WACC: Statement on International Day of the World's Indigenous People

The Tejido of Communication at the Minga, the march of indigenous peoples in 2008 from Cauca to Bogota 

Indigenous people worldwide are forging new agendas with the help of communication 

On the International Day of Indigenous People, the World Association for ChristianCommunication (WACC) celebrates the advances made to date by Indigenous Peoples everywhere and calls for widespread recognition of Indigenous Peoples' communicationrights in order to improve the lives of indigenous people in every corner of the globe.

Full statement....

Half way through the second International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, launched in 2004 by United Nations' General Assembly, there have been significant gains among the Indigenous peoples of the world.

In regions such as Latin America, indigenous peoples are creating national and regional alliances and in some countries, such as Bolivia, they have an increased presence in the setting of national agendas as well as in public life.

In Asia, new broadcasting legislation in Bangladesh allowing the existence of community radio stations has translated into indigenous people using new technologies to implement their right to communication and information.

And yet much remains to be done. This is particularly true in relation to indigenous women, who have faced centuries of discrimination, marginalization and human rights abuses. Despite the advances of the last fifteen years, indigenous women still face high levels of poverty and violence, lack of access to education, economic opportunities, land and natural resources, poor or non-existent health services, etc.

In the struggle to be heard, "Sometimes being present does not mean taking part," said Melania Canales Poma, regional coordinator for the Andean and Amazon Women's Organization of Peru. She added that participating means "saying what one thinks, what one feels, and that is a fundamental part that we're still missing." Her plea
points squarely to the need to establish mechanisms that guarantee indigenous women's right to communicate.

This was the same sentiment expressed by Sanjeeb Drong of Bangladesh's Adivasi Forum in his address to the third meeting of the UN's Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous People (EMRIP) held in Geneva in July 2010. He quoted Article 16 of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples which states that indigenous peoples have the right to establish their own media in their own languages and to have access to all forms of non-indigenous media without discrimination."

Mr Drong added that, "States have the main responsibility to take effective measures for promoting indigenous media and to ensure that State-owned media duly reflect indigenous cultural diversity. Media can play a vital role in promoting and implementing the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples at country level."

On the International Day of Indigenous People, the World Association for Christian Communication (WACC) celebrates the advances made to date by Indigenous Peoples everywhere and calls for widespread recognition of Indigenous Peoples' communication rights in order to improve the lives of indigenous people in every corner of the globe.

For further information please contact: TA@waccglobal.org