The Permanent Forum welcomes the report of the international expert group meeting on indigenous languages, held in New York from 8 to 10 January 2008, and recommends that States and United Nations agencies engage with indigenous peoples to develop strategies to implement the recommendations of the report.
The Permanent Forum recommends that Member States support, financially and in every other way, Indigenous Peoples’ development of their own strategies in revitalizing, strengthening and developing their languages parallel to other efforts under the Global Action Plan.
It is stated in article 4 of the Declaration that “Indigenous peoples, in exercising their right to self-determination, have the right to autonomy or self-government in matters relating to their internal and local affairs, as well as ways and means of financing their autonomous functions”. The Permanent Forum welcomes the international seminar to assess the global status and trends with regard to indigenous autonomies, held in Mexico City in March 2019, which was organized by the Inter- American Commission on Human Rights, the Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples, the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the Permanent Forum and the International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs. The Forum calls upon States and United Nations entities to continue to discuss these issues in each region. The Forum also encourages the convening of a global conference on the state of indigenous autonomies by the three United Nations mechanisms on the rights of indigenous peoples (i.e., the Forum, the Special Rapporteur and the Expert Mechanism) and invites Member States to host the event.
The Permanent Forum also calls upon Member States to adopt effective measures to create a sustainable language environment by using information technologies and educational systems and by documenting and monitoring indigenous/native languages and using these languages in public spheres.
The Permanent Forum remains concerned about continuing human rights violations, including arbitrary killings and extrajudicial executions, throughout northeastern India. It echoes the call of indigenous peoples (scheduled tribes) of the region and urges India to repeal the Armed Forces Special Powers Act of 1958, investigate alleged human rights abuses in the region and hold those responsible to account.
The Permanent Forum encourages the General Assembly and UNESCO, in collaboration with the Department of Economic and Social Affairs, to organize highlevel launch events for the International Decade, in cooperation with, and with the full and effective participation of, indigenous peoples.
In the light of the proclamation of the International Year, the Permanent Forum invites Member States, in close cooperation with indigenous peoples, UNESCO and other relevant agencies of the United Nations system, to participate actively in the planning of the Year, including by organizing national and international expert meetings to raise awareness of and plan specific activities for the Year, and securing additional and adequate funding for the successful preparation and implementation of the Year, including by providing support for the establishment of an indigenous-led fund dedicated to the preservation and revitalization of indigenous languages.
Given the unique role of information and communications technology companies in the design, development and use of contemporary language technologies, the Permanent Forum reiterates its invitation to the private sector to contribute to the International Decade. The Permanent Forum encourages these companies to continue to develop digital platforms, in cooperation with indigenous peoples and academic institutions, in order to compile information archives for the preservation and revitalization of indigenous languages, language corpora, speech recognition, machine translation and synthesis tools, digital dictionaries and online courses.
The Permanent Forum expresses concern that indigenous peoples are not receiving adequate information regarding the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals at the national level and encourages Governments, United Nations entities, indigenous peoples and civil society organizations to convene workshops and other forums to ensure their effective participation in implementing the 2030 Agenda.
The Permanent Forum requests that UNESCO present a report to the Forum by 2020 on the implementation of the International Year of Indigenous Languages, on the basis of the action plan for organizing it (see E/C.19/2018/8).
Importantly, and in parallel with action plans, the Permanent Forum calls upon Member States to urgently provide adequate and appropriate support and resources for Indigenous Peoples’ languages, with a focus on Indigenous-led initiatives. That is especially crucial in circumstances in which the languages are critically endangered. When an Indigenous Peoples’ language becomes extinct, the richness of the ways of life and world views of Indigenous Peoples is lost, which is detrimental both to Indigenous Peoples and to the world.
Recalling the recommendation contained in the report of its fifteenth session (E/2016/43-E/C.19/2016/11, para. 52), the Permanent Forum urges States to take measures for settlement, protection and security in post-conflict areas and for the construction of durable and lasting peace, promoting the full and effective inclusion of indigenous peoples, including indigenous women, in any initiative for peace and reconciliation. The Forum also recommends that the Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs and indigenous peoples, including women and young people, consider indigenous peoples’ traditional conflict resolution systems for achieving durable and lasting peace.