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Kenyan government continues to forcibly evict hundreds of Ogiek

It’s been one week since Kenyan authorities forcibly evicted more than 700 Ogiek children, women and men, including the elderly, from their homes and land in Sasimwani village, Narok County, and they are not stopping.

Beginning on 2 November, Kenya Forest Services and Kenya Wildlife

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700 Ogiek made homeless as Kenyan authorities destroy dozens of homes

IWGIA has just received news that authorities from Kenya Forest Services and Kenya Wildlife Service rangers are currently destroying and setting fire to dozens of homes in Sasimwani village, Narok County. 700 Ogiek women, children and men have now been forcibly evicted and made

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Ogiek facing imminent eviction despite African Court’s judgment

Local authorities have informed the Ogiek community residing in the Maasai Mau Forest in southwestern Kenya that eviction orders have been processed for those in the Sasinwani and Nkareta regions, the Ogiek Peoples’ Development Programme (OPDP) reported on 26 October.

The orders have

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International Chittagong Hill Tracts Commission Stands in Solidarity with the Civil Society Leaders of CHT and Calls for the Defense of the Chittagong Hill Tracts Regulation 1900

The International Chittagong Hill Tracts Commission (CHTC) expresses deep concern over the ongoing lawsuits against the Chittagong Hill Tracts Regulation, 1900, and calls for its defense. CHTC joins hands with civil society leaders in the CHT who have tirelessly advocated for the preservation

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Rapport om inuits menneskerettighedsforhold i Kalaallit Nunaat og Danmark

I februar i år var FNs Specialrapportør for oprindelige folks rettigheder på officielt besøg i Danmark og Kalaallit Nunaat for at vurdere menneskerettighedssituationen for inuit i begge lande. Nu er rapporten færdig og er blevet gjort tilgængelig...

Disturbing situation of human rights of Afar people in Eritrea becoming more visible

Over the past several decades, the Indigenous Afar people have been subjected to widespread discrimination, forced incarceration, disappearance and violence, and information from the notoriously closed country is sparce and sometimes unreliable. However, in 2023, some recent information on the

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IWGIA på Folkemøde Bornholm 2023

Folkemødet på Bornholm nærmer sig og også i år er IWGIA repræsenteret ved en række arrangementer. Tilmed har vi i år udvidet folkemødeholdet betydeligt. Vi har nemlig fået et nyt hold frivillige, som har arrangeret ikke mindre end fire events. Herudover deltager vi i fire andre events.

Special Rapporteur on Environmental Defenders visits Denmark

The first Special Rapporteur on Environmental Defenders under the Aarhus Convention, Michel Forst, visited Denmark from 8-10 May as part of his European information tour explaining the new mandate. He met with various Danish government officials and civil society organisations, including

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Recognition of Indigenous Peoples in Nationally Determined Contributions

Indigenous Peoples positioned themselves in multilateral climate negotiations through their advocacy. Although the international community gradually recognises Indigenous Peoples’ contributions to climate governance, a rights-based approach in national climate action is still largely

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Collective Punishment: Implementation of "Four Cuts"

This report details human rights abuses that took place in Mindat Township, Chin State from the period of April to December 2021. In May 2021, Martial Law was imposed on Mindat Town, pre-empting a large-scale assault by air and on the ground in order to engage with the Chin Defense Force –

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India : Compensatory Afforestation Program evicts more Tribals during COVID-19

With over 104 million people, India has the second largest population of indigenous peoples in the world, who are officially recognized as Scheduled Tribes. With 40.6% of the Scheduled Tribe population living below poverty line, compared to 20.5% of the non-tribal population, as per the 2011

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North East SDG Index 2021-2022 Flawed

On 26 August 2021, the National Institution for Transforming India (NITI Aayog), established by the Government of India to replace the erstwhile Planning Commission, released the first edition of the “North Eastern Region (NER) District SDG Index Report and Dashboard 2021–22” prepared with the

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The State of Shrinking Civic Space in India - 2021

The CSOs in India have traditionally played a critical role in every field including rights, democratic governance and addressing natural disasters. During the COVID-19 pandemic, their role came into sharp focus. On 26 April 2021, the Empowered Group-3 chaired by the National Institution for

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Written submission to the UN Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women, its causes & consequences: IWGIA inputs to the Report on violence against Indigenous Women and Girls

