Draft American Declaration

NEGOTIATION

The Working Group has established three main venues for ensuring continuity in the analysis of the Draft Declaration:

– Meetings programmed by the Committee on Juridical and Political Affairs. In 1999, one Meeting of Experts and one Meeting of the Working Group were held.

– Special Meetings of the Working Group. Between 1999 and 2008, six special meetings of the Working Group were held at OAS headquarter.

– Meeting of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus. Between 2003 and 2008, seven meetings were held to study the consolidated text of the Draft Declaration prepared by the Chair of the Working Group (“the Chair’s Consolidated Text”), [GT/DADIN/doc.139/03] of June 17, 2003, and four meetings to address the Record of the Current Consolidated Text”), [GT/DADIN/doc.139/03] of June 17, 2003, and four meetings to address the Record of the Current Status of the Draft American Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the reference for which as of April 2008 is document [GT/DADIN/doc. 334/08 rev. 3] of december 30, 2008 (“the Record of the Current Status”). Most of the negotiation meetings have been held at OAS headquarters in Washington D.C., in the United States; the Sixth Meeting, however, was held in Antigua, Guatemala, and the Seventh Meeting took place in Brasilia, Brazil.

a. Meeting of Experts

The Meeting of Experts took place in Washington, D.C., on February 10-12, 1999, pursuant to resolution [AG/RES. 1549 (XXVIII-O/98)]. It was led by the Chair of the Committee on Juridical and Political Affairs, Mauricio Granillo, Permanent Representative of El Salvador to the OAS, since that Committee served as the preparatory body for the meeting of experts.

The meeting was attended by government experts and members of various OAS bodies, such as the President of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and the Director of the Inter-American Indian Institute. A space was also reserved for interventions by representatives of indigenous groups and organizations. The meeting analyzed the nine titles in the Preamble to the Proposed American Declaration as submitted by the IACHR and it agreed, ad referendum, on changes to six paragraphs. In their conclusions, the experts asked for the study of the Proposed American Declaration to continue and urged “national institutions, organs of the inter-American system, and nongovernmental organizations” to submit additional comments.

b. Meeting of the Working Group

In November 1999, pursuant to resolution [AG/RES. 1610 (XXIX-O/99)], the Committee on Juridical and Political Affairs convened a meeting of a Working Group set up to continue with the analysis of the Draft American Declaration.[2] Under that mandate, a five-day meeting was held on November 8-12, 1999. The Committee on Juridical and Political Affairs, chaired by Ambassador Claude Heller, Permanent Representative of Mexico, served as the preparatory body. That meeting was able to analyze all the operative sections of the Proposed American Declaration prepared by the IACHR. Following the example of the Meeting of Experts, this meeting included a limited degree of participation by indigenous peoples’ representatives.

The indigenous representatives were able to offer comments solely when discussion of a new topic began, which gave rise to controversies. By the end of the meeting, the first review of all the provisions of the Proposed American Declaration put forward by the IACHR was complete.

c. Special Meetings of the Working Group

In 2001, the Chair of the Working Group, Ambassador Ronalth Ochaeta Argueta, Permanent Representative of Guatemala to the OAS, established the Special Meeting mechanism, thereby introducing a new series of meetings for discussing the Draft American Declaration. The Special Meetings sought to facilitate broader participation by indigenous representatives in the discussion of the Draft American Declaration. To date, four Special Meetings have been held, at OAS headquarters.

[The First Special Meeting of the Working Group] was held on April 2-6, 2001, pursuant to General Assembly resolution [AG/RES. 1708 (XXX-O/00)], which renewed the mandate for further study of the Draft American Declaration and requested that another meeting of the Working Group be held.

The meeting reviewed Articles I to IV of Section One and Articles V to VII of Section Two. With this, the Special Meeting began the second review of the text of the Draft American Declaration.

