The annual commemoration of the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples was held on August 9, 2014 at the UN Headquarters in New York. The event highlighted the importance of implementing the rights of Indigenous peoples and marks the twentieth year of the global celebration.
"We must ensure the participation of indigenous peoples – women and men – in decision-making at all levels. This includes discussions on accelerating action towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals and defining the post-2015 development agenda."
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
2014 Theme: "Bridging the gap: implementing the rights of indigenous peoples"
The 2014 United Nations Development Programme Human Development Report, Sustaining Human Progress: Reducing Vulnerabilities and Building Resilience, was just released on July 24, 2014. By identifying vulnerable communities and bolstering their ability to react to negative forces through collective action, governments stands to improve many of the human rights violations affecting Indigenous Peoples and marginalized groups around the world.
The United Nations General Assembly has put forth a zero draft resolution to be adopted on September 22nd, 2014. The draft outlines the goals and strategies that the World Conference on Indigenous Peoples hopes to achieve and implement.
Indigenous protesters are under threat by the Peruvian government after a law was passed that effectively gives the police the “license to kill” according to the Lima-based Instituto Libertad y Democracia. The law grants: “members of the armed forces and the national police exemption from criminal responsibility if they cause injury or death, including through the use of guns or other weapons, while on duty.
Cultural Survival congratulates Prince Zeid Ra’ad Zeid al-Hussein in his appointment as the new UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. His term will begin starting September of 2014. Prince Zeid has been an Ambassador for Jordan to the United Nations for the last 10 years and he is proud to be the first High Commissioner to come from the Asian continent to represent the Arab and Muslim worlds. Prince Zeid has had a successful career contributing to the drafting of the elements for individual offenses such as genocide and war crimes.
Land Acknowledgement
We acknowledge that we are headquartered on Massachusett land, in Cambridge, MA, and we thank the past, current, and future Indigenous stewards of this territory.
