Statement by Dr. Albert Barume,
UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
to the 83rd Ordinary Session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights
Chairperson of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights
Distinguished Commissioners,
Excellencies Ministers and Governments officials
Delegates, ladies and gentlemen
It is a great honour for me to address this 83rd Ordinary Session of the African Commission held here in Banjul, the Gambia.
I take this opportunity to commend the African Commission for its pioneering work on Indigenous Peoples’ rights in Africa and its impact at the international level that I have had the privilege to witness. The African Commission has become a global reference on Indigenous Peoples’ rights; its landmark decisions are constantly cited at the United Nations and in other regions; and its overall work makes Africa proud.
My Statement is constituted of three sections: the first provides an overview of the contemporary human rights understanding of the concept “Indigenous Peoples” and its relevance in Africa; the second gives an overview of the mandate of UNSRIP; and the third reflects on the current global context and its impact on human rights in Africa.
I. Understanding of “Indigenous Peoples” in Africa and the Continent’s contribution to the global normative framework on Indigenous Peoples
The term “Indigenous Peoples” is a human rights concept devised to redress racial discriminations used as tools to dispossess certain peoples and traditional communities of their lands and annihilate their cultures. The victims of this particular human rights violation are perceived as sub-human, racially inferior, backwards and not socially structured well enough to govern themselves or enjoy equal rights, most notably the rights to lands, territories and resources. This violation affects not only the bodies but also the minds of its victims, whose self-esteem is subsequently destroyed, making them vulnerable to ending-up in alcohol or drug abuse and experience high rate of suicide and homelessness, among others. The trauma from this violation is transgenerational. Indigenous women are particularly vulnerable, because in addition to being discriminated as women, they also suffer from being indigenous women. Children from such victim peoples are often ridiculed at schools by others; they drop out of studies at early stage; and they tend to feel ashamed of their cultural identity. The human rights victims for whom the Indigenous Peoples regime was construed are not mere poor people; they suffer from something much deeper and sinister than poverty.
From 2000 until 2003, the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (hereafter the African Commission) undertook a study grounded in the following research-questions: Are there in Africa communities that experienced or continue to experience identical or similar racial prejudiced views against their humanity and traditional ways of life that led to land dispossession and extreme marginalisation? Are there traditional communities whose cultures are considered as backwards by dominant society and whose ancestral lands were taken away, perceived as unoccupied, underutilised or belonging to none because of their particular livelihoods?
The African Commission found that there were indeed in several post-colonial African countries traditional communities that “are victims of particular forms of human rights abuses; [that those communities are] … perceived negatively by dominating mainstream [and that their] … cultures and ways of life are subject to discrimination and contempt and [that their] … very existence is under threat of extinction.” The African Commission noted also that in certain countries, members of such communities “are considered to be the property of [others], sub-human, dirty, lazy, greedy, stupid, infantile and uninterested in development.”
The African Commission found that “in Africa, the term indigenous peoples does not mean ‘first inhabitants’ in reference to aboriginality as opposed to non-African communities or those having come from elsewhere…. It is a term through which those groups who identify themselves as indigenous peoples and who experience particular forms of systematic discrimination, subordination and marginalisation because of their particular cultures and ways of life and mode of production … call for attention to their situation. It is a term through which they can voice the human rights abuses they suffer from…”.
The African Commission concluded also that not all African traditional communities or minorities can claim to have suffered or continue to suffer from such dispossession of ancestral lands grounded in racism against their being and cultures. It therefore concluded that in Africa the term “Indigenous People” : (1) is a human rights concept; (2) it does not mean being first inhabitant of a given land or country in exclusion of other groups; (3) it refers to a limited number of traditional communities, mostly hunter-gatherers and nomadic pastoralists, that suffer from racially-tainted particular discrimination; and (4) it does not mean any minority or marginalised community.
This human rights conceptualisation of “Indigenous Peoples” by the African Commission in 2003, has since enabled the Continent, to contribute actively to the normative frameworks on Indigenous Peoples at international, regional and domestic levels.
In May 2007, the African Commission adopted an “Advisory Opinion”, which guided African diplomats in New York during the negotiations of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP). This Advisory Opinion indicated, for instance, that “…in Africa, the term indigenous [peoples] is not aimed at protecting the rights of a certain category of citizens over and above others. This notion does not also create a hierarchy between national communities, but rather tries to guarantee the equal enjoyment of the rights and freedoms on behalf of groups, which have been historically marginalized..”.
Subsequently, the Aide Memoire also enabled Africa to amend and include specific language is what is the UNDRIP, leading to the adoption of the Declaration in September 2007 by the United Nations General Assembly.
Since 2010, the African Commission and the African Court have made three landmark decisions and ruling in favour of Endorois, Ogiek and Batwa Indigenous Peoples. Even though they remain unimplemented, these decisions and ruling are key milestones in the process of protection and enforcement of the rights of Indigenous Peoples in Africa.