The meeting’s achievements included the following: As regards the content, it was agreed to change the term “population” for “peoples” throughout the Draft American Declaration, in line with a claim made by the indigenous representatives based on international legal instruments, particularly International Labour Organization [Convention 169], ratified by several OAS member states, and the draft United Nations Declaration.

In addition, the rules were amended to allow broader participation by the indigenous representatives. At the end of the meeting, a recommendation was adopted for the creation of a Voluntary Fund, containing financial resources to facilitate and ensure the continued presence of indigenous representatives from across the Hemisphere in the discussions of the Draft American Declaration.

[The Second Special Meeting of the Working Group] was held on March 11-15, 2002, pursuant to resolution [AG/RES. 1780 (XXXI-O/01)].

During the preparations for this Second Special Meeting, the Chair of the Working Group, Ambassador Eduardo Ferrero Costa, Permanent Representative of Peru to the OAS, submitted a three-column document to assist the discussions. This document set out, in three columns, the text of the Proposed American Declaration presented by the IACHR, proposals put forward by the participants, and an alternative proposal to the IACHR’s text submitted by the Chair (OEA/Ser.K/XVI/GT/DADIN/doc.53/02). At the same time, a study group was also set up under the leadership of the delegation of Colombia to examine the topic of free determination.

The Second Special Meeting analyzed Articles VII to XVIII of the Proposed American Declaration put forward by the IACHR, thereby covering provisions from Sections Three, Four, and Five. At the meeting, two working panels of international experts were established; their work focused on Sections Four (Organizational and Political Rights) and Five (Social, Economic, and Cultural Rights). The experts also addressed the subject of free determination and its incorporation alongside the political integrity and territorial sovereignty of states.

To ensure participation by indigenous representatives, the Chair secured funding for 40 indigenous representatives from the member states to attend, which was a major landmark in the Draft American Declaration analysis process.

[The Third Special Meeting] was held on February 24-27, 2003, at OAS headquarters, in compliance with resolution [AG/RES. 1851 (XXXII-O/02)].

The meeting, chaired by Ambassador Eduardo Ferrero Costa, Permanent Representative of Peru to the OAS, analyzed Section Five (Articles XVIII, XIX, XX, and XXI), Section Six (Articles XXII, XXIII, XXIV, XXV, XXVI, and XXVII), and Section Two (Articles II, III, IV, V, and VI) of the Proposed American Declaration submitted by the IACHR. The meeting brought to an end the first complete review of the provisions of the Proposed American Declaration presented by the IACHR by the special meeting process. In practical terms, this was the second review of the text, if the period preceding the special meetings is taken into consideration.

To ensure participation by indigenous representatives, this meeting inaugurated the Specific Fund created the previous year, covering the traveling expenses of 55 such representatives.

[The Fourth Special Meeting of the Working Group] lasted only two days, from February 10 to 11, 2005, as established by operative paragraph 4(d) of resolution [AG/RES. 2029 (XXXIV-O/04)]; it was chaired by Ambassador Juan León Alvarado, Alternate Representative of Guatemala to the OAS.[3] This meeting was held within the framework of the Fifth Meeting of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus; consequently, three days were set aside for the Meeting of Negotiations and two for the Fourth Special Meeting, which addressed specific topics as instructed by the aforesaid General Assembly resolution.

The meeting involved exchanges among the participants about the progress the process had made, the participation of the indigenous representatives, the holding of national consultations, and the negotiation procedure. It also considered a possible date for concluding the final stage of negotiations for the adoption of the Draft American Declaration.[4] Discussions revealed that most of the representatives of the member states and the indigenous peoples were reluctant to establish a target date ([GT/DADIN/doc.222/05]).

Some 80 representatives from the Hemisphere’s indigenous peoples participated in the Indigenous Caucus ([GT/DADIN/doc.217/05 rev.1] of March 31, 2005).

