The Permanent Forum calls upon the United Nations entities that constitute UN-Water to ensure the full and effective participation of Indigenous Peoples in the realization of the outcomes of the United Nations 2023 Water Conference in order to ensure their engagement in water policy, governance and rights, including with respect to capacity-building, access to clean water, sanitation and water for nature. The Permanent Forum invites UNESCO to report on progress on implementation at the twenty-third session of the Permanent Forum and calls upon UN-Water, UNESCO and other concerned United Nations entities to build coherence among the four United Nations decades on water, oceans, ecosystem restoration and Indigenous Peoples’ languages.
The Permanent Forum also recommends that WIPO organize a second indigenous expert workshop on intellectual property and genetic resources, traditional knowledge and traditional cultural expressions before 2021
The Permanent Forum welcomes the organization of the informal interactive hearing by the President of the General Assembly to reflect on possible further measures necessary to enhance the participation of the representatives and institutions of indigenous peoples in all meetings of relevant United Nations bodies on issues affecting them. The Forum urges Member States to convene, in cooperation with indigenous peoples, regional meetings in each of the seven sociocultural regions to discuss modalities in this regard.
The Permanent Forum recognizes the efforts of WIPO to support Indigenous Peoples in taking part in its processes, including through training programmes and support from its voluntary fund for Indigenous Peoples. It urges WIPO and its member States to ensure the full and effective participation of Indigenous Peoples in meetings, including the Diplomatic Conference in 2024 and its related preparatory meetings, on one or more international legal instruments relating to traditional knowledge, traditional cultural expression, genetic resources and folklore.
The Permanent Forum expresses concern over the misappropriation and misuse of indigenous peoples’ cultural heritage, traditional knowledge and traditional cultural expressions, and urges States and companies, in cooperation with indigenous peoples, to take effective measures to recognize and protect their rights, in accordance with article 31 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. In this regard, the Permanent Forum calls upon Member States to take measures to safeguard indigenous peoples’ rights to intellectual property by adopting laws and public policies, in which it is recognized that indigenous peoples have the right over their creations, knowledge, discoveries, works, traditional cultural expressions and other elements.
The recognition of indigenous peoples’ representative institutions is particularly pertinent in conflict-affected and post-conflict regions. Indigenous peoples’ role in peacebuilding is essential for reconciliation and for strengthening resilience to extremism and radicalization, particularly among indigenous youth. Indigenous peoples’ institutions should be viewed by States as allies in the efforts of the Security Council to establish peace and security.
The Permanent Forum fully endorses the enhanced participation of Indigenous Peoples and their representative institutions at the General Assembly and looks forward to the Human Rights Council intersessional meetings with the participation of Indigenous Peoples from all seven sociocultural regions. The Permanent Forum welcomes the appointment of Robert Rae, Víctor García Toma, Claire Winfield Ngamihi Charters and Belkacem Lounes to lead consultations during the seventyeighth session of the General Assembly on the enhanced participation of Indigenous Peoples and their representative institutions. The Forum recommends that the Assembly and the Council ensure the full and effective participation of Indigenous Peoples in these processes and calls upon Member States to financially support the Indigenous Coordinating Body for Enhanced Participation in the United Nations.
The Permanent Forum welcomes the adoption by the Green Climate Fund of the Indigenous Peoples Policy and the Environmental and Social Policy, as well as the establishment of the Indigenous Peoples Advisory Group by the Fund, and encourages the Fund to support specific capacity-building programmes for indigenous peoples as part of the readiness and preparatory programme to ensure their full and effective engagement with the Fund at all levels and in all activities.
The Permanent Forum notes the forthcoming Summit of the Future and recommends that the Secretary-General ensure the full and effective participation of Indigenous Peoples.
The Permanent Forum recommends that WIPO commission the updating of the technical review of key intellectual property-related issues of the WIPO draft instruments on genetic resources, traditional knowledge and traditional cultural expressions, which was undertaken in 2016 by James Anaya (WIPO/GRTKF/IC/29/INF/10), to reflect current issues, with an emphasis on concepts such as “balancing” and “public domain” and how these might conflict with indigenous peoples’ human rights and customary laws, and the obligation to incorporate and respect human rights in the work of WIPO.
The Permanent Forum welcomes the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN-Women) strategy of inclusion and visibility of indigenous women, which responds to the system-wide action plan on the rights of indigenous peoples and the recommendation of the Forum (E/2014/43/Corr.1-E/C.19/2014/11/Corr.1, para. 35) on including the priorities of indigenous women in global, regional and national programmes. The Forum encourages Member States to allocate sufficient funding for the implementation of the strategy. The Forum encourages UN-Women to emphasize enhancing the participation and capacities of indigenous young women and girls and to report on progress made to the Forum at its eighteenth session.
The Permanent Forum urges Member States and relevant United Nations entities to strengthen and facilitate the engagement of Indigenous youth in decision-making across all United Nations processes, including the Summit of the Future.