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We express our utmost concern regarding the serious violations of the rights of the Quechua community of Totoral Chico of the Ayllu Acre Antequera, Oruro, in Bolivia, including the organization of a false consultation on October 23, 2024.

This “consultation” seeks to legitimize the activity of the mining company La Salvada Sociedad Colectiva, owned by the Avicaya Mining Workers Union, who have been operating illegally in the territory since 2013 without obtaining consent from the Quechua and Aymara communities that inhabit it.

“For Indigenous Peoples, a just transition means exercising our own forms of territorial governance according to our traditions and ways of life.” –Indigenous Peoples Principles and Protocols for Just Transition

October 23, 2024 - Nearly 100 Indigenous leaders from the seven socio-cultural regions of the world have reached unanimous agreement on defining a Just Transition with respect to impacted or potentially impacted Indigenous Peoples.

Sixteenth Meeting of the Conference of the Parties
21 October to 1 November 2024, Cali, Colombia
AGENDA ITEM: OPENING STATEMENT
DATE: 21 OCTOBER 2024


Statement on behalf of the International Indigenous Forum on Biodiversity (IIFB) delivered by Manuel Jesus Mavisoy Juagibioy of the Mesa Permanente de Concertacion.

Thank you, Madame President.

Nixon Piaguaje Yaiguaje is an Indigenous leader, politician, and journalist from the Siona Peoples in the Colombian Amazon. The Siona People are under many threats to their existence. He is currently the Communication Coordinator for OZIP and director of Radio Waira 104.7 FM, which represents the 11 Indigenous Peoples of Putumayo who are members of the Indigenous Organization of the Putumayo Area. Nixon Piaguaje Yaiguaje is part of Cultural Survival's Convention on Biological Diversity COP16 delegation in Cali, Colombia.

In the United States, 21 states and Washington, D.C. now celebrate Indigenous Peoples Day, or a holiday of a similar name, on the second Monday of October, as an official holiday or via proclamation. In 2021, Biden issued the first-ever presidential proclamation of Indigenous Peoples Day, however he did not replace Columbus Day.

By commemorating Indigenous Peoples Day, we recognize colonization persists today and perpetuates oppression and violence against Indigenous Peoples as well as their sovereignty and self-determination.

KatieLee Riddle descends from the Iwi of Rongowhakaata on the East Coast of New Zealand’s North Island. She is a Māori researcher at Te Kotahi Research Institute, an interdisciplinary research hub based at the University of Waikato in Hamilton, New Zealand that specializes in Māori-focused initiatives, research, and capacity-building to support the aspirations of Iwi, Māori, and Indigenous communities.

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