The United Nations has chosen to partner with the University of Colorado Law School to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the adoption of the U.N. Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, CU Boulder announced today.
Colorado Law Dean S. James Anaya participated in the drafting of the declaration, which explains and advocates for the rights of indigenous people.
Indigenous peoples’ representatives, government officials worldwide and authorities within the United Nations will gather at the CU law school on Sept. 13 and 14 for a free, public event.
During the course of the two-day celebration, attendees will look back at advocacy that resulted in the declaration’s passage and talk about the future of indigenous people’s rights.
“The document recognizes that historically, and even today, indigenous peoples have been denied human rights, and it puts in place a number of imperatives to remedy that situation and to encourage governments and others in power to address the human rights concerns of indigenous peoples,” said Anaya, who also served as U.N. Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. “It’s an extremely important historic document and an achievement by indigenous peoples and their advocates.”
Scheduled activities include a chat between Anaya and Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, current U.N. Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples; cultural celebrations; presentations by indigenous advocates and high-level government officials who helped negotiate the declaration’s passage; and a keynote talk by Native American rights attorney and author Walter Echo-Hawk.
Chandra Roy-Henriksen is the chief of the Secretariat of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, Divisions for Social Policy and Development, U.N. Department of Economic and Social Affairs.
She said indigenous peoples still face exclusion and displacement from their lands and territories.
“We all need to work together — indigenous peoples, member states, the private sector, civil society, academia and the U.N. system — to find solutions to fully realize the rights of indigenous peoples,” Roy-Henriksen said.
To register for the event, visit colorado.edu/law/UNDeclaration.
Elizabeth Hernandez: 303-473-1106, hernandeze@dailycamera.com
