COMMITTEE ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD HOLDS A DAY OF DISCUSSION ON THE RIGHTS OF INDIGENOUS CHILDREN

Indigenous Children Are the Most Vulnerable
and Disadvantaged Group in Society, Experts Say


19 September 2003


The Committee on the Rights of the Child today held a day of general discussion on the “rights of indigenous children”, hearing how indigenous children made up the most vulnerable and disadvantaged group in society.
Bertrand Ramcharan, the United Nations acting High Commissioner for Human Rights, said that the discussion was a moment of deep significance that the United Nations was giving to indigenous children; and it was a continuation of the process of generating protection for the indigenous people and their children. The meeting would provide an opportunity for young people to express themselves on issues that concerned them closely.
Committee Chairperson Jacob Egbert Doek said that experience revealed that indigenous children represented the most vulnerable group in society. He said that an overarching objective of the discussion was to make the indigenous child clearly visible, to do that through a rights-based approach and in such a way that one could maintain that visibility in the years to come and as far as the Committee was concerned, particularly throughout its reviewing of the progress made in the States parties in the implementation of the Convention.
Ida Nicolaisen, Member of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, who was the Rapporteur for one of the two Working Groups which were held this afternoon, said that indigenous children were the most disadvantaged by all social indicators in every society in which they lived in. They faced discrimination on a daily basis, and that discrimination robbed those children of a life that should be filled with opportunities.
The first Working Group addressed racism and xenophobia, and discrimination in accessing services, as well as non-discrimination within the system of law and public order, including juvenile justice. The second Working Group addressed the right to identity and the right to education.
Anne Pinto, the Rapporteur for the other Working Group, said that among the issues raised during the discussion was the need to improve access to the administration of justice and other services to better serve indigenous peoples and their children. It was also recommended that the present discussion be continued next year in conjunction with other treaty bodies, and that the creation of a “Year of Indigenous Children” be considered.
Article 30 of the Convention states that children of ethnic, religious or linguistic minorities, or children of indigenous origin, should not be denied the right to enjoy his or her own culture, to profess and practice his or her own religion or to use his or her own language. The Committee is expected to adopt a general recommendation on the rights of indigenous children. Since its inception, the Committee had organized 13 general discussions on various themes concerning its mandate.
When the Committee reconvenes at 10 a.m. on Monday, 22 September, it is scheduled to taken up the second periodic report of Pakistan (CRC/C/65/Add.21).
Statements
JACOB EGBERT DOEK, Committee Chairperson, said that in a recent study on indigenous people and poverty in Bolivia, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua, one of the conclusions was that due to current political marginalization, indigenous peoples were largely absent from the planning, design and implementation of development policies and programmes that directly affected their lives and territories. That conclusion was even more applicable for indigenous children.
Mr. Doek said that an overarching objective of today’s discussion was to make the indigenous child clearly visible, to do that through a rights-based approach and in such a way that one could maintain that visibility in the years to come and as far as the Committee was concerned, particularly throughout its reviewing of the progress made in the States parties in the implementation of the Convention. In that regard, the recommendations the Committee intended to adopt after the discussion were important because they would provide States parties with the necessary guidelines for their actions regarding the rights of indigenous children.
Referring to the message addressed to the Committee by the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous peoples, Rodolfo Stavenhagen, Mr. Doek said that experience revealed that indigenous children represented the most vulnerable group in society. The Special Rapporteur was particularly concerned about the situation of systematic discrimination and the lack of respect of indigenous children’s cultural specificity.
BERTRAND RAMCHARAN, Acting High Commissioner for Human Rights, said that the discussion was a moment of deep significance that the UN was giving to indigenous children. The meeting was a continuation of the process of generating protection for the indigenous people and their children. The presence of the indigenous people in the meeting was also a very significant event.
Mr. Ramcharan said the present meeting was the thirteenth general discussion day that the Committee had organized. He was impressed by the impact of those thematic debates, which had generated many new activities and important decisions. The day of general discussion provided an opportunity to further reinforce the links between the work of human rights treaty bodies, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, which was represented in the discussion by two of its members.
Mr. Ramcharan said today’s meeting also would provide an opportunity for young people to express themselves on issues that concerned them closely. Today’s event would also offer the opportunity for participants in the UN Working Group on the draft declaration on the rights of indigenous peoples, which was meeting currently at the Palais des Nations, to provide their input to the debate and to learn more about treaty bodies. He also hoped that the General Assembly would adopt a statement on the rights of indigenous people.
Mr. Ramcharan said the Convention on the Rights of the Child was the first binding international human rights instrument which explicitly referred to indigenous children as rights-holders. The International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention 169 concerning Indigenous and Tribal Peoples in Independent Counties was another international treaty that recognized the rights of indigenous peoples.
Article 30 of the Convention stated that children of ethnic, religious or linguistic minorities, or children of indigenous origin, should not be denied the right to enjoy his or her own culture, to profess and practice his or her own religion or to use his or her own language, Mr. Ramcharan said. Rights included in article 30 conferred to individual children were distinct from, but complementary to, all other rights included in the Convention.
Mr. Ramcharan said that during its periodic review of reports submitted by States parties, the Committee had frequently emphasized the fact that indigenous children were a group that suffered very seriously from forms of discrimination in relation to the enjoyment of their rights. The Committee had also regularly encouraged States parties to engage in general initiatives against prejudice and racism.