Indigenous Peoples all over the world face systemic discrimination rooted in persistent racism as well as past and present colonialism. Many Indigenous communities have been forcefully relocated, lands have been taken away, forests have been destroyed, mountains have been mined and valleys have

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70,000 Maasai in Loliondo, Tanzania, face another forceful eviction

According to reliable information received by Indigenous Peoples Rights International (IPRI) and the International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs (IWGIA), the Government of the United Republic of Tanzania is currently planning the eviction of the Maasai Indigenous people from a 1,500

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Urgent Alert: 70,000 Maasai in Loliondo, Tanzania, face another forceful eviction

According to reliable information received by Indigenous Peoples Rights International (IPRI) and the International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs (IWGIA), the Government of the United Republic of Tanzania is currently planning the eviction of the Maasai Indigenous people from a 1,500

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Sad news on the passing away of Zéphyrin Kalimba

It is with deep sadness that IWGIA received the news that Mr. Zéphyrin Kalimba passed away on the 2nd of January in a hospital in Kigali, Rwanda at the age of 62.

Oting Massacre and the case for repeal of the APSFA

A total of 14 civilians and one Indian Army jawan were killed since the botched up ambush of the Indian Army’s 21st Para Special Forces on the alleged insurgents, who turned out to be innocent coal miners, on 4 December 2021 at Oting village in Mon district of Nagaland.

IWGIA & AIPP Joint Submission to the Commission on the Status of Women 66th Session

There are numerous challenges for Indigenous Women in relation to climate change. Indigenous Women are more severely affected by the challenges to produce or collect sufficient food, or challenges of water scarcity because of climate change (flooding, drought, unpredictable weather,

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India's UAPA: Jail, not bail, is the rule

“The basic rule is bail, not jail” is a doctrine laid down by the Supreme Court of India in the landmark judgment of State of Rajasthan vs. Balchand alias Baliya. India’s anti-terror law, the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act of 1967 (UAPA), however has made “jail, not bail” the rule.

India : The Status of Refugees - 2021

India admits that “there is no national law on refugees”. The Ministry of Home Affairs had circulated a “Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) w.e.f. 29-12-2011 for dealing with foreign nationals who claim to be refugees” for grant of the Long Term Visa (LTV)” where “prima facie the claim (of

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The cost of ignoring human rights and Indigenous Peoples

Photo: Windmills at the Lake Turkana Wind Power project site. Credit: J M Ole Kaunga / IMPACT

In a historic judgment by the Kenyan Environment and Land Court in Meru the title deeds of the land on which the Lake Turkana Wind Project (LTWP) sit have been declared “irregular and unlawful”. The case which began in October 2014 and finally ended on 19 October 2021 found that the title deeds

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Indigenous Peoples call for Climate Action at COP 26

COP26 – the two-week UN Climate Change Conference – begins next week in Glasgow.

As in previous years, IWGIA will be there in partnership and alongside Indigenous Peoples to support their engagement, messages and mission to influence the outcomes of this key climate conference,

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Russia’s Indigenous Peoples call for international support to save the Arctic

Shifting to electric vehicles (EV) is seen as an important step towards a greener future. However, the process ofextracting nickel, a crucial component of EV batteries, very often is not environmental-friendly. The world’s largest producer of nickel, Nornickel, has been destroying

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New guide: Indigenous Peoples and Climate Technologies from UNEP-DTU

Picture credit:  A young fisherman walks under a living root bridge at Mawlynnong village, India. In the relentless damp of Meghalaya’s jungles the Khasi people have used the trainable roots of rubber trees to grow Jingkieng Dieng Jri living root bridges over rivers for centuries.  Photo from the book Lo-TEK: Design by Radical Indigenism by Julia Watson. Copyright: © Amos Chapple

Indigenous Peoples' knowledge on climate solutions can play a critical part in climate action. A new guide shows ways to integrate and strengthen Indigenous tech in national Technology Needs Assessments.

