IWGIA and AIPP submission on the draft general comment on Land and Economic, Social and Cultural Rights of the CESCR

IWGIA and AIPP welcome the opportunity to make comments and inputs to the draft general comment on Land and Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. The right to land is fundamental for the livelihoods, food security, identity and very survival of the world's more than 450 million Indigenous People, and it is therefore very important that the unique dimensions of Indigenous Peoples’ land rights feature clearly in the general comment. While some references to Indigenous Peoples are made in the draft document, IWGIA and AIPP believe that these should be strengthened and further developed.

As for overall comments, IWGIA and AIPP agree with and endorse the comments submitted by the Indigenous Peoples’ group convened by Indigenous Peoples’ Rights International (IPRI) and the comments submitted by the International Land Coalition (ILC).

IWGIA and AIPP have furthermore made the below concrete text suggestions to the draft general comment text, which are marked with red and bold for ease of reference. We have likewise made comments to specific paragraphs. The suggestions and comments follow the structure of the draft general comment text.