The Forum recommends that the Economic and Social Council, States and the United Nations system promote the co-administration of archaeological sites which are administered by States in order to contribute to the care, preservation and conservation of those sites and to facilitate processes of development of indigenous peoples.
The Permanent Forum notes the proposed Celebrate Life through Sports and Culture within the World Indigenous Nations (WIN) Games and Sports, to be held in Winnipeg, Canada, in August 2012. The Forum encourages indigenous peoples, nations and Member States to support the continuing development of sports, traditional games and culture.
The Permanent Forum calls upon UNESCO, including its Intergovernmental Committee for the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, to step up its policies, safeguards and actions on the protection of Indigenous Peoples’ tangible and intangible cultural heritage. UNESCO safeguards that reflect robust free, prior and informed consent protocols, as prescribed by the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, could contribute to the prevention of the destruction and desecration of Indigenous Peoples’ lands and sites by public and private enterprises. Examples include mining activities of the company Rio Tinto on the ancient Aboriginal site Juukan Gorge in Western Australia and the sacred Oak Flat of the San Carlos Apache Tribe in Arizona, United States of America.
The Permanent Forum commends WIPO for the establishment of the Voluntary Fund for Accredited and Indigenous Local Communities, and urges Member States and public and private entities to contribute to the Fund to ensure its operation beyond the twenty-second session of the Intergovernmental Committee in accordance with States’ commitment to article 41 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
The Permanent Forum calls upon UNESCO, in its coordination of the International Decade, to give attention to the role of indigenous languages in the preservation of traditional food and knowledge systems that are important to climate change adaptation strategies.
The Forum recommends that States consider constitutional and other legal reform and educational reform to recognize and respect cultural, religious and linguistic diversity and spiritual practices, within the framework of international human rights standards, and to eliminate all forms of discrimination and segregation that has deepened historic inequalities.
The Permanent Forum recommends that States consider the document entitled “The human development framework and indigenous peoples’ self-determined development or development with culture and identity” (E/C.19/2010/CRP.4) and in particular pay attention to the conclusions and recommendations provided therein.
The Permanent Forum recommends that the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and relevant parties develop mechanisms for indigenous peoples’ participation, as appropriate, in all aspects of the international dialogue on climate change, particularly the forthcoming negotiations for the next Kyoto Protocol commitment period, including by establishing a working group on local adaptation measures and traditional knowledge of indigenous peoples. The Forum encourages dialogue and cooperation among indigenous peoples, particularly indigenous women and youth, States, conservation and development organizations and donors in order to strengthen the participation of indigenous peoples in dialogue on climate change.
The Forum recommends that Member States adopt legislation acknowledging that the traditional knowledge of indigenous peoples is their inalienable cultural heritage and embodies their cultural identity and that they make available such legislation and information in local indigenous languages.
The Forum welcomes and encourages the active involvement of representatives of indigenous peoples and local communities in the work of the WIPO Committee and in parallel consultations and workshops organized by WIPO, and calls for such involvement to be enhanced through, inter alia, the greater use in the work of WIPO of position papers, case studies and information materials reflecting community experiences and perspectives and the funding of the participation of representatives of indigenous peoples and local communities in sessions of the WIPO Committee.
The Permanent Forum recommends that States implement the principles contained in General Comment No. 21 (2009) of the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights on article 15, paragraph 1 (a), of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights regarding the right of everyone to take part in cultural life. In its interpretation of the article, the Committee takes into account the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. It consequently distinguishes the right of indigenous peoples to take part in their own culture from the same right as it applies to minorities. This distinction is made in particular as a result of the extension of the concept of indigenous culture to material aspects such as territories and resources.
The Permanent Forum recommends that WIPO seek the participation of experts on international human rights law specifically concerning indigenous peoples so that they provide input into the substantive consultation process, in particular with reference to the language in the draft text where indigenous peoples are “beneficiaries” and other language that refers to indigenous peoples as “communities”, as well as the general alignment of the draft text of the Intergovernmental Committee with international human rights norms and principles.