The Permanent Forum recommends that the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination elaborate a general comment on discrimination in housing, taking into account the situation of indigenous peoples.
The Permanent Forum supports the call of the Special Rapporteur on the rights of Indigenous Peoples to redress treaty violations. Indigenous Peoples deprived of treaty rights are also at risk; the Forum urges relevant States to adopt constructive agreements and appropriate laws to ensure Indigenous lands and territories are protected in the face of mineral extraction and development.
The Permanent Forum reminds States that the implementation of the United Nations Declaration provides a common framework for reconciliation, justice, healing and peace. Each State has a prime responsibility and duty to protect, promote and implement all human rights, consistent with the Charter of the United Nations and international human rights law. Furthermore, all forms of discrimination must be avoided.
The Permanent Forum urges the Republic of Paraguay to take urgent action to implement the resolutions of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights concerning communities that are experiencing major humanitarian crises.
The Permanent Forum encourages Member States and relevant subnational governmental bodies and agencies to ensure the allocation of funding for the establishment of appropriate institutions, including by establishing permanent linguist positions, to promote the conservation, revitalization, use and development of indigenous languages. Particular attention should be given to languages at risk of extinction.
The Permanent Forum reiterates the need for States to address the impact of militarization, including suppressing constitutional guarantees, appropriation of land, forcible occupation and displacement, on the land, territorial and other collective rights of indigenous peoples, perpetrated by security forces, including the military, militias and other armed groups.
In order to protect the human rights of indigenous peoples, the Forum recommends that States create indigenous ombudsmen offices, especially for indigenous women, ensuring the full and effective participation of indigenous women
The Permanent Forum welcomes the work carried out by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in preparation for the 2019 International Year of Indigenous Languages and welcomes and supports the action plan for the International Year that was developed in cooperation with Member States, the Forum, the Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples and the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, as well as indigenous peoples and a range of different stakeholders. The Forum calls upon Member States to implement the action plan in partnership with indigenous peoples, respecting the principle of “nothing about us without us”, including the establishment of national steering committees and national action plans for the International Year. States should allocate adequate funding for the successful implementation of the International Year.
The Permanent Forum decides to appoint as Special Rapporteur Ms Tonya Gonnella Frichner, a member of the Forum to conduct a preliminary study on the impact of the international legal construct known as the Doctrine of Discovery on Indigenous Peoples that has served as the foundation of the violation of their human rights and to report thereon to the Forum at its ninth session, in 2010.
The Permanent Forum recommends that all States that have introduced changes to existing indigenous land management regimes invite the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous people to undertake a study of those regimes and assess them against the principles contained in the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
The Permanent Forum calls upon African States and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization to safeguard Indigenous Peoples’ languages and to develop culturally appropriate education systems for Indigenous children and youth. The Forum also encourages the development of initiatives to prioritize Indigenous Peoples’ knowledge systems, especially for women and girls.
The Permanent Forum recommends that donors, including the European Union, the European Commission, the Department of State of the United States of America, human rights support organizations and others provide long-term funding, legal aid and other resources to assist indigenous human rights defenders, their families, networks and communities.