The Permanent Forum requests that the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous people undertake a study on the rights of urban indigenous peoples and migration, paying particular attention to their ability to exercise and enjoy their economic and social rights, and that the study be considered at the eighth session of the Permanent Forum. The themes that could be considered in the study include cultural identity, equitable access to essential services, the challenges facing indigenous youth and border issues.
The Permanent Forum recommends that the International Labour Organization (ILO), the World Bank, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and other relevant United Nations system agencies, in cooperation with the Permanent Forum, study and summarize practices regarding the implementation of free, prior and informed consent globally, that they widely disseminate successful experiences and that they present their findings to the Permanent Forum at its twenty - fourth session, to be held in 2025.
The Forum also decides to give ongoing priority to two other cross-cutting issues: a. Data collection and segregation as a follow-up of recommendations by the technical workshop on data collection; b. Human rights. In collaboration with the Special Rapporteur on the situation of the human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous peoples and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
Regarding the negotiations taking place at the sessions of the Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), the Permanent Forum reiterates the urgent need to develop an instrument that responds to the current lack of adequate protection of traditional knowledge and recognizes indigenous peoples as equal stakeholders and the legitimate holders of their knowledge. The Forum calls upon the Intergovernmental Committee to fast-track the negotiations and to use its core budget to fund indigenous peoples’ participation in the deliberations.
The Permanent Forum is concerned by the killings, violence and harassment targeted at indigenous human rights defenders, which are also frequently committed with impunity. The Permanent Forum is concerned that, despite international condemnation, these criminal acts of violence persist, especially in a small number of countries in South and Central America, Africa and Asia.
Scientists, policymakers and the international community as a whole should undertake regular consultations with indigenous peoples so that their studies and decisions will be informed by indigenous peoples’ traditional knowledge and experiences. The Permanent Forum can play a role in ensuring that the traditional knowledge and best practices of indigenous peoples relevant to fighting climate change and its impacts will be considered in the negotiation processes leading to the Copenhagen Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and beyond, including through discussions with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.