[The Fifth Special Meeting of the Working Group] was styled the Meeting to Reflect on the Meetings of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus. It took place at OAS headquarters on November 26-28, 2007, and was chaired by Ambassador Reynaldo Cuadros, Permanent Representative of Bolivia to the OAS. The meeting analyzed and discussed four issues: the impact on the OAS process of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples; the topic of informal consultations; the working method; and a series of new proposals. At the close of the event on November 28, the Working Group’s results and recommendations were presented to the Permanent Council, which duly took note of that submission.[5] For further information, see the Chair’s Report, [GT/DADIN/doc.321/08] of January 14, 2008. As follow-up to the Reflection Meeting, the Permanent Council included the topic in its regular meeting of February 20, 2008. On that occasion the member states were urged to submit any additional comments on the results and recommendations formulated by the Reflection Meeting.[6]

The event was attended by 48 representatives of indigenous peoples in the Caucus ([GT/DADIN/doc.319/07] of December 5, 2007).

[The Sixth Special Meeting of the Working Group] was held at OAS headquarters from December 9 to 12, 2008. It was chaired by Ambassador Reynaldo Cuadros, Permanent Representative of Bolivia to the OAS. In attendance were 101 participants, including 80 representatives of the indigenous peoples who are members of the Caucus. It was possible through the indigenous fund to finance the attendance of 23 indigenous representatives from various OAS member states.

The agenda for the Special Meeting consisted of the following two points: Evaluation and strengthening of the process of negotiation of the American Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and proposal of specific actions to address consideration of the fundamental topics of the Declaration (GT/DADIN/doc.351/08, of October 29, 2008).

Prior to the Special Meeting, the Chair presented a reference document, dated November 24, 2008, containing the outcome of consultations (GT/DADIN/doc.357/08 rev. 1 corr. 1), as established in operative paragraph 3.b of General Assembly resolution AG/RES. 2368 (XXXVIII-O/08).

At the conclusion of the meeting, the Chair submitted a document of proposals emanating from the special meeting (GT/DADIN/doc.360/08 rev. 1), dated December 12, 2008. That document sets three main proposals, and a tentative list of nine distinctive characteristics of the region, for subsequent consideration by the Working Group to Prepare the Draft American Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. The report by the Chair, may be consulted in the document [GT/DADIN/doc.362/08 rev. 1]

d. Meetings of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus

In June 2003, the General Assembly adopted resolution [AG/RES. 1919 (XXXIII-O/03)], beginning a new phase in the review of the Draft American Declaration and consolidating the participation of indigenous representatives in the Working Group. Along with renewing the mandate of the Working Group, the General Assembly requested that “the final phase of negotiations” commence and that a first round be held in October 2003 on the basis of the Chair’s Consolidated Text. It also instructed the Working Group “to ensure continued transparency and effective participation by representatives of indigenous peoples during the negotiations” and stated that the negotiations would take place exclusively among the member states. Finally, the General Assembly charged the Working Group with setting modalities for the meetings and determining the dates of subsequent rounds.

Pursuant to this mandate, the Working Group, chaired by Ambassador Eduardo Ferrero Costa, established the Meetings of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus, which seek to reach consensus regarding the Chair’s Consolidated Text, serving as the main but not exclusive reference point for the negotiations. Thus, the Working Group invariably uses the Proposed American Declaration submitted by the IACHR and the proposals made by the member states and indigenous representatives as additional references.

At these meetings, the indigenous representatives may propose alternative texts and negotiate proposals made by the member states, which represents a form of progress in the process in that it entails direct participation by civil society within the realm of an international organization whose members are sovereign states. The negotiations are characterized by a broad dialogue in which all stakeholders can set out their positions in detail.[7]

- The First Meeting of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus was held on November 10-12, 2003, and was chaired by Ambassador Eduardo Ferrero Costa, Permanent Representative of Peru to the OAS.[8] Using the Chair’s Consolidated Text, it analyzed and discussed the four articles from Section One dealing with the instrument’s scope of application, the seven articles in Section Two on human rights, and Article XII from Section Three. Consensus was reached regarding the following points: the titles of Section One and Section Two, together with Article V; the title of Article VI and its first numbered paragraph; the title of Article VI; and the full text of Articles IX, X, and Xbis.[9]

