Treaty urges govt to protect indigenous peoples

Human Rights commissioner says fighting in Mindanao has caused concern among United Nations experts

Manila Times, By Ira Karen Apanay, http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2009/aug/22/yehey/prov/20090822pro1.html

22 August 2009

A United Nations human rights treaty has urged the Philippines to protect indigenous peoples (IPs) from armed conflict, extrajudicial killings and discrimination, as the body examined the Philippines ' compliance with the international Convention on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD).

Human Rights Commissioner Cecilia Quisumbing said the current fighting in Mindanao and its effect on indigenous peoples and evacuees has attracted the concern of UN experts on racial discrimination.

"This brings another human rights dimension to the renewed combat in the South. Not only the rights to life, liberty, property and security of persons but also, the need to consciously and effectively protect minority groups," Quisum-bing said in a statement.

Quisumbing said members of the Com-mittee also urged the Philippines to enact a general law that prohibits discri-mination based on race and ethnicity.

The CERD, which is made up of experts from 18 countries, reviewed the report submitted by the Philippine government in a two-day session (on August 18 to 19) at the headquarters of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva, Quisumbing said.

Quisumbing said that among the issues the Committee on Elimination of Racial Discrimination wanted to discuss were proper respect for Ancestral Domain of IPs and to discuss the lack of a law that prohibits racial discrimination, delivery of basic services to minority groups, statistical measurement to track the rights situation of minorities, and extrajudicial killings of IP activists.

Quisumbing said, the Commission found "no State policy to deny basic services and protections to IPs but under the Convention, the State has the obligation to actively take measures to ensure that certain groups are able to fully enjoy their rights. These areas of promotion and protection of human rights of minorities is where the CHR feels there is a lot of room of improvement."

The committee also wanted to know how the Philippines were addressing the issues of extrajudicial killings, torture and enforced disappearances.

In the CHR presentation, Quisum-bing reported that in the past year of offensives between the Armed Forces of the Philippines and Moro Islamic Liberation Front and Abu Sayyaf rebels, Human Rights regional offices have reported more than 200,000 people in Surigao del Sur and Lanao del Sur took refuge in evacuation centers, many of them from indigenous tribes.

The Commission's regional office in the Cordillera Autonomous Region has recorded 17 cases of IP activists killed and one activist who has disappeared.

The committee experts called the IPRA "innovative" and urged the government to implement it more fully and to measure its effectiveness, particularly with statistics.

The Philippines ratified the Convention on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination almost 42 years ago, in September 1967. It is obliged to implement all the provisions of the treaty, and to report to the said committee every two years.

Here is what the Philippine Government had to say on its own performance at CERD ...

RP promotion of indigenous peoples' rights draws UN praise

Manila Bulletin, By Charissa M. Luci, http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/217064/rp-promotion-indigenous-peoples-rights-draws-un-praise

22 August 2009

The United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) has praised the Philippines ' law that protects and promotes the rights of indigenous peoples, describing it as "a beacon and revolutionary legislation."

In a report to its home office, the Philippine Mission to the UN in Geneva said the UN committee which monitors compliance of states parties to the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination took notice of the Philippine government's efforts to safeguard human rights.

Ambassador Erlinda F. Basilio, the country's permanent representative to the UN in Geneva and head of delegation, presented to the world body the Philippines' 15th-20th periodic reports (covering the period 1997-2008) at the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva, Switzerland on August 18.

During the presentation, she assured the Philippines ' unwavering compliance to the convention, proof of which are numerous measures put in place to promote and protect the human rights of the indigenous peoples of the Philippines and Muslim Filipinos.
Among these are the implementation of the landmark Indigenous Peoples' Rights Act, the activities of the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples, creation of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, and the programs of the Office on Muslim Affairs.

"The Philippine government not only acknowledges this rich tradition of unity in diversity, but cultivates it," Basilio said in her opening statement.

She noted that the Philippines has championed the cause of eliminating colonization, repression, and racial discrimination at the international level such as providing asylum to Jewish refugees escaping Nazi repression during World War II and granting refuge to the Vietnamese boat people.

She likewise cited the country's promotion of the interests of developing nations still under the yoke of colonialism at the inception of the United Nations and its being an influential member of the UN Committee against Apartheid, among others.

She also pledged the government's active role in the Durban World Review Conference Against Racism, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance, and in pushing for greater protection of the rights of migrants and members of their families in relevant international forums.

Basilio said the Philippines waged war against racial discrimination "through our own national quest for independence, sovereignty, and development, and at the international level."

