Mary Simon
Inuk Leader
Nunavik
Speaking on behalf of Inuit, the Crees of James Bay,
non-status and off-reserve Indians and Metis, representing a
majority of the Indigenous Peoples of Canada and the
International Organization of Indigenous Resource
Development
We believe that the urgent concerns of millions of
Indigenous Peoples throughout the world can no longer remain
a footnote to the overall work of the United Nations. At the
very least, the rights of Indigenous Peoples must finally
gain a place on the formal agenda of the Commission of Human
Rights.
More fundamentally, we recommend the following: that the
Institutional framework of the U.N. be appropriately
strengthened to recognize the increasing paramountcy of the
issues affecting Indigenous Peoples. And, the creation of a
Permanent Advisory body within the United Nations, made up
of representatives of Indigenous Peoples themselves. The
struggle against apartheid has benefited from such an
Advisory Committee. This is a model we should seek to
emulate.
I emphasize that we cannot rely entirely upon domestic law
to provide the necessary protection and promotion of our
human rights and fundamental freedoms. These include our
collective and individual rights. We must go beyond the
protections provided for Minorities under Article 27 of the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which
are simply inadequate. |