John Converset, MCCJ, writes of his first experience attending a UN forum in New York.

A First Hand Perspective

Through VIVAT International I had the privilege of taking part in the Ninth Session of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues.  Previously I had had no experience of the UN, nor of any of the seemingly countless UN agencies.  My presence at the session was meant to be a learning experience, and it certainly was that.  For the most part I participated in the “side events”.  On a practical level my long experience in South Africa, both during and after Apartheid, gave me some insight into what was being discussed.

The first thing I noticed was the bewildering complexity of the UN agencies.  I was not prepared to encounter the multitude of inter-related bodies whose functions and the issues that they deal with seem to overlap and intertwine.  For example, most of the issues that were addressed at the Forum on Indigenous Peoples came up again, although from a broader perspective, at the 18th Session of the Committee on Sustainable Development.

The second thing that came to my attention was the immense amount of information freely available through UN-sponsored studies and reports.  Just in case that is not enough, the many NGOs that work in conjunction with the UN or are in ongoing dialogue with its many agencies make available their own analyses, case studies and projections.  One could educate oneself with regard to countless realities of our world just by perusing documents available through the UN.

The third thing that broke into my awareness was the enormous opportunity for global dialogue in UN-sponsored events.  People from all over the world, of every ethnic and linguistic group, of many different political persuasions and philosophical or even ideological perspectives were able to speak to each other politely and respectfully.  Victims of various forms of injustice were able to make known their suffering to those able to do something about it.  Possible I am too inexperienced to be aware of the “political games” that were surely being played at times, but I seemed to see many sincere and dedicated people whose good will was patient and whose considerable expertise was placed unselfishly at the service of the common good.

The primary issue addressed at the Permanent Forum was how to improve the implementation of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples with a focus on fostering sustainable development while protecting indigenous cultures and identities.  This broad theme involved advancing the status and rights of women, preventing human trafficking, addressing the needs of children and youth, obtaining free, prior and informed consent with regard to all projects directly affecting indigenous peoples, and dealing with environmental issues such as climate change and bio-diversity.

I came away from this initial experience with great hope.  Despite the limits of the UN and the seriousness and extent of the problems that must be faced, progress can be made and is being made, thanks to the efforts of so very many dedicated people.

During the CSD this year, many NGOs were fortunate enough to hold many side events to correspond with the official UN sessions during the commission. VIVAT, along with several partner NGOs and other groups, organized two highly successful side events on the subject of sustainable development—one on the need for free, prior, and informed consent of indigenous peoples affected by mining, and one on the ecological, social, and political dangers of dam construction, specifically in Latin America.

Octavia Hemmy Asamsama spoke of the mining’s effects on communities in Indonesia

Mining: Calling for Free, Prior, and Informed Consent
The first of the two side events hosted by VIVAT, organized with the Maryknoll Sisters and other NGO groups, was entitled “Mining: Calling for Free, Prior, and Informed Consent,” and was an event meant to highlight the need for free, prior, and informed consent of indigenous communities affected by mining. Through focusing on three specific grassroots communities in Peru, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Bolivia, the event presented the lessons learned in campaigns to advocate for the indigenous people left out of major mining decisions in their communities.
Members in Flores, Indonesia, elected Ms. Octaviana Hemmy Asamsama, a clinical psychologist from Indonesia, to speak in regards to local efforts to bring voices to the marginalized of Indonesia’s rural indigenous population.  Along with presentations from grassroots voices, the event also involved the active participation of the Consellor Alan Coelho de Sellos of the Brazilian delegation who presented the process for developing mining for lithium, an example of developing a pattern of sustainable production.

All in all, the mining event hosted by VIVAT was a great success, raising awareness about sustainable development issues in mining through the use of examples from specific VIVAT members. With the UN’s particular focus on issues of mining, VIVAT is hopeful and optimistic that the topic will become a mainstream idea in future discussions and international actions on the subject of sustainable development.

Land Yes! Dams No! Building Cycles of Mobilization

Frederico Menino presents the case of Vale do Ribeira, where there has been an ongoing advocacy struggle for indigenous rights for over 20 years.