ADAM KULEIT OLE MWARABU, Indigenous Youth Representative from Tanzania, said he represented the Massai youth of the pastoral community in Tanzania. From the indigenous prospective, indigenous children’s relations with their culture was very important. The Massai people valued their children and traditions. The community encouraged that before the child was grown up and exposed to the world, he or she should be well nourished with traditional values. The Massai greetings always acknowledged the high value that they put on their children’s well being. Children constituted the major pillar of the communities’ existence. They also represented the community’s future as holders of the cultural continuity of the specific community. Pastorals in Tanzania had been evicted from their traditional grazing areas in favour of game reserves. The pastoralists were removed out of the grazing land because of wildlife management activities that did not see the importance of local people’s participation. The families that had lost many cattle were now migrating to urban areas seeking small income earning activities to be able to feed their children. Due to the undeveloped transport facilities, the Massai society was being deprived of the rights to health and other needs essential to their survival. Hospitals and medical centres were so far from the community that a patient could die before receiving assistance. In the Massai community, parents were reluctant to send their children to schools because of fear of assimilation. Massai parents were generally unwilling to send their children to school for reasons that they might lose their identity and language.
RAFFAEL CHELA, Representative of Indigenous Groups in Ecuador, said that at the national level in most Latin American countries, the indigenous peoples were winning recognition for their rights; however, the respect for the rights of indigenous children still lagged behind. The cultural attitudes for the respect of the rights of children had to be changed. The acts of discrimination against indigenous children were a deprecation of the cultural values of indigenous communities. Both girls and boys should also be treated on equal basis. The enjoyment of rights set forth in many international and regional conventions should also be extended to indigenous children and adolescents. The indigenous youth should be given the opportunity to participate in policies and programmes affecting them. Indigenous children should be guaranteed full access not only to health, education and social services, but also to cultural and artistic lives. Laws should be adopted to support the exercise by the indigenous peoples of their collective constitutional rights in the countries they lived.
WILTON LITTLECHILD, of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, said that given the belief of indigenous peoples that “the children are the future”, the Permanent Forum had decided to make indigenous children and youth a focal point of its work in the years to come. The Permanent Forum believed that the Committee was a crucial strategic partner in the crosscutting area of indigenous children and youth and welcomed such an alliance. The Forum saw the Committee as its close ally in promoting the rights of indigenous children. The Forum recommended that the United Nations system, in particular the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organization (WHO), in collaboration with governments and in consultation with indigenous peoples’ organizations, and with the participation and input from the Committee and the Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography, address issues related to the trafficking and sexual exploitation of indigenous girls, and urge States to create programmes of rehabilitation.
Mr. Littlechild said that the Forum had recommended that the Committee, in addition to considering reports from States parties, pay special attention to issues related to safeguarding the integrity of indigenous families. Deeply concerned about the harmful and widespread impact of armed conflict on indigenous children, the Forum suggested that the Committee make recommendations on the situation of the human rights of indigenous children involved in armed conflict, taking into account the principles and norms contained in the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the involvement of children in armed conflicts.
Working Group on Cultural Diversity
IDA NICOLAISEN, the Rapporteur for the Working Group on Cultural Diversity, said that the question of visibility and how to secure the rights of the child to cultural identity and to become a strong member of society had been underlined. The issue of birth certificates and the empowerment of youth had also been discussed. How to secure the original names of indigenous children was also raised, with a suggestion that legislation should be designed in that direction. On the issue of education, the need and the importance of bilingual education were stressed, as well as the inclusion in educational curriculum of indigenous values.
IRWA ALICIA VELASQUEZ, Participant in the Working Group on Cultural Diversity, said that many indigenous children in many countries dreamt of a better world. Indigenous languages were not studied properly. Like education, health should be free and accessible to the indigenous people. Equality of opportunity for indigenous societies should also be stressed. The dreams of young people to construct a fairer society could not be true without the participation of all children.
Working Group on Non-Discrimination
ANNE PINTO, Rapporteur for the Working Group on Non-Discrimination, said that a range of factors such as trafficking and involvement in armed conflicts had dramatic effects on indigenous peoples who were psychologically affected by such phenomena. The Working Group had emphasized the recognition of land rights of the indigenous peoples in order to allow them to manage their own affairs. Once their land rights were recognized, their children should be able to participate fully in the affairs of the society with other non-indigenous children. Education should stress the physical and spiritual integrity of the indigenous peoples. It was recommended that a global study, preferably at the United Nations level, should be carried out to identify best practices in dealing with the rights of indigenous children. In that global study, it was recommended that indigenous youth should be able to participate in designing and implementing plans and programmes concerning them. Access to the administration of justice and other services should be qualitatively improved to better serve indigenous peoples and their children. It was also recommended that the present discussion be continued next year in conjunction with other treaty bodies, and that the creation of a “Year of Indigenous Children” be considered.
Concluding Remarks
IDA NICOLAISEN, Member of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, said that indigenous children were the most disadvantaged group by all social indicators in every society in which they lived in. They faced discrimination on a daily basis. That discrimination robbed those children of a life that should be filled with opportunities. Instead, they grew up in over-crowded homes in communities lacking basic infrastructure, such as sewerage, paved roads, schools and hospitals. Their families were plagued by unemployment and poor health and lived in dire poverty. Racism and xenophobia continued to rob indigenous children of their self-esteem and life opportunities. In contemporary times, overt discrimination might have gone underground but nevertheless it was alive and well. Systematic discrimination in the welfare and justice systems ensured that indigenous children continued to be removed from their families by welfare agencies that equated poverty with neglect.
Ms. Nicolaisen said that indigenous parents had stated that they wanted their children to walk both ways. They wanted their children through the education process to develop skills that allowed them to live effectively in both the indigenous and non-indigenous worlds. However, indigenous peoples had every reason to be sceptical about a system, which had historically been used to rob them of their children or at the very least to assimilate their children into “mainstream” society. Indigenous peoples held strongly to the principles that they had the inalienable right to be indigenous, which included the right to self-determination.