The Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues has analysed and discussed indigenous fishing rights in the seas on the basis of a report submitted by the Special Rapporteurs. As a result of those discussions, the Forum considers the protection of the material basis of the culture of indigenous peoples to be a part of international law that should be applied also to fishing rights in the seas, and recommends that States in which indigenous peoples live in coastal areas recognize indigenous peoples’ right to fish in the seas on the basis of historical use and international law. In that context, the Forum notes the ongoing consultations between the Government of Norway and the Sami Parliament and recommends that the Government recognize the right of the coastal Sami to fish in the seas on the basis of historical use and international law.
The Permanent Forum supports the initiative of OHCHR to develop guidelines for the protection of peoples in voluntary isolation and initial contact in the Amazon Region and the Gran Chaco, which are currently under consultation with indigenous organizations and the States concerned. The Permanent Forum recommends that, in developing the guidelines, attention be directed to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, particularly in terms of the right to self-determination. The organizations in closest contact with those indigenous peoples that remain in voluntary isolation or initial contact should be involved in the elaboration of these guidelines.