Asia Regional Dialogue Virtual - Intervention by Indigenous Peoples Rights International presented by Bernice See (Member of the IPRI Board)

Asia Regional Dialogue Virtual Thursday, 5 May 9-11am (New York time) - Regional dialogues: Indigenous peoples and pandemic recovery

Intervention by Indigenous Peoples Rights International presented by Bernice See  (Member of the Board)

Thank you Mr. Chair, members of the Permanent Forum, delegates, indigenous sisters and brothers.

Historically, natural resources from indigenous lands all over the world had been major resources exploited by States to propel their economies into robust progress. Indigenous territories are the repositories of oil, coal, gas, minerals, hydro-resources, genetic and cultural assets, among other, that are essential to national socio-economic development.

It is with concern that reports have emerged that the COVID-19 pandemic was used to further exploit the resources in indigenous territories and are continuing as governments roll out economic recovery programs.

Indigenous territories have become open grounds for resource extractions as the enforcement of Free, Prior and Informed Consent processes could not be effectively enforced, exacerbated by the attempts of some governments to conduct virtual consultations which was questioned and opposed by indigenous communities.

In India, the government issued the Draft Environment Impact Assessment Notification 2020 which exempts certain projects from public consultation, denying the Indigenous Peoples of their right to be consulted or to give their consent before any project can start in their areas which is guaranteed under relevant domestic laws. The Northeast and the Andaman and Nicobar islands are being opened to oil palm plantation which could lead to large-scale deforestation, disturbances to sensitive ecosystems and trigger land conflicts in tribal areas.

In Malaysia, the Malaysia Timber Certification Scheme (MTCS) granted in April 2020, permission for a multinational timber giant to extract timber from the forested area which has long been opposed by the community that maintains and protects the forest reserve.

In the Philippines, President Duterte retracted his threat to shut down mining operations by granting a new Financial or Technical Assistance Agreement to a mining company despite protests by indigenous communities and the provincial government as part of the administration’s job-generation measure in the time of the pandemic.

In Myanmar, several stalled hydropower projects massively protested by ethnic nationalities and other citizens  have been announced to be resurrected.

These extractive projects have exacerbated the situation of indigenous peoples in the communities who lacked the appropriate health services, interventions and infrastructure, vaccines, and access to information that would have allowed them to make informed decisions regarding their health situation. Nevertheless, indigenous peoples triggered their own response mechanisms, like traditional lockdowns and quarantine, physical and spiritual healing, among others, and most importantly, sharing resources across boundaries.

On the other hand, as Indigenous Peoples impose their own protection and defense measures against extractive projects in their territories, they have been and are being criminalized. In India, Adivasis faced charges of violating COVID-19 protocols when they protest against government projects and plans. As of now, there are no reports that these earlier State actions have been rescinded.

We therefore present the following recommendations to the Permanent Forum:

1. For the Permanent Forum to urge States to ensure there is no derogation in the rights of indigenous peoples in the COVID-19 pandemic recovery efforts, and that recovery measures are relevant and non-discriminatory to Indigenous Peoples; to ensure FPIC processes are observed properly when considering any COVID-19 measure that directly or indirectly affects Indigenous Peoples’ rights and well-being, at the same time, ensuring Indigenous Peoples’ meaningful and substantive participation in the crafting, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of all COVID-19 related recovery measures that impact on their lives. Governments and States should observe international and legal frameworks on the rights of Indigenous Peoples such as the UNDRIP and other UN instruments, and regional instruments on human rights.
2. For States and the UN system to collect timely, reliable, consistent, accurate, and disaggregated data on indigenous peoples to aid in identifying how specific issues can be addressed in terms of laws and policies, programs and services, budget allocations, and other pro-active response, mitigation and recovery measures and mechanisms during similar crises and emergencies.
3. For the Permanent Forum to deepen studies on the impact of COVID-19 economic recovery efforts on indigenous peoples, and indigenous peoples’ responses, to serve as guide to enhance current efforts both by governments and indigenous communities.