8 September to 8 October, 2025
Statement by Grupo Intercultural Almaciga
This statement is submitted on behalf of Indigenous Peoples Rights International (IPRI) and Grupo Intercultural Almaciga.
We would like to congratulate the members of the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples on their report on the right of Indigenous Peoples to data, including with regard to data collection and disaggregation. For far too long, data and research on Indigenous Peoples have been collected and developed by non-Indigenous entities in harmful ways and have been used to make assumptions and determine decisions about us without us.
As organizations working on Indigenous Peoples’ human rights defence and protection, we have develop extensive work with Indigenous organizations and communities in data collection and documentation on the violence and criminalization still suffered by Indigenous Peoples in all regions of the world.
Data collection, verification and custody regarding these situations present particular challenges, adding to the ones EMRIP has identified in its report, concerning security, safety, and confidentiality. Indigenous Peoples have reported on the extractive and intrusive ways data are collected in their communities, without respect for their authorities and cultures, and without information on the further use of the information collected. Data sovereignty is key in this regard, as the collection and use of these sensitive data have to be under the control of Indigenous Peoples themselves to serve their own protection and defence strategies
In this sense, we would like to request, complementing EMRIP’s advice contained in the report, that both States and allied institutions and organizations support Indigenous Peoples’ own initiatives for the collection and verification of data regarding their human rights situation. This would include providing them with the relevant technology and skills, if needed, and the adoption of all the necessary measures to ensure the protection of those documenting these situations. Without their work, violations of human rights will remain in impunity, increasing the risks already faced by many Indigenous communities. Moreover, only Indigenous Peoples’ initiatives in data collection, verification, and custody regarding violations of their collective and individual human rights can ensure that the necessary legal and policy measures of protection to be adopted respond adequately to their needs, include collective protection and remedy, and ensure non repetition.
We would like to congratulate EMRIP for inviting members of the United Nations Treaty Bodies to participate in the interactive dialogues during its sessions, and we hope this remains a standing item in EMRIP’s agenda. The work of the Treaty Bodies in monitoring the implementation of the fundamental human rights Conventions is essential. Treaty Bodies have been increasingly considering the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples as the authoritative instrument when interpreting the obligations contained in their respective Conventions in the context of Indigenous Peoples. Their dialogue with the Expert Mechanism and with the Indigenous delegates and others participating in its sessions may help consolidate this positive trend. This will undoubtedly increase the respect, protection, and realization of Indigenous Peoples’ collective and individual human rights and assist Treaty Bodies to provide targeted observations and recommendations to Member States that support the implementation of the Declaration.
IPRI and Almaciga also welcome the Expert Mechanism’s proposal to continue working on the issue of the rights of Indigenous Peoples in situations of conflict and peace agreements, and we look forward to collaborating with the experts in this regard.
We would also like to express our support for the recommendation made by the Expert Mechanism for the Human Rights Council to hold, during its 63rd session in 2026, a panel discussion on the World Heritage Convention and the rights of Indigenous Peoples. We endorse the statement made by the International Indigenous Peoples’ Forum on the World Heritage (IIPFWH) during the last session of the EMRIP, and the Outcome Document resulting of the 2024 workshop.[i] We want to stress our concern about the declaration and management of World Heritage Sites affecting the lands, territories, and natural resources of Indigenous Peoples without full respect for their rights, their effective participation, and their free, prior and informed consent.
Finally, we would like to call the Expert Mechanism to consider, as a cross-cutting issue in all its work, advice, and reports, the question of the violence, criminalization, and reprisals suffered by Indigenous Peoples, including when they try to access justice and human rights institutions to denounce the situation and look for protection and remedy. We would like to recall the recommendation made by the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues in its 2024 report on criminalization in this regard (E/C.19/2024/6). Statements heard during the EMRIP session from many Indigenous representatives attest to the seriousness of the problem and the need of support from all United Nations bodies within the scope of their different mandates. In this sense, we welcome that EMRIP has recommended that States recognize Indigenous Peoples’ rights to practice their traditional economies without fear of criminalization or persecution (A/HRC/EMRIP/2025/3, para 109), as is still the case in many instances.
[i][i][i] Outcome Document of the International Expert Workshop on Recognizing and Respecting Indigenous Peoples’ Heritage Values in World Heritage Sites held in January 2024 in Geneva