Tribal leaders join UN hearing vs mining on ancestral lands

http://www.cbcpnews.com/?q=node/10001

8 August 2009

MANILA — The Indigenous People’s (IP) fight to keep their ancestral lands from being desecrated and devastated by mining companies have led three Filipino Tribal leaders right at the doorstep of the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland as the world celebrates World IP Day on August 9.

Three IP leaders Timuay Jose Boy Anoy, rightful owner of ancestral land in Mt. Canatuan, Siocon, Zamboanga del Norte; Timuay Noval Lambo, Chief elder of the Subanon Council of Seven Rivers in Zamboanga Peninsula; and Peter Dupayat, President of the Didipio Earth Savers Movement Association (DESAMA), and member of the Ifugao community of Didipio, Nueva Viscaya will participate in a United Nation’s Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (UNCERD) hearing on a complaint filed against the Philippine government by the Subanon community.

The elders charged that their rights to the ancestral domains have been breached by the continuous mining activity, accusing the Philippine government especially the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) for being hostile to their cause.

Timuay Jose Boy Anoy had been personally given a Certificate of Ancestral Domain Title (CADT) by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. But the IP leader was ejected from his land by TVI Pacific, Inc., a Canadian Mining company that has been operating in Mt. Canatuan.

Timuay Anoy claimed that NCIP connived with TVI in forming a phony tribal council that gave approval for the company to mine in their ancestral land.

“There was no genuine free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) given to the mining operations. Our customs, traditions, and beliefs have been disrespected by no less than the government,” the elder declared.

For his part, Timuay Lambo said the government should be held accountable for its bigotry towards indigenous people.

“The government must tell the truth. We have been waiting for so long. The government’s report which states that there is no discrimination is purely a lie. [It is] fabricated by the NCIP, through its incompetent local officials,” he said.

Dupayat, whose community in Didipio, Nueva Viscaya was displaced by OceanaGold, an Australian mining company that has mining stakes in the area, said the government should honestly implement the Indigenous People’s Rights Act (IPRA).

“We strongly demand that the real spirit of IPRA should be implemented and a FPIC be sought”, exclaimed Duyapat.

OceanaGold has been abusing the rights of the indigenous community through militarization, displacements and loss of livelihood. He will raise complaints about their community’s situation, Dupayat said.

Environmental group supports IP leaders

Alyansa Tigil Mina (ATM), a people’s movement, whose advocacy includes fighting for rights of Filipinos against the persisting injustices related to mining, said it will support the project of the IP leaders to explore and maximize international venues where they can assert their rights to pursue the protection and enrichment of their indigenous cultures.

Noting that World IP Day is celebrated globally on August 9, ATM Coordinator Jaybee Garganera said the participation of the three elders at the hearing will bring to light the struggles against discrimination, injustices and militarization they have to endure to keep their lands.

“There are 12 million indigenous peoples in the Philippines and the three IP leaders who will be going to Geneva will speak up, tell their stories and demand that the government should heed their call for their right to self-determination and the United Nations urge and pressure the Republic of the Philippines to address justly, without discrimination, the issues of land rights, militarization, access to justice and protection of indigenous beliefs and practices,” he said.

UNCERD

The CERD is a body of independent experts which monitors the implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD) by its State parties, which the Philippines had signed on March 7, 1966 and ratified on September 15, 1967.

Having ratified ICERD the government is obliged to regularly report to the Committee on how it is being implemented. However, it has failed in the required regular reporting, and its current report covers only the period of 1998 to 2008. (Pinky Barrientos, FSP)

Indigenous peoples and human rights

By Anabelle E. Plantilla, Nature for Life, Manila Times
http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2009/aug/15/yehey/opinion/20090815opi5.html

15 August 2009

The Alyansa Tigil Mina (ATM) held a send-off lunch for Filipino indigenous peoples (IPs) leaders who left for Geneva, Switzerland last week to participate in the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination hearing on a complaint filed against the Philippine government by the Subanon community. ATM is an advocacy group and a people’s movement that upholds the rights of the present and future Filipinos against the persisting injustices related to mining. The three IP leaders are asserting that their rights to the ancestral domains have been violated, and that the actions of the Philippine government, particularly the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples have been adverse against them.

Timuay Jose Boy Anoy, one of the tribal leaders, is the rightful owner of ancestral land in Mount Canatuan. The Certificate of Ancestral Domain Title was personally given to him by President Gloria Arroyo but he has been ejected from his own land by TVI Resources Development Inc.

Timuay Noval Lambo, chief elder of the Subanon Council of Seven Rivers in the Zamboanga Peninsula and Peter Duyapat, president of the Didipio Earth Savers Movement Association belonging to the Ifugao community from Didipio, Kasibu, Nueva Vizcaya, have also been ejected from their own domains.

