The Forum, taking note with appreciation of the conclusions and
recommendations of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UNHabitat) and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights joint publication entitled “Indigenous peoples’ right to adequate housing: a global overview”, recommends that UN-Habitat, jointly with the Office of the High Commissioner, organize an expert group meeting in 2006 to review the status of progress on indigenous peoples’ housing rights globally and identify and document best practices, and report on the outcome and recommendations of the meeting to the Forum at its sixth session.
The Permanent Forum urges States to promote and protect the rights of indigenous women and men working as journalists, communicators and as human rights defenders in accordance with international human rights law, in particular in accordance with article 16 of the Declaration, which calls for the full freedom of expression of indigenous peoples.
The Permanent Forum recognizes the importance of the signing of the Final Agreement for Ending the Conflict and Building a Stable and Lasting Peace in Colombia. The Permanent Forum urges Colombia to promote and guarantee the rights of indigenous peoples, in particular by achieving the goals and indicators set out in the “ethnic chapter” of the peace agreement. The Permanent Forum urges the Special Jurisdiction for Peace of Colombia to prioritize the conduct of a high-profile investigation to highlight the violations of the collective rights of indigenous peoples that occurred during the armed conflict and to identify the patterns and perpetrators of this violence.
The Permanent Forum welcomes the recommendation to establish a voluntary international mechanism to receive and consider communications from indigenous peoples specifically concerning their claims to, or violations of, their rights to the lands, territories and resources which they have traditionally owned, occupied or otherwise used or acquired. This recommendation deserves further elaboration by indigenous peoples and others concerned. The Forum takes note of the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples in this regard.