman Chaudhary (from Nepal) has been reappointed by ECOSOC for the term 2020-2022. This will be his second term as the expert member to the UNPFII. Based on the ECOSOC Resolution 2000/22 on the Establishment of the Permanent ...

Joint Statement to the 18th Session of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues on “Conservation and Rights of Indigenous Peoples” Under Agenda Item 11: Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the Chair of the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples By Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact and Asia Indigenous Peoples Caucus Thank you, Madam Chair. We, indigenous peoples in Asia, through our customary laws and sustainable conservation practices have been conserving our forests, rivers, seas, and mountains, among others, for millennia. For example, in Malaysia, indigenous peoples practice a traditional ‘Tagal’ system to ...

Joint Statement to the 18th Session of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) Under Agenda Item 9: Indigenous peoples’ Traditional knowledge, generation, transmission and protection By Asia Indigenous Peoples Caucus and Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact Madam Chair, Indigenous knowledge is a complex body of wisdom, skills and practices developed over the ages from our distinct relationships with land and nature and our understanding and respect for biodiversity and human nature. These body of knowledge has been transmitted from one generation to the next through our education systems, self-governing institutions, songs, stories, dances, weaving and other customary art and ...

Statement to the 18th Session of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) on World Bank’s new Environmental and Social Framework (ESF) and engagement with the Indigenous Peoples Under Agenda Item 6: Dialogue with Indigenous Peoples By Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact (AIPP) Thank you, Sir Moderator, In this dialogue, Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact would like to draw the attention of the Permanent Forum to the World Bank’s new Environmental and Social Framework and engagement with the Indigenous Peoples. We would like to recall the Forum’s recommendation from last year that the World Bank’s Environmental and Social Safeguard 7 (ESS7) ...

Joint Statement to the 18th Session of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) Under Agenda Item 5: Discussion on the 2019 International Year of Indigenous Languages By Asia Indigenous Peoples Caucus and Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact Mahai Reoreo (Greetings) Madam Chair, We, the indigenous peoples’ organizations in Asia, welcome the efforts made so far for the commemoration of International Year of Indigenous Languages 2019 with UNESCO as the lead UN entity. We also appreciate the partnerships forged among States, indigenous peoples, the UN system and other stakeholders for the International Year, particularly at the international level. Two-thirds of ...

27 March 2019 We, the Indigenous Peoples’ representatives and CSOs, under the aegis of Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact (AIPP) and International Land Coalition Asia (ILC Asia) from 10 countries attending a regional workshop on indigenous peoples’ land rights campaign and advocacy[i] from 21-22 March 2019, call on the governments of Asia region and other concerned institutions to immediately halt increasing threats to the rights of indigenous peoples to their lands, territories and resources and take urgent measures to promote and protect those rights. Those rights are extremely critical to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in line with the pledge ...