According to the Subanon tribal leader, Timuay Anoy, the commission on indigenous peoples facilitated the formation of a bogus tribal council in connivance with TVI, a Canadian mining company currently doing operations in their ancestral land. Furthermore, Timuay Anoy said that there was no genuine free and prior informed consent given to the mining operations and that their customs, traditions, and beliefs have been disrespected by no less than the government. According to Timuay Lambo, the government must tell the truth and should be held accountable because their report states that there was no discrimination against IPs.

The name Subanon means “river people,” which is derived from the word “suba” or river. The Subanon, also known in the Anglicized form as “Subanen,” is a tribe indigenous to the Zamboanga Peninsula area, particularly living in the mountainous areas of Zamboanga del Sur and Misamis Occidental. As the name implies, these people originally lived along riverbanks in the lowlands, however due to disturbances and competition from other settlers, these peace-loving tribe now reside in the mountains.

Duyapat, whose community is impacted by an Australian mining company, OceanaGold, said that the company has been abusing the rights of the indigenous community through militarization, displacement and loss of livelihood. He will raise complaints about their community’s situation in Geneva and demand that the real spirit of the Indigenous Peoples Rights Act should be implemented and genuine FPIC be sought.

The World Indigenous Peoples Day is observed on August 9 every year. There are 12 million IPs in the Philippines and the three IP leaders who went to Geneva will speak up, tell their stories and demand that the government heed their call for their right to self-determination; and the United Nations to urge and pressure the Republic of the Philippines to address justly, without discrimination, the issues of land rights, militarization, access to justice and protection of indigenous beliefs and practices.

ATM will support the initiative of these IP leaders to explore and maximize international venues where they can assert their rights to pursue the protection and enrichment of their indigenous cultures. The ATM is an alliance of mining-affected communities and their support groups of non-government organizations/public organizations and other civil society organizations convened by environmental conservation organization Haribon, Legal Rights and Natural Resources-Kasama sa Kalikasan/Friends of the Earth Philippines and Philippine Partnership for the Development of Human Resources in Rural Areas.

The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination is a body of independent experts, which monitors the implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination by its State parties. The Philippine government, having ratified the convention is obliged to regularly report to the committee on how it is being implemented. However, the government has failed in the required regular reporting since 1998.

orgsus@haribon.org.ph

Statement by Gukom to UN on tribal justice systems

Statement to the Second session of the UN Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

Presentation under Agenda Item 4B -UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples - August 10-14, 2009

Speaker: Timuoy Noval Lambo (Philippines)

Thank you Madam Chair for giving me this rare opportunity to shortly speak about our indigenous justice system.

To start with, Madam Chair, I am Timuoy Noval Lambo, a member of the Subanon Tribe of the Zamboanga del Norte province, Mindanao, Philippines. I am representing the Gukom Sog Pito Kodolungan, a group of Subanon families living in a separate adjoining communities and belonging to one common ancestor. Given that the Indigenous Peoples Rights Act is patterned after the draft UN DRIP, we hope that the lessons learned by the indigenous peoples of the Philippines will contribute to the future implementation and interpretation of the UN DRIP with regard to conflict resolution using customary laws.

As a tribe, Madam chair, we have our own established customary laws to govern our people known to our tribe as "Kompongan Nog Botad", a body of unwritten traditional laws, which governs the following:

1. All forms of criminal offenses ranging from simple to the highest form of criminal offense;

2. Family laws governing marriages;

3. Economic activities governing traditional livelihood;

4. Foreign relations; and

5. Religious activities and exercises by the Subanon religious leaders.

Sad to note, Madam Chair, that the exercise of our indigenous justice system had not given due recognition by our Philippine government.

Let me cite to you Madam Chair, one grave example of how the government, through the National Commission of Indigenous Peoples (NCIP), violated our laws by establishing another council of elders for the purposes of obtaining an illegal free, prior and informed consent with regard to mining activities in our ancestral domains. This act of the NCIP caused division and intrigue among our people. In 2004, the Gulang Gukom found them guilty of such act and imposed penalties against this government agency. However, the NCIP failed to comply with such decision.

Another grave incident of violation of our customary laws was committed by a multinational mining corporation in Zamboanga del Norte, Philippines by destroying the Subanon sacred mountain. In 2007, this was brought to the attention of the Subanon highest judicial system for hearing. The Manager of the mining firm was invited to attend the scheduled hearing but instead of attending the hearing under the Subanon customary laws, the company refused the invitation, instead wrote very insulting comments against the authority of the Gulang Gukom. The incident of that Subanon resolution of the hearing of the case was brought to the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) but no action was taken.

