Indigenous Peoples’ Human Rights Defenders Forge Solidarity Amid Rising Challenges

Indigenous Peoples' Human Rights Defenders Forge Solidarity Amid Rising Challenges

Written on 22 October 2024. Posted in News

Across the world, Indigenous Peoples' Human Rights Defenders (IPHRDs) face threats and reprisals for standing up for their rights, protesting violations, protecting their territories, communities, and the environment. In doing so they are far too often victims of violence, harassment, arbitrary arrest, forced disappearance, and worse, killings. And these threats are increasing.

This is why the Indigenous Peoples Human Rights Defenders (IPHRD) Network convened in Kampong Thom Province,Cambodia, in August 2024, for a critical exchange of experiences, joint strategizing and learning, as well as capacity strengthening through training sessions.

"I am very honored to be a part of this meaningful exchange. Bringing together IPHRDs from various countries and communities is important for building solidarity, learning and sharing with each other, and advocating for collective action", said Casselle Ton, Kankaney Igorot from the Philippines.

Amidst the growing human rights threats they face, this meeting between IPHRDs in Asia served as an important platform for solidarity, coordination and mutual support, enabling them to speak up more powerfully as one network, rather than doing so alone, which can often leave them exposed to danger.

"By sharing our experiences, we strengthen our collective voice and resilience. This exchange has helped broaden my understanding of Indigenous issues and has also inspired me with the stories of courage and strength from other participants," Ton said. "I am returning home with renewed determination to continue my work as an IPHRD and contribute to the international movement for Indigenous Peoples' rights."

Time of crisis for Indigenous Peoples' rights

The Cambodia gathering took place in a climate of persisting violence, where the fundamental freedoms of assembly and speech were severely constrained. This repression was fueled by both governmental and corporate failure to acknowledge Indigenous Peoples' rights to self-determination, autonomy, and the principle of free, prior, and informed consent. These rights, which are critical to Indigenous communities' ability to control decisions affecting their lives and lands, were systematically undermined, deepening the sense of marginalization and exacerbating the challenges they face in safeguarding their territories and cultural heritage.

Participants highlighted the use of psychological warfare, sexual harassment and militarization as tools of repression they and others witness firsthand. These tactics, commonly deployed against activists, journalists and rights defenders have created a hostile environment for Indigenous Peoples advocating for their rights.

The current political climate across Asia was also a major topic of concern, where participants noted that this new climate has allowed for more flagrant attacks and continued impunity for the perpetrators.

They spoke of dramatic rollbacks in hard-won gains for Indigenous Peoples' rights that have taken years to achieve, alongside increasing risks of reprisals for those defenders calling attention to these overturned gains and other rights violations.

The participants emphasized that IPHRDs are at the frontlines of these struggles, risking their safety to advocate for justice and equality.

The Philippines as a case of attacks on IPHRDs

The Philippines is a country that is a prime example of where IPHRDs are often at terrible risk from the actions of the government and the environment they enable for businesses and other interests to ignore the human rights of Indigenous Peoples and environmental protection.

For years, IWGIA and its partners have been closely monitoring and documenting numerous cases in the Philippines, including extrajudicial killings, harassment, smear campaigns, forcible appropriation of Indigenous lands for infrastructure projects, arbitrary terrorist designations of Indigenous people and Indigenous rights organizations, military operations in Indigenous Peoples' territories justified as military training exercises or claims of rebel sightings, and more.

The list of human rights violations IPHRDs have to contend with is endless.

IPHRDs from the Philippines shared stories at the meeting of extrajudicial killings, where Indigenous individuals accused of being rebels were targeted. In one case, they shared a success story of an entire community that rallied together and went online to defend the accused, standing in solidarity to challenge the state's narrative. Further, human rights organizations took action offline and conducted protests to condemn the killing of a civilian in a related case. This successful set of joint interventions provided a classic example of the coordinated power of strength in numbers.

Illegal arrests, arbitrary imprisonment, enforced disappearances and equating Indigenous activists to terrorists were also central to the discussions. Such tactics are used by authorities in the Philippines, as well as in other countries in Asia, against IPHRDs and other rights defenders to suppress dissent. Other IPHRDs at the event shared that authorities go so far as to label activists as enemies of the state, placing those individuals at grave risk.

For example, the Cordillera Peoples Alliance (CPA), a longstanding Indigenous human rights organization in the country, and its leadership have routinely had to face such spurious terror designations. Today, four of CPA's leaders are facing such legal cases, accused by the government for being terrorists.

>> Read more about the latest designation here

Such a designation places the organization in peril as often assets are frozen or seized, offices are surveilled or ransacked and employees are targeted, not just by the government but also by citizens sympathetic to the government as these terrorist lists are distributed widely in the media and as flyers throughout communities.

All of these tactics severely impede the important human rights work the CPA and its allies do and also silences their voices, in some cases, enticing people to stop their important work for fear of severe consequences to them and their families.

