Nettheim, Garth --- "New UN Working Group on Indigenous Populations" [1982] AboriginalLawB 39; (1982) 1(4) Aboriginal Law Bulletin 15

• New Un Working Group On Indigenous Populations

---

New UN Working Group on Indigenous Populations

by Garth Nettheim

On 10 March 1982 the United Nations Human Rights Commission in Geneva adopted an important resolution for approval by its parent body, the Economic and Social Council. The proposal is for the establishment each year of a Working Group on Indigenous Populations.

The Working Group will meet for five days before the annual meetings of the Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities. It will review developments relating to the human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous populations, analyse information submitted to it, and report to the Sub-Commission. It will give special attention to the evolution of standards concerning the rights of indigenous populations.

The Working Group will be entitled to receive information from a variety of sources including annual reports from Governments and information from `non-governmental organizations in consultative status, particularly those of indigenous peoples'.

The National Aboriginal Conference has already presented information to the Sub-Commission, notably in 1980 at the height of the Noonkanbah affair. It was entitled to do so through its affiliation with the World Council of Indigenous People (WCIP) which is a non-governmental organization in consultative status. The new Working Group provides, for the first time, international machinery for dealing specifically with the problems of indigenous populations.

It is expected that the Working Group will hold its first meeting in August this year.