In the Philippines, Madam Chair, we have the Indigenous Peoples Rights Act, which affirms that customary laws must be respected, however, despite the existence of this law, government itself has failed to recognize our jurisdiction.

Under this sad experience Madam Chair, the following recommendation be respectfully submitted:

1. Full recognition of indigenous justice system by the Philippine government;

2. All cases involving indigenous peoples filed in the regular courts of justive be referred to the indigenous courts having proper jurisdiction;

3. All cases involving indigenous peoples tried and found guilty beyond reasonable doubt under customary laws and sentenced for a certain period of imprisonment be accepted or admitted to any established government prison cell; and, finally,

4. That government instrumentalities and officials not only be held accountable under national laws, but also under indigenous laws which they violated.

Madam Chair, thank you very much for this opportunity. We hope that this experience will also help other countries and that these cases be brought to the attention of the UN Human Rights Council. Thank you again Madam Chair and may God the Almighty bless us all.

Statement by LRC to UN on state of Philippine indigenous peoples

SPEAKER : Ana Rhia Muhi, Legal Rights and Natural Resources Center, Friends of the Earth Philippines Agenda: 4BStatement to the Second session of the UN Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

Presentation under Agenda Item 4B - UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

August 10-14, 2009

Good day to all. Madam Chair, thank you for this opportunity to share with this august body the Philippine experience with regard to policies on remedies, restitution and compensation through this short statement. I am Ana Rhia Muhi representing the Legal Rights and Natural Resources Center, Friends of the Earth Phils., a non-government organization that has been working with indigenous peoples of the Philippines for more than twenty years now. The Center has also been instrumental for the passage of the Indigenous Peoples Rights Act of 1997. The Indigenous Peoples Rights Act of the Philippines is similar to the UN Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, thus we hope that our lessons learned from the implementation of the IPRA would contribute to the implementation of the UNDRIP, especially since the UN DRIP is not necessarily self-executory and would need enabling domestic laws to implement its policies within states.

Madam Chair, as you know, the Philippines is different from most of the countries in that it has a law which specifically focuses on the rights of indigenous peoples to their ancestral territories and to self-determination. Yet, despite the existence of such a law, just recently, on July 29, 2009, indigenous leaders all over the country delivered their own State of the Indigenous Peoples Address, stating that the indigenous peoples of the Philippines remain to be the poorest of the poor, victims of human rights violations and extrajudicial killings, and suffer land insecurity. With regard to these issues, I would like to particularly focus on access to justice vis-a-vís the issue of land insecurity due to the failure for the Philippine government to provide adequate remedies, redress, compensation and restitution.

In 1909, it has been held by the United States Supreme Court decision in Cariño vs. Insular Government that indigenous peoples privately own their territories and the natural resources found within through their native title. Despite this pronouncement however, the Philippine government continues to adhere to a colonial doctrine which states that the State owns all natural resources within the country, or otherwise called the Regalian doctrine. Thus, laws were passed based on the Regalian doctrine to legitimize encroachment and taking of ancestral lands without due process. Also, lands were classified by virtue of these laws into mineral, forest or agricultural lands effectively denying indigenous peoples their territories with just one stroke of the pen.

The Indigenous Peoples Rights Act ( or the IPRA) which was passed in 1997 recognized and was supposed to correct this historical wrong. However, even after more than a decade since its passage, indigenous peoples in the Philippines have not been afforded adequate remedies for restitution and compensation for past and present wrongs. Hardly any community have been compensated from illegal or wrongful taking of ancestral domain. A number of factors are attributed to this. First, IPRA recognizes so-called "vested rights" on lands which were acquired by virtue of discriminatory land laws. Another provision in the law itself limits the period to ten (10) years for an action for reconveyance or the return of illegal or wrongful taking of ancestral land. Additionally, this remedy highly depends on the political will and the budget of the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) to represent the indigenous community before domestic courts.

Second, despite the existence of IPRA, executive privileges and powers have been used and abused to weaken indigenous peoples rights through the issuance of regulations and policies, in effect making the law inutile. The current trend in the Philippines as we speak is one that further weakens the right to self-determination with the issuance of regulations that limit the exercise of free, prior and informed consent, public participation, social acceptability and jurisdiction, while ensuring military protection and increase of economic incentives for investors.

Third, access to justice remains to be difficult for indigenous peoples as the NCIP itself has been adamant for indigenous peoples to follow strict and formal remedial requirements so that the complaints of indigenous peoples may be considered.