One highly charged topic, specifically with many VIVAT members in Brazil, is the controversy surrounding dam construction, as governments often decide to begin new, massive dam projects with-out the free, prior, and informed consent of the native population who will be directly affected by a dam in their water source, and who will ultimately suffer huge environmental, social, and economic crises at the direct hand of the dam. To bring this rarely discussed controversy to light at the international level, VIVAT along with partner NGOs hosted a side event at the CSD entitled “Land Yes! Dams No! Building Cycles of Mobilization.”

The event boasted a diverse, truly informative panel with a range of guests to speak on the topic.  The first panelist, Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, a member of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, spoke of specific and horrific stories of indigenous peoples in her country who resisted the government when it was ordered that dams be build in their lands.  The results of which led to many bloody massacres of countless innocent mothers, fathers, and children, who only wished to stay living in their indigenous lands.  The next panelist, Frederico Menino, a Brazilian political scientist, shared the success story of VIVAT’s member group in Brazil, MOAB (Movement of Peoples Affected by Dams), to resist a massive Brazilian dam construction project for decades.  Mr. Menino used both a presentation and short DVD to illustrate the struggle of the indigenous peoples of the land.  Next, Mary Corbett presented a moving story of the struggles of a Guatemalan boy who saw his family slaughtered when they resisted a dam project on their land.  Finally, Judith Kimerling presented the international and environmental laws that support resistance movements against dam construction projects.

Not only was the side event a great success in terms of attendance, panelists, and persuasive information given, but it was a particularly special success thanks to the active participation of diplomatic missions in attendance, particularly the Brazilian delegation.  While we had originally hoped and anticipated that some governments would be in attendance, the Brazilian delegates who did come were not only attentive during the presentation, but they were genuinely intrigued and brought many questions and comments to the panelists.  The active participation of such governments gives hope that one day, and one day soon, more and more governments and state delegations will pay attention to the plight of indigenous peoples in issues of sustainable development, specifically in the rarely discussed controversy surrounding dams.

The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) convenes annually in New York to discuss and encourage gender equality and the advancement of women worldwide.  This year, from March 1-12, the CSW undertakes a special fifteen-year review of the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, which contained milestone commitments to the world’s women. The review is seen as an important step in overcoming the remaining obstacles and new challenges faced by women, including those related to the Millennium Development Goals.

VIVAT, with the Working Group on Mining, is participating in the CSW by addressing key gender-related issues in the area of mining.  The Working Group organized a parallel event to the Commission that specifically targeted discussion on the struggles of rural and indigenous women negatively affected by mining practices worldwide, through a DVD clip and presentations by two panelists, the event pushing the necessity of “Free, Prior, and Informed Consent”.  The Working Group on Mining hopes to bring to light the egregious negative impacts of mining in relation to women, indigenous peoples, and the environment to the international arena.  With these hopes, VIVAT and the Working Group plans on holding two more parallel events during the remaining Commissions and Forums later this year on indigenous peoples’ rights and on sustainable development.

The Impacts of Mining on Women:

Mining has distinct impacts and added burden on women.

The women are deprived of the access to the benefits of mining developments, especially money and employment.

Women become marginalized as the traditional roles of food gatherer, water providers, care- givers and nurturer are very much affected.

Many women are pushed to enter into informal economy to find additional sources of income as the adverse impact to the environment caused by large-scale mining decrease the productivity of the fields and poisoned wild foods, marine life and animals.

Alcohol abuse, drug addiction, prostitution, gambling, incest and infidelity increase in many mining communities which worsen cases of family violence against women, active and often brutal discrimination of the women in the workplace that is sanctioned or ignored by judicial and political institution.

FPIC: Indigenous Peoples’ right to free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) has been recognized by a number of intergovernmental organizations, international bodies, conventions and international human rights law in varying degrees and increasingly in the laws of State.