In 2010, the Central African Republic became the first African State to ratify ILO Convention No. 169 on Indigenous and Tribal Peoples. In the same year (2010) the Republic of Congo passed a specific Law on Indigenous Peoples, followed by the Democratic Republic of Congo in 2022. There are also countries such as Kenya, Namibia and Cameroon that have taken legal and policy steps towards recognition of Indigenous Peoples’ rights, even though they are yet to formally endorse the concept “Indigenous Peoples”. The biodiversity and climate change frameworks have equally enabled many African States to endorse Indigenous Peoples as rights-holders.
II. Overview of the Mandate of the United Nation Special on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
I took on the mandate as Special Rapporteur in January 2025, following my appointment by the United Nations Human Rights Council. Like similar mechanisms, the Special Rapporteur mandate is designed to amplify the voices of Indigenous Peoples; to convey their claims and concerns and to insist that States comply with their international human rights obligations.
The Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples is one of three United Nations mechanisms on Indigenous Peoples. The other two mechanisms are: the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (a sixteen-members body that hold its annual sessions in New York), and; the United Nations Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, a seven-members body that hold its annual sessions in Geneva.
The mandate of the Special Rapporteur translates into 4 main pillars of work:
Thematic studies
The Special Rapporteur produces two thematic annual reports, one to the UN General Assembly in New York and another to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. This year, my first report will be on recognition of Indigenous Peoples as rights-holders by States and my second on demarcation and registration of Indigenous Peoples’ lands.
Country visits
My mandate also includes country visits, which can be requested by the Special Rapporteur or offered by a country. My first country visit as Special Rapporteur will be in Botswana.
I thank the Government of Botswana for accepting the visit request and for enabling me as first African Special Rapporteur on the rights of Indigenous Peoples to have my first official country visit in Africa. I look forward to working with both the Government and Indigenous Peoples to make a concrete contribution to the realisation of Indigenous Peoples’ rights on the Continent in general and in Botswana in particular.
Communications
The mandate also includes sending communications as a way for the Special Rapporteur to raise specific cases or situations of alleged violations of Indigenous Peoples’ rights with governments and other actors. This is the protective aspect of the mandate that is growing in relevance and popularity among Indigenous Peoples worldwide.
Other mandated areas, such as capacity-building, academic visits, technical assistance and advise, among others. This pillar of the mandate is growing in importance as more and more Indigenous Peoples, universities, NGOs, UN agencies, private businesses, and others seek technical assistance from the Special Rapporteur.
III. Worrying global context for human rights and Indigenous Peoples
Indigenous Peoples’ rights do not exist in vacuum. My mandate as UN Special Rapporteur on the rights of Indigenous Peoples comes at a time, when human rights are under particular pressure. I would even say, the fundamental human rights principles are equality, non-discrimination, self-determination and friendly international relations are under attack. These principles were conceived after the Second World War by brave and enlightened women and men who rose to their generational challenge. These principles are the foundation of a world order that guarantees for all persons, Nations and States the right to exist and to be treated with dignity, regardless of their wealth, skin colour, religious beliefs, gender, culture, population size or geographical location. These principles bind all humans, Peoples and States together as one big human family of over 8 billion members who care for one other, as proclaimed in the Preamble of the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights: “…recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family constitutes the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world.“.
There is however an emerging and worrying thinking. In ignorance of these global human rights norms and values, States are openly threatened or attacked by others; ambitions for territorial conquests are reborn; the weak and poor barely have the right to express their opinions; and a handful of wealthy individuals and States aspire to dictate international norms. Speeches, symbols and gestures, which had become unacceptable, are made, worn or performed in public with no consequences. Key human rights principles of non-discrimination and equality are turned upside-down and branded as divisive or toxic for society; and global rush and scramble for rare or transition minerals are done in disregards of fundamental human rights.
Today, these human rights principles are still standing, but we begin to see the contours of the chaos that would arise if these were to collapse. If these global values and principles were to collapse, humanity would be disunited and left as a mosaic of Peoples, Nations, States and individuals fighting each other and vulnerable to exploitation by more powerful actors. In such a global context, social weaker groups like Indigenous Peoples would pay the highest price. An African proverb says that when elephants are fighting, little trees pay most of the price.
I see an opportunity in this challenge; it is time to stand up for the fundamental human rights principles that we may have taken for granted; it is time to reaffirm the centrality of human rights in international relations; and it is time to establish strong alliances and partnerships, and to urge those with influence and resources to REINVEST in human rights at all levels.
The African Commission has a key role to play in making this wake-up call. I exhort the African Commission to lead on calling the African States and the World to RECOMMIT TO HUMAN RIGHTS, with particular attention to Indigenous Peoples.
I THANK YOU
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