The existence of Indigenous peoples and their right for self-determination has and still continues to pose a moral and political dilemma to the question of state legitimacy. Tragically, states and their respective governments have never quite really demonstrated sufficient resolve in addressing the issues surrounding indigenous peoples. Rather, time and again the use of political and military force has often been the resort of states in dealing with indigenous issues.
While the very name given to the United Nations implies a union of peoples and nations, in reality the United Nations is nothing more than a union of states. This paradoxical assertion has erroneously legitimized the fallacy that the state is the only legitimate organization of human association. This hegemonic perception ensures that indigenous peoples are not recognized as a political community, and are rather reduced to statistics in the form of indigenous population.
The marginalization and denial of indigenous peoples continues even today. While various UN human rights instruments recognizes the right to self-determination of all peoples, the stark truth reveals, that indigenous communities are still not recognized as peoples under international law, and hence denied the right to determine the course of their political, social and cultural future. In fact for years, the traditional lands of indigenous peoples under the concept of terra nullis – implying vacant land – were occupied in the name of discovery.
Even today, the historical injustices against indigenous communities continue unabated. Only after the International Labor Organization recognized the existence of indigenous peoples under Convention no 169, the admission of indigenous peoples was made possible in the UN through the United Nations Working Group on Indigenous Population in 1982. It was only two years ago that the status of indigenous peoples has been upgraded to that of the Permanent Forum at the UN after a long unrelenting campaign. More recently it received an additional boost when it was adopted into the newly formed United Nations Human Rights Council.
The persistent collective struggle of the indigenous people to realize the inalienable right to determine their own future has continually been obstructed by governments. Just on Tuesday, November 28, a committee of the UN rejected the draft declaration of indigenous people calling for recognition of indigenous peoples right to self-determination and ownership over the land and resources; once again demonstrating the lack of political will and foresightedness of governments.
Had good sense prevailed, the governments through the UN had the greatest opportunity to put right the historical injustices meted out on indigenous peoples and by recognizing indigenous peoples right to self-determination, it would have contributed to the process in which indigenous communities could begin a process of building a future of shared humanity. Rather, by deliberately choosing not to recognize indigenous rights, the acrimonious relationship between indigenous communities and governments has only widened and it has derailed the process of healing and reconciliation between them.
For now, indigenous peoples will collectively have to reflect on what went wrong in the process and they will need to find and articulate new ways in which they can reclaim their humanity.