Biodiversity, the variety of life on Earth, is essential to sustaining the living networks and systems that provide us all with health, wealth, food, fuel and the vital services our lives depend on. Human activity is causing the diversity of life on Earth to be lost at a greatly accelerated rate. Felling or burning of forests, removal of mangroves, intensive farming, pollution stress, overfishing and the impacts of climate change are all destroying biodiversity. These losses are irreversible, impoverish us all and damage the life support systems we rely on every day. But we can prevent them.

Throughout 2010, there will be various events taking place throughout the world to promote conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity, to help increase public awareness for the many facets of biodiversity, and to integrate this issue into key political and social processes. To name a few, over 400 environmental advocates attended the UNDP-sponsored North American Launch of the Year of Biodiversity, held at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City on February 10 of this year. One day during the 65^th session of the United Nations General Assembly will be dedicated to the issue of biodiversity, marking the first opportunity for Heads of State and Government from all over the world to meet and discuss how to address the global challenges for biodiversity. Lastly, celebrations and activities will occur worldwide on the annual International Day of Biodiversity, to be held May 22^nd of this year. For more information and to learn how you can participate, please visit http://www.cbd.int/2010/welcome/

It has been 15 years since Governments from around the world adopted The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action in 1995. Among the 12 critical areas of concern specified in the Platform, much has been achieved. However, many issues such as gender stereotypes, unequal responsibilities and violence against women still stand in the way of full gender equality and global empowerment of women.

In the beginning of this month, the Commission on the Status of Women will undertake a fifteen-year review of the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. Countries both large and small will be able to share their experiences and good practices on the topic of women’s rights. The review is seen as an important step in overcoming the remaining obstacles and new challenges faced by women, including those related to the Millennium Development Goals.

The Platform for Action covered 12 critical areas of concern: poverty, education and training, health, violence against women, armed conflict, the economy, power and decision-making, institutional mechanisms, human rights, media, the environment, and the girl child. All areas will be discussed at the review and a number of issues have been identified which are affecting the progress of the Beijing Platform for Action.

Gender stereotypes

Negative gender stereotypes continue to lie at the heart of many challenges and violations of rights faced by women, including violence against women and lack of access to education. In all countries gender stereotyping remains a major obstacle to gender equality. The prevalence of negative gender stereotypes based on societal beliefs and attitudes affects women and constrains their opportunities and choices.

Stereotypical assumptions about women in the labour market, for example, have lead to occupational segregation and a gender wage gap in many countries.

Combating such stereotypes requires States to adopt a range of strategies, from revising school curricula, to holding training programmes which dispel stereotypes on women’s leadership abilities, to instigating awareness-raising campaigns for the general public on women’s rights.

Unequal responsibilities

It has become increasingly apparent that women are far more likely than men to be living in poverty. Women’s unequal access to economic and financial resources has a negative impact on their well-being and a ripple effect on their families and the economic growth of their communities.

Women continue to be responsible for most domestic and caregiving work in many countries. This unequal sharing of responsibilities has a negative impact on educational and employment choices, and limits women’s involvement in public life.

The role of men and boys

Limited involvement by men and boys in the promotion of women’s rights has continued to restrain gender equality. Building support for social change can only be achieved when men and boys are actively engaged, for instance, in measures to eliminate violence against women and overcome stereotypes.

Furthermore, the provision of positive male role models serves to instill in both men and boys the respect for women’s and girls’ rights and the ability to challenge stereotypical behavior.

Violence against women

Over the last decade, violence against women has become a priority issue at global, national and regional levels. A growing number of States have strengthened and adopted comprehensive legal, policy, and institutional frameworks to end violence against women and girls. Despite these advances, violence against women is arguably a global pandemic. The problem remains universal, with women and girls affected by violence in every region and every country.

Implementation and challenges

Multiple global crises, including the economic and financial crisis, the food and energy crises and the challenge of climate change have had an adverse impact on the achievement of internationally-agreed development goals, including the Millennium Development Goals, and have raised doubts about current approaches to development. It is, therefore, an opportune time to rethink and modify policy approaches, strategies and actions to ensure a more equitable, gender-sensitive and sustainable pattern of growth and development.