As part of this, IPHRDs in the Philippines are also falsely accused of crimes, as happened in 2020 to CPA Chaiperson Windel Bolinget, who was "red-tagged" as a terrorist and falsely held responsible for a murder. Bolinget voluntarily presented himself to the National Bureau of Investigation for his own protection due to a "shoot-to-kill" order placed for him. He remained in custody until all charges were successfully dropped after his case received continuous national and global attention.

>> Read more about Windel Bolinget's case and the criminalization of IPHRDs in the Philippines here

All of this is happening against the backdrop of the ongoing plundering of natural resources and the manipulation of free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) processes in the Philippines.

Indigenous groups, such as the Igorot in the northern mountains of Luzon and the Lumad in the southern island of Mindanao, have long inhabited resource-rich areas now targeted for mining and energy projects. Despite the passage of the Indigenous Peoples' Rights Act (IPRA) in 1997 in the country, land-grabbing and violations of their right to FPIC persist, exacerbated by President Marcos Jr.'s push for foreign investments in mining and renewable energy. Among these is the controversial Jalaur mega-dam project in Panay Island, which is nearing completion and expected to begin operations by 2025, despite strong opposition from the Tumandok Indigenous people.

>> Read more about the situation of the Tumandok and Human Rights violations here

Marked by violations of FPIC and militarization, such numerous projects have intensified land rights abuses and environmental degradation in Indigenous territories.

>> Read more about the current situation of Indigenous Peoples' rights in the Philippines here

Solidarity and resilience

The situation in the Philippines reflects many of the challenges faced by communities across the globe, where Indigenous Peoples' rights, land sovereignty, and environmental justice are under attack.

However, this situation also demonstrates the resilience and tenacity of IPHRDs who, despite facing unique challenges, share common goals: to protect their communities, their land, and their basic human rights. By mobilizing their communities, organizing advocacy efforts, and sharing their experiences, these Indigenous defenders show the importance of solidarity and collective action.

"It is important to get a broader network and learn from the different approaches and strategies of the different countries. That way we can revisit our own strategies by comparing with others. This is important to help us build our vision and strategies," Karen Niraporn Chapho, an Indigenous Youth Leader from Hin Lad Nai, Thailand, noted.

"I am an Indigenous Person myself. When I represent my country and my organization in an event like this, I get the capacity to carry out my work, and I can give it back to my community," Jackleyn Stanis, Dusun from Sabah, Malaysia, said.

The IPHRD exchange was organized by the Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact (AIPP) with Indigenous Peoples' organizations, bringing together 24 IPHRDs from nine countries to share strategies, build resilience, and coordinate efforts in advocating for the rights of Indigenous Peoples across Asia and globally.

"The annual IPHRD exchange is a highly valued space for defenders where they gather, speak with openness, free will and learn from one another," Guangchunliu Gangmei, AIPP Programme Coordinator, said. "The IPHRD exchange is also a space to build collective vision with a goal to sustain the Indigenous Peoples movement towards self-determination. This means responding to emerging challenges, to ensure strength in negotiating with the states, and strengthen horizontal solidarity in defending our territories and right to self-determination."

This year's meeting had a special focus on the role of documentation and complaint/ submission mechanisms, using UN bodies and committees, development banks, and other systems as platforms for advocacy. Participants discussed the need for stronger documentation practices that focus on collective protection mechanisms and data sovereignty. The improvement of evidence building and the use of treaty and charter-based bodies, as well as complaint mechanisms tied to business and human rights, were highlighted as vital tools in this struggle.

Throughout the exchange, the IPHRDs, nominated by their organizations, were actively engaged and supported each other in understanding and learning.

"Despite the complexity of the topics and the length of the sessions, the atmosphere remained positive, and participants were fully committed to the discussions and group work," Signe Leth, IWGIA Advisor, said. "This level of dedication highlights the sense of ownership and the importance they placed on the exchange."

The strategies shared and the networks built during the session will help equip IPHRDs to resist and adapt to the ever-changing challenges they face. Through documentation, advocacy, capacity building and networking, the IPHRD network aims to strengthen collective protection mechanisms and build effective advocacy strategies that can be used in both local and international human rights arenas.

Looking ahead

Despite increasing risks, IPHRDs are adapting and finding new ways to resist repression. Thus, the meeting in Cambodia was especially timely, given the increasing pushback on Indigenous rights globally.

The event provided a space for participants to revisit past achievements, exchange human rights situations and strategize around tools and skills needed in the struggle in fulfilling their rights.

As the fight for Indigenous Peoples' rights continues, the need for solidarity and support among IPHRDs and their allies is more critical than ever.

The Cambodia meeting was thus a reminder of both the challenges and the resilience of those on the frontlines, as Indigenous Peoples across the globe continue their struggle for equality and justice.

IWGIA is honoured to have been one of the many donors and partners that helped to realize this partnership, showing solidarity and stressing the importance to raise their struggles to a higher level. We are also honoured to have been able to take part in this meeting, as well as previous IPHRD exchanges with AIPP and other partners.

Tags: Human rights, IWGIA, Indigenous Peoples Human Rights Defenders

Public link

Please use the above public link if you want to share this noodl on another website.