Statement by Flavia Pansieri, Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights for the Opening exhibition “Empowered peoples, living cultures” to mark the 30th anniversary of the UN Voluntary Fund for Indigenous Peoples

22 September 2015

Excellencies, friends and colleagues,

I would like to welcome you all to the opening of the exhibition “Empowered peoples, living cultures”, hold today to mark the 30th anniversary of the UN Voluntary Fund for Indigenous Peoples. I thank the Permanent Missions of Finland, Guatemala, Mexico and Norway for co-organizing this event with OHCHR.

The word in the exhibition’s title that caught my attention is empowered. While there is no universally agreed definition of the term “empowerment”, Professor Julian Rappaport has described it as follows: the empowerment agenda implies “identifying, facilitating, or creating contexts in which heretofore silent and isolated people, those who are ‘outsiders’ in various settings, organizations, and communities, gain understanding, voice and influence over decisions that affect their lives”.

This is exactly what the UN Voluntary Fund for Indigenous Peoples does.

For 30 years, it has given indigenous peoples “voice and influence over decisions that affect their lives” in the United Nations. Thanks to the Fund, some 2 000 indigenous representatives have been able to raise their concerns at the international level, influence the UN agenda and, in a number of cases - although regrettably not often enough - prompt progress at the national level.

As the pictures of this exhibition demonstrate, the beneficiaries of the Fund were among the key players in the processes that led to the adoption of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in 2007 and the World Conference on Indigenous Peoples in 2014. They have continued to bolster the profile of indigenous peoples’ rights at treaty bodies, Human Rights Council’s UPR process and other contexts. The pictures show that the Fund has truly been a concrete tool for empowerment.

The Voluntary Fund has strong supporters not only among indigenous peoples but also among Member States, which have generously supported the Fund despite the increasing economic constraints that many of them face today. These contributions are truly appreciated. I hope that your example will inspire others, both governmental and non-governmental actors, to join the list of donors and help us bridge the wide gap that exists between the resources of the Fund and the demand for its support.

Another key factor in the success of the Fund is its active and committed Board of Trustees, represented here today by Ms Myrna Cunningham. Current and previous Board members have volunteered their significant expertise and time to guide and build the Fund. They have played a crucial role not only in selecting grantees but also in mobilizing donor support and in complementing travel grants with hands-on training and other support for the indigenous beneficiaries. The Board of Trustees, composed of five members of indigenous background, is itself an example of how indigenous peoples’ participation can be advanced in the UN.

Colleagues and friends, thank you again for joining us today and for showing your support for empowered indigenous peoples and for living indigenous cultures.