Although the link between the implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action and the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals is increasingly recognized at a policymaking level, further work is needed to translate this awareness into concrete action.

Recent evidence demonstrates that progress for women and girls under the Goals, as well as overall progress in implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action, has been very uneven and has produced inadequate results, including in areas of poverty reduction, provision of full employment and decent work, education, including literacy, and maternal health.
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]]> http://vivatinternational.org/2010/03/01/u-n-commission-on-the-status-of-women-begins/feed/ 0 http://vivatinternational.org/2010/02/24/vivat-participates-in-the-un-commission-on-social-development/ http://vivatinternational.org/2010/02/24/vivat-participates-in-the-un-commission-on-social-development/#comments Wed, 24 Feb 2010 17:00:16 +0000 Zelia http://vivatinternational.org/?p=1175

The Commission on Social Development (CSocD), one of several commissions for the UN’s Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), convened for its 48^th session from February 3 to February 12, 2010, at the UN Secretariat in New York.  The Commission comprises 46 member states that are elected on a rotating basis, and it serves primarily to address key social development themes and issues, as well as to follow up on implementation of the 1995 Copenhagen Declaration and Programme of Action regarding social development.  While the Commission meets annually to address these issues, this year’s session marked an especially important milestone, as the Commission passed its first-ever resolution on promoting social integration.  The resolution seeks to promote integrative policies as necessary in order to “eradicate poverty, promote full and productive employment, and achieve stable, safe, peaceful, harmonious and just societies for all”.  Throughout the ten-day session, the Commission held meetings, high-level panel discussions, resolution consultations, and side events, all with a focus on social development and social integration.

As with all UN Commissions and forums, NGOs and civil society play a large and informative role.  This year, the Civil Society Forum released an important statement in commemoration of the fifteenth anniversary of the Copenhagen Declaration.  The statement advocates for a “Society for All”, encouraging governments to adopt policies and practices to promote the empowerment of all peoples. The statement goes on to emphasize the need of empowerment in order to eradicate poverty, among other goals of the Commission on Social Development, and concludes urging governments to adopt a new, strengthened human rights framework and address all issues of social exclusion within their states.  The full text of the statement is available online, through the UN CSocD webpage.

While the Civil Society Forum statement is a tangible example of NGOs’ role within the Commission’s annual activities, side-events held during the ten-day session also allow NGOs to bring their on-the-ground experiences to the forefront of UN discussion regarding social development.  During this session, VIVAT actively co-sponsored two successful side-events.  The first, called “Climate Change, Poverty and Social Inclusion: Exploring the Links”, was a presentation that linked the ongoing climate crisis to the issue of poverty and social inclusion, illustrating how climate change relates to the topic.  The second, called “Mining and Social Inclusion: Free, Prior and Informed Consent”, presented a short movie clip and speaker presentation which both addressed the dire circumstances surrounding mining practices, both in the US and internationally, and advocated for the need for social integration practices to help curtail negative effects of mining on the indigenous peoples of the area, the environment, and the governments themselves.  These two side-events allowed VIVAT to link its own work with the work of other NGOs, and focused on the social development side of VIVAT’s work. Upcoming UN Commissions scheduled for later this year, including the Commission on the Status of Women, the Indigenous Peoples Forum, and the Commission on Sustainable Development, will allow VIVAT to hold even more side-events, each linking to the specific area of concern of each respective Commission.  We are looking forward to putting together several informative, thought-provoking, and action-inciting events for these upcoming Commissions.

]]> http://vivatinternational.org/2010/02/24/vivat-participates-in-the-un-commission-on-social-development/feed/ 0 http://vivatinternational.org/2009/12/15/testing-so-this-cat-will-show-up/ http://vivatinternational.org/2009/12/15/testing-so-this-cat-will-show-up/#comments Tue, 15 Dec 2009 13:01:17 +0000 Vivat 43 http://vivatinternational.org/en/?p=646 Above: This mining facility on Flores Island, Indonesia, is one of many that threaten the rights, health, & safety of local indigenous populations, depletes the environment around it, and engenders much crime and mistrust through greed for exploitation. VIVAT Members Address Alarming Issues in Mining “VIVAT Members have been working to combat these injustices…promote human rights of indigenous communities and maintenance of a sustainable environment.”