- The Second Meeting of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus was held on January 26-28, 2004, and was chaired by Ambassador Eduardo Ferrero Costa, Permanent Representative of Peru to the OAS. Work took place on only two of the three scheduled days on account of a snowstorm affecting the city of Washington, D.C., at the time. The meeting analyzed and discussed the first four articles in Section Three, “Cultural Identity,” of the Chair’s Consolidated Text (Articles XII to XV). Consensus was reached on the titles of Articles XIII and XV, and on the first numbered paragraph of the latter article.

- The Third Meeting of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus was held on April 28-30, 2004. This meeting, and all subsequent meetings up to the seventh, were chaired by the Working Group’s new Chair: Ambassador Juan León Alvarado, Alternate Representative of Guatemala to the OAS. The Third Meeting studied Articles XVI and XVII in Section Three of the Chair’s Consolidated Text, but only reached consensus on the titles of those two provisions.

- The Fourth Meeting of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus was held on November 8-12, 2004.[10] It addressed Section Four, “Organizational and Political Rights,” of the Chair’s Consolidated Text (Articles XIX to XXIII). Agreement was reached on the titles of Articles XXI and XXII, and on the third numbered paragraph of Article XXI. The meeting also noted the existence of crosscutting elements that apply to more than one article. It was therefore decided to review those crosscutting aspects in order to identify a way to incorporate them into the section on General Provisions. In addition, an Ad Hoc Group, coordinated by the Vice Chair of the Working Group, was established to study the following topics: individual and collective rights, public and private law, and third-party rights. This group was made up by representatives of the member states, since the indigenous peoples’ representatives agreed to participate solely as observers. The Ad Hoc Group’s proposed text can be found at [GT/DADIN/doc.192/04 rev.1]. In addition, as of the fourth negotiation meeting, a modification was made to the working method: it was decided to use footnotes in the negotiated text to explain what the member states and indigenous representatives understood by the language under consideration.

- The Fifth Meeting of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus was held on February 7-9, 2005. As can be seen, only three days were allotted for negotiations since, as noted above, February 10 and 11 were set aside to hold the Special Meeting of the Working Group. Within this limited timeframe, the negotiation meeting was only able to review Article XVIII of the Chair’s Consolidated Text, “Right to Protection of a Healthy Environment.”

- The Sixth Meeting of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus was held on October 10-14, 2005, in the city of Antigua, Guatemala.[11] It was attended by some 90 representatives of the Hemisphere’s indigenous peoples (see document [GT/DADIN/doc.235/05 rev.2]). The meeting continued with the analysis of the Chair’s Consolidated Text, specifically Article XXIV, “Traditional Forms of Property and Cultural Survival. Right to Land, Territory, and Resources” (to which a new paragraph, submitted by the Caucus, was added); Article XXV, “Transfers and Relocations”; Article XXVI, “Indigenous Peoples in Voluntary Isolation or Initial Contact”; and Article XXVII, “Labor Rights.” One new element was the organization of informal consultations among the delegations – both those of the indigenous peoples and those of the states – which enabled new proposals to be distributed prior to the meeting in order to facilitate negotiations.

- The Seventh Meeting of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus was held on March 21-25, 2006, in the city of Brasilia, Brazil. It was attended by 55 representatives of the Hemisphere’s indigenous peoples (see document [GT/DADIN/doc.256/06 rev.3]). As at the meeting in Guatemala, some state delegations held informal consultations and exchanges prior to the event, and the fruits of those efforts enriched the debate. This meeting analyzed Section Six of the Chair’s Consolidated Text, “General Provisions,” this concluded the review of the substantive part of the Chair’s Consolidated Text, since the Preamble was not negotiated. The study of Section Six led to the inclusion of new articles proposed by the indigenous representatives; the result was an increase in the number of that section’s provisions from five to eleven articles. In addition, several portions of the text were reviewed by some of the delegations through internal consultations. The current status of the provisions in Section Six can be seen in the document “Record of the Current Status of the Draft American Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples” [GT/DADIN/doc.260/06]. Finally, it should also be noted that this meeting enabled a new phase in the negotiations to begin, in that on the last day the delegates reviewed the first articles of the Draft American Declaration agreed on at the seven Meetings of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus.