Indigenous Peoples’ knowledge of adapting to climatic change and their

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Towards the conquest of self-determination. 50 Years since the Barbados Declaration

Cover of the IWGIA Barbados + 50 book

50 years since the Barbados Declaration

This year, 2021, marks the 50th anniversary of the historic meeting held on the Caribbean island of Barbados, where a group of 15 anthropologists (14 men and 1 woman) from Amazonian, Central American and European countries met to reflect on the

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Criminalization of Pathalgari Movement

By Gladson Dungdung

Thousands of Adivasis involved in the “Pathalgari Movement” were criminalized for fighting for their collective rights to self-determination and protection of their lands, territories, and natural resources in Jharkhand State of

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UNESCO World Heritage Committee tramples on human rights

On 26 July 2021, the UNESCO World Heritage Committee passed a decision inscribing the Kaeng Krachan Forest Complex (KKFC) in Thailand on the World Heritage List, ignoring repeated pleas of Indigenous peoples, the National Human Rights Commission of Thailand and the UN human rights system to

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Written submission to CEDAW on the Rights of Indigenous Women and Girls

With this written submission, the International Work Group on Indigenous Affairs (IWGIA) seeks to bring forward the voices, perspectives and experiences of indigenous women and girls, particularly from Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Arctic, and to include them in the development of CEDAW’s

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The Benet people in Uganda continue to suffer from gross human rights violations

By Shua Wilmot

The Benet people in Uganda continue to suffer from gross human rights violations at the hands of the Uganda Wildlife Authority. IWGIA is deeply concerned about the situation, and has continued to monitor it. These on-going violations are also documented in IWGIA’s

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The Indigenous World 2021

This compilation is the unique result of a collaborative effort between Indigenous and non-indigenous activists and scholars who voluntarily document and report on the situation of Indigenous Peoples’ rights. We thank them and celebrate the bonds and sense of community that result from the

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Myanmar’s ethnic nationalities, doctors and teachers against the military coup

 

On 1 February 2021, the Burmese Military – known as the Tatmadaw – staged a coup d’etat, arrested the elected government, including the State Counsellor, Aung San Su Kyi, and imposed a yearlong national state of emergency, all through powers allegedly granted under the 2008

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Philippines: Drop murder charge against indigenous rights defender, UN experts urge

GENEVA (28 January 2021) – UN human rights experts today called on Philippine authorities to drop a reportedly unwarranted murder charge against an indigenous rights defender who submitted himself to police after a “shoot to kill” order had been issued if he resisted arrest, and to ensure his

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Fear of Indigenous constituents in Chile

The protests in Chile left in evidence that its political-economic system, which for years was considered the successful model to follow, but excludes most of the population, mainly Indigenous People. Photo: Leandro Crovetto.

The political caste and economic power have focused

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Fear of Indigenous constituents in Chile

The protests in Chile left in evidence that its political-economic system, which for years was considered the successful model to follow, but excludes most of the population, mainly indigenous people. Photo:Leandro Crovetto.

The political caste and economic power have focused their

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Training Manual on Business and Human Rights

Since the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights were promulgated, there have been growing concerns over human rights in business. Indigenous Peoples form the highest proportion of victims of such business activities.

Peru: They messed with the wrong generation

 

It is difficult to explain what happened in our country to outsiders. Even in the country, we are not able to grasp the dimension of the events. The facts are clear, they are vicious and they hurt: two young men murdered, Bryan Pintado and Inti Sotelo; dozens of protesters

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Peru: They messed with the wrong generation

The protests spread to all the neighborhoods of Lima and cities of the country. Photo: Vidal Carrasco 

It is difficult to explain what happened in our country to outsiders. Even in the country, we are not able to grasp the dimension of the

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IACHR complaints cause tension among states

Urrejola with women from the Qhara Qhara Nation. Photo: IACHR.

The vice-president of the Inter-american Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), Antonia Urrejola, points out that conflicts have always arisen between the Commission and the States concerning recommendations, but that

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Indigenous Peoples in Chile’s Constituent process: an unresolved challenge

The protests succeeded in establishing a constituent process and now special Indigenous seats are being demanded.

The results of the plebiscite held on October 25, 2020 were unequivocal. Four out of five citizens pronounced themselves in favor of a new political constitution. The same

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Indigenous peoples in Chile’s Constituent process: an unresolved challenge

The protests succeeded in establishing a constituent process and now special Indigenous seats are being demanded.

The results of the plebiscite held on October 25, 2020 were unequivocal. Four out of five citizens pronounced themselves in favor of a new political constitution. The same

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IWGIA - International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs - is a global human rights organisation dedicated to promoting and defending Indigenous Peoples’ rights. Read more.

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Indigenous World

IWGIA's global report, the Indigenous World, provides an update of the current situation for Indigenous Peoples worldwide. Read The Indigenous World.

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