For centuries, mining has been a source of economic revenue for those exploiting areas abundant in valuable natural resources. In our modern world, some mining of resources is essential for our lifestyles: cell phones, automobiles, computer technologies, and modern construction of buildings would not be possible without exploiting natural resources. But while the positive effects of mining and the use of the mined resources can easily be seen worldwide, often the most pressing and concerning negative effects including grave health risks to local populations and alarming environ-mental degradation are the effects that go unnoticed and unmentioned.

VIVAT and its members, along with the United Nations Division for Sustainable Development NGO Major Group, NGO Committee on the United Nations International Decade of the World’s Indigenous Peoples Issues and the Mining Working Group, have been working to raise awareness of the negative impacts of mining and to persuade governments and other actors to discourage over-exploitation of lands and protect the rights of indigenous peoples affected by mining.  Negative effects include, but by no means are limited to, violations of the basic human rights of indigenous communities; corruption within local governments and mining corporations leading to unfair distribution of profits, often completely bypassing indigenous communities’ rights to the profits; and grave environmental and health concerns regarding mining and its effects on the surrounding community and environment. These negative effects are largely ignored by local governments and mining companies and the voices of harmed communities are shunted aside and disregarded.

VIVAT members have been working on a number of fronts to combat these injustices and bring to light many of the egregious actions of corrupt governments and mining companies in an effort to promote human rights of indigenous communities and maintenance of a sustainable environment.  The UN Division for Sustainable Development has organized a Review Session to discuss global issues in five thematic issues: transport, chemicals, waste management, mining, and sustainable consumption and production.  VIVAT and its members have taken an active role in participating in the Review Session through the CSD Major Groups Program. Within the program, participating NGOs may contribute to a focus paper discussing the five thematic issues, as well as help compile information and research on the discussed topics for the Secretary General’s report for CSD-18.

FORCAM SIKKA (Forum Cendekia-wan Asal Manggarai), a partner of VIVAT in Maumere, Indonesia, has been an especially active member in dealing with mining issues.  As part of the input to the Secretary General’s report for CSD-18, FORCAM put together an anti-mining letter and petition highlighting several negative effects of mining specifically on Flores Island, Indonesia.  The letter was widely circulated to the local government in Flores, and copies were also sent to the offices of Mr. Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, the President of Indonesia, Pope Benedict XVI, several prominent cabinet members of the Indonesian government, and many others.  FORCAM also contributed a case study to the CSD-18 Major Groups Program, which specifically discussed three districts of Manggarai, Flores Island, which have been severely impacted by local mining exploitation and excavation projects.

In order to better consolidate all research and information regarding mining between VIVAT members, an online list-serve group has been set up for VIVAT members to share files, photos, videos, and other information regarding their work on the subject.  While the group is still in the growing stages, it will hopefully become a great mechanism for linking together VIVAT members who are all working for the same goal.

NEGATIVE IMPACTS OF MINING

Environmental and health issues:

• Destruction of natural resources, trees and forests; water sources, rivers and wells dried up, re-directed and/or contaminated;
• Skin diseases and mysterious deaths; contamination and death of livestock;
• Food shortages resulting from contamination and environmental degradation;
• Destruction and waste of land once mining activities have ceased; refusal of mining companies to work towards reclamation of land; large amounts of waste, including toxic waste, generated;
• Fissures/damage in walls of homes.

Violations of basic human rights:

• Lack of informed consent and consultation of Indigenous communities involved and, therefore:
  • violation of ILO 169, which many of the host countries have signed;
  • violation of UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Articles 10, 19, 28, 29, 32;
• Buying Indigenous lands that are traditionally held communally; and violation of land rights.

Economic issues:

• Farmers lose sales: consumers reject crops grown in environments degraded by mining practices;
• Drop in tourism in areas located near mining facilities;

Reliance on mining thwarts efforts to establish sustainable economies because mined resources and many mining practices are not sustainable.