International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples (09/08)

International Day of the World's Indigenous People, celebrated annually on August 9, was established in 1994 by the UN General Assembly (resolution A/RES/49/214). On that date, in 1992, the first meeting of the Working Group on Indigenous Populations of the Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights was held, stating that:

«On this International Day of the World's Indigenous People, we pay tribute to the richness of indigenous cultures and the special contribution they make to the family of the world's peoples. We are also mindful of the enormous challenges faced by many indigenous peoples — from unacceptable levels of poverty and morbidity to deprivation of property, discrimination and denial of fundamental human rights».

The First International Decade of the World's Indigenous People, launched in 1995, helped to more clearly hear the voice of indigenous peoples around the world and increase attention to indigenous issues.

In 2004, the UN General Assembly proclaimed the Second International Decade of the World's Indigenous People for the period 2005—2014 with the theme «Decade of Action and Dignity». The goal of Decade — is not only to focus on action to protect the rights of indigenous peoples and to support their advancement in relation to their lands, their languages, their livelihoods and their cultures, but also to further strengthen international cooperation in addressing challenges facing indigenous peoples in areas such as education, health, human rights, environment and social and economic development.

In 2015, a System-wide Action Plan to Promote the Rights of Indigenous Peoples was developed. Its goal is to ensure a coherent approach to achieving the goals set out in the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, including by strengthening support for UN member states and indigenous peoples.

The Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples itself was adopted on September 13, 2007. According to it, the fundamental criterion for singling out an indigenous people is their own awareness of themselves as an indigenous people. Indigenous peoples have the right to determine themselves or their ethnicity in accordance with their customs and traditions.

This Declaration also recognizes the fundamental human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous peoples — the right to freedom and equality; to freely determine their political status and realize their economic, social and cultural development; the right to respect and revive their cultural traditions and customs; the right to create and control their education systems; the right to participate in decision-making processes at all levels on issues that may affect their rights, lives and destiny; the right to lands, territories and resources and the right to guaranteed use of their funds to ensure their existence and development.

Currently, the total number of indigenous peoples on the planet is approximately 476 million people, who live in 90 countries and represent many languages and cultures. In Russia, indigenous peoples are recognized as peoples living in the territories of traditional settlement of their ancestors, preserving traditional lifestyles, management and crafts, numbering less than 50 thousand people in the country and realizing themselves as independent ethnic communities. There are 47 such ethnic groups in the Russian Federation, where 40 indigenous peoples of the North, Siberia and the Russian Far East stand out. They live compactly in more than 30 constituent entities of the Russian Federation, more than 65% of them — in rural areas.

Although indigenous peoples make up only 5% of the world's population, they account for 15% of the world's poorest population. After all, they continue to face many problems, their rights are often violated. It was to attract the attention of the general public and authorities at various levels to these issues, and to direct efforts to solve the problems of indigenous peoples around the world, that this holiday was established.

Indigenous peoples have the right to determine themselves or their ethnicity in accordance with their customs and traditions (Photo: Nina Henry, licensed by Shutterstock.com)

In its resolution 71/178 on the rights of indigenous peoples, the General Assembly proclaimed 2019 the International Year of Indigenous Languages in order to draw attention to the pressing problem of the loss of such languages and the urgent need to preserve, revive and promote these languages and take further urgent steps at national and international levels. After all, languages that comprehensively influence identity, cultural diversity, spirituality, communication, social inclusion, education and development are of great importance for people and the planet. Linguistic diversity contributes to the maintenance of cultural identity and diversity and to intercultural dialogue.

The COVID-19 pandemic has identified and exacerbated many existing forms of inequality, with a disproportionate negative impact on those populations already suffering from poverty, disease, discrimination, institutional instability or financial insecurity. As far as indigenous peoples are concerned, the contrast is even clearer. In many of our societies, the social contract needs, at the very least, revision.

Social contract — is an unspoken agreement that society enters into to cooperate in order to obtain social and economic benefits. In many countries where indigenous peoples have been driven from their lands, their culture and languages are diminished and people are separated from political and economic activities, they have never been included in the social contract from the outset. The social contract was concluded between the dominant groups of the population.

In 2022, a new important stage in the history of indigenous culture began — Decade of Indigenous Languages. Participants in the high-level event «The Decade of Action for Indigenous Languages» (which includes more than 500 participants from 50 countries, including ministers, indigenous leaders, researchers, public and private partners, as well as other stakeholders and experts), which was organized by UNESCO in February 2020, published a strategic roadmap for this Decade, which prioritizes the empowerment of indigenous language speakers.

By the way, every year the events held as part of the Day are dedicated to a specific topic. Thus, over the years, the mottos of the Day were: «Reconciliation and partnership between states and indigenous peoples», «Indigenous peoples and HIV/AIDS», «Indigenous creativity: a worthy assessment of traditions and cultures, creating our own future», «Creating alliances of indigenous peoples: compliance with the provisions of treaties, agreements and other constructive agreements», «Migration and displacement of indigenous peoples», «Indigenous languages», «COVID-19 and the resilience of indigenous peoples», «Leaving no one behind: Indigenous peoples and the call for a new social contract», «The role of indigenous women — in the preservation and transmission of traditional knowledge» and others.



Postcard «9 August — International Day of the World's Indigenous People»

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