Other times, it is the NCIP itself that facilitates the entry of extractive industries within ancestral lands through the manipulation of free, prior, and informed consent processes. It is no surprise therefore that some indigenous groups have called for the resignation of NCIP officials. In fact, recently, a panel of Civil Society Organizations, which we were also a part of, disengaged from a process involving the joint review of the Free, Prior and Informed Consent Guidelines with the NCIP as the CSO panel found NCIP insincere and self-serving.

These are only some factors that lead to the further disenfranchisement of indigenous peoples. Thus, we make the following recommendations:

1. Government agencies or instrumentalities which are established or mandated to protect indigenous peoples and their rights be run by indigenous peoples themselves to ensure that such officials understand the dynamics, laws and cultures of indigenous communities. Corollarily to that, indigenous peoples must be given full participation to choose their own representative to decision-making processes at the international, regional, national and local levels;

2. Government executive privileges and powers should not be used to undermine the efforts, most especially those made by indigenous peoples themselves, for the recognition and protection of indigenous peoples rights;

3. Governments should establish remedies and processes for redress of issues that are culturally-appropriate and not necessarily adhere to formal contemporary legal requirements, otherwise making such remedy or process inutile for indigenous peoples;

4. Governments should afford indigenous peoples adequate time and resources to be able to take the most viable option for redress, restitution, compensation and reconveyance;

5. Governments should establish regulations for the reclassification of lands to properly reflect ownership of indigenous peoples to their ancestral territories, and finally,

6. For states and governments, motu proprio or at its own instance, initiate processes and remedies for redress, restitution, compensation and reconveyance in order to correct historical wrongs.

Thank you Madam Chair.

Statement by Peter Duyapat of DESAMA

Statement to the Second session of the UN Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

Speaker : Peter Duyapat from the Didipio Earthsavers Multipurpose Association (DESAMA)

Thank you Madam Chair for this opportunity to share with the participants of this session our experience in the Philippines and to give our recommendations for the consideration of the UN Human Rights Council through the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

I am Peter Duyapat, belonging to the Ifugao indigenous community living in Didipio, Municipality Kasibu, province of Nueva Vizcaya. I am the leader of our local organization, the Didipio Earthsavers Multipurpose Association. In the early 1960s, because of limited livelihood options and poverty, the then Commission on National Integration (CNI) encouraged my family and other Ifugao families to relocate to Didipio, Municpality of Kasibu, Nueva Vizcaya from Hungduan, Ifugao Province so that we can establish our community there. Here, we were able to set up our agricultural farms to feed our families. Together with other settlers, we were able to live satisfactorily and our children were able to go to school.

Madam Chair, the problem came when the Philippine government awarded a Financial or Technical Assistance Agreement to Arimco Mining Corporation, an Australian mining company, in 1994. Our free, prior, and informed consent was not given to them, and yet, despite this, the Philippine government allowed the entry of the international mining corporation even with our adamant opposition. In the following decades, we have suffered numerous human rights violations. This would include demolition of our houses, blocking our ingress and egress from the area, physical abuses against other indigenous members of our community, filing strategic lawsuits against public participation, and many more. The most recent of which, when I, myself, last April 2009, was physically attacked by company guards led by the security head and was brought to the Philippine National Police who did not do anything to protect me. I was only released when people came to demand for my release.

We sought the assistance of the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP), especially with regard to the absence of FPIC for the mining operations. However, we were told that because we were migrant IPs, we did not have the right to FPIC. Added to this, we were charged with criminal cases by government agencies, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, for illegal occupation of forest lands, despite the fact that it was also the government that encouraged us to settle in our area in the early 1960s. Ironically, Madam Chair, they allow mining operations on forest lands which should be prohibited, but do not respect our rights as migrants and long-term settlers.

Madam Chair, there have been a number of times that the mining company, now OceanGold Philippines, Inc., demolished and/or attempted to demolish our homes for the mining operations. Most of the times, the company was accompanied by members of the Philippine National Police. Currently, allegedly because of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo's order, military forces are now deployed in our area. During the past years, President Arroyo has implemented her policy on foreign investments through the establishment of the Investment Defence Forces, wherein military resources of the country are used for the benefit of the corporations, but on the other hand, undermines our rights to voice out opposition.

In light of this, we would therefore like to make the following recommendations:

1. That migrant indigenous peoples should be afforded the same rights as with other indigenous peoples, especially on the right to self-determination and the right to Free, Prior and Informed Consent;
2. That military forces should not be used by governments to assist or protect extractive corporations to the detriment of the indigenous peoples; and,
3. To encourage state governments to pass legislation on natural resource management which fully recognizes the rights of indigenous peoples like the Alternative Mining Bill of the Philippines.

There is a You-tube link to this presentation (although sound is poor quality)