Spiritual Perspectives
Historic Milestone for Indigenous Peoples

By the Baha’i Community
Special to the Independent

“The 13th of September 2007 will be remembered as an international human rights day for the Indigenous Peoples of the world, a day that the United Nations and its Member States, together with Indigenous Peoples, reconciled with past painful histories and decided to march into the future on the path of human rights,” said Ms. Vicky Tauli-Corpuz, chairperson of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues.

The Declaration addresses both individual and collective rights, cultural rights and identity, rights to education, health, employment, language and others. The Declaration explicitly encourages harmonious and cooperative relations between States and Indigenous Peoples. It prohibits discrimination against indigenous peoples and promotes their full and effective participation in all matters that concern them.

The Declaration was adopted by an overwhelming majority of the General Assembly, with 143 countries voting in support, four voting against (Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States) and 11 abstaining (Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Burundi, Colombia, Georgia, Kenya, Nigeria, Russian Federation, Samoa, Ukraine).

Highlights of the Declaration
Seventeen of the 45 articles of the Declaration deal with indigenous culture and how to protect and promote it, by respecting the direct input of indigenous peoples in decision-making, and allowing for resources, such as those for education in indigenous languages and other areas.

The Declaration confirms the right of indigenous peoples to self-determination and recognizes subsistence rights and rights to lands, territories and resources.
The Declaration recognizes that indigenous people deprived of their means of subsistence and development are entitled to just and fair redress.

Essentially, the Declaration outlaws discrimination against indigenous peoples, promotes their full and effective participation in all matters that concern them, as well as their right to remain distinct and to pursue their own visions of economic and social development.

The Bahá'í Faith teaches that true religion promotes unity, and that unity is the fundamental prerequisite for the achievement of global peace. "The well-being of mankind," Baha’u’llah said, "its peace and security, are unattainable unless and until its unity is firmly established."

Among the measures, which the Bahá’í community advocates as contributions to world unity, are a federation of nations, an international auxiliary language, the coordination of the world's economy, a universal system of education, a code of human rights for all peoples, an integrated mechanism for global communication, and a universal system of currency, weights and measures.

Believing that the United Nations represents a major effort in the unification of the planet, Baha’is have supported its work in every way possible. The Bahá'í International Community is accredited with consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). The Community's offices in New York and Geneva and Baha’is in many lands regularly participate in conferences, congresses and seminars concerned with the socio-economic life of our planet.

The sufferings, which their own fellow believers have experienced as victims of religious persecution, have particularly sensitized Baha’is to Baha’u’llah teachings on human rights. The Bahá'í International Community participates actively in United Nations consultations dealing with minority rights, the status of women, crime prevention, the control of narcotic drugs, the welfare of children and the family, and the movement toward disarmament.

The reader can find full Declaration wording at:
http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/unpfii/
en/declaration.html

The Baha’i Community can be contacted at (505) 863-4377, 1-800-22unite, or at www.nativeamericanbi.org.

This column is written by area residents, representing different faith communities, who share their ideas about bringing a spiritual perspective into our daily lives and community issues. For information about contributing a guest column, contact Elizabeth Hardin-Burrola at The Independent: (505) 863-6811 ext. 218 or lizreligion01@yahoo.com.