- The Eighth Meeting of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus was held on December 4-8, 2006, at the headquarters of the Organization of American States in Washington, DC., United States.[12] Prior to the Eighth Meeting, on November 30, 2006, Counselor Ana Peña Doig, Alternate Representative of Peru to the OAS and Vice Chair of the Working Group, held consultations with several government delegations in order to explore their positions and establish agreements regarding the articles in Sections One and Two of the Record of the Current Status.

This meeting was attended by 63 representatives of the Hemisphere’s indigenous peoples. ([GT/DADIN/doc.277/06 rev.2], of December 14, 2006.)

The Eighth Meeting of Negotiations studied Articles II, III, and IV of the Record of the Current Status, since Article I had previously been approved at the meeting held in Brazil in March 2006. At the end of the meeting, the updated version of the Record of the Current Status of the Draft American Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples was published as document [GT/DADIN/doc.278/06] on December 8, 2006. The Chair’s report was registered as document [GT/DADIN/doc.281/07] of January 23, 2007.

- The Ninth Meeting of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus of the Working Group to Prepare the Draft American Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples was held at OAS headquarters in Washington, D.C., United States, on January 22-26, 2007. Some 50 members of the Caucus, listed in document [GT/DADIN/doc.282/07 rev.2] of January 26, 2007, attended the event.

The Ninth Meeting’s work dealt exclusively with Articles XII, XIII, and XIV in Section Three, “Cultural Identity,” of the Record of the Current Status, published at the end of the meeting as document [GT/DADIN/doc.283/07 corr.1] of January 26, 2007. Similarly, the New Compendium of Proposals for the review of the Draft American Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples was published as document [GT/DADIN/doc.280/07 rev.1, of January 26, 2007, and the Chair’s report as document [GT/DADIN/doc.285/07] of January 9, 2007.

- The Tenth Meeting of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus was held on April 23-27, 2007, in the city of La Paz, Bolivia. As at the earlier meetings, the negotiations were led by the Chair of the Working Group, Ambassador Juan León, Alternate Representative of Guatemala to the OAS. More than 100 members of the Caucus were in attendance, 57 of whom were indigenous representatives from Bolivia ([GT/DADIN/doc.296/07 rev. 1] of May 3, 2007).

The meeting studied the following articles from Section Three, “Cultural Identity,” of the Record of the Current Status:

Article XIV: Paragraph 1 was approved ad referendum of the delegation of Mexico; paragraphs 2 and 5 were approved; and while no consensus was reached on paragraphs 3, 4, and 6, the wording was decided, which was then included in the Record of the Current Status, thereby achieving a significant reduction in the amount of bracketed text.

Article XV: “Indigenous Spirituality.” A review of the article’s title was requested; at the end of the Tenth Meeting of Negotiations, however, no consensus had been reached. Paragraph 1 was adopted by the Working Group by consensus; and, although no consensus was reached on paragraphs 2, 3, and 4, they were included in the Record of the Current Status following the discussions of the informal drafting group.

Article XVI: “Family Relations and Ties.” No consensus was reached on paragraph 1 of Article XVI; the bracketed text was, however, reduced, and the wording was included in the Record of the Current Status.

Article XVII: “Health.” A lengthy debate was unable to produce consensus on paragraph 1; however, agreement was reached on the wording, which was included in the Record of the Current Status; paragraphs 3 and 4 were approved by consensus; and paragraph 5 was referred to the informal drafting group for consideration.

Article XVIII was referred in its entirety to the informal drafting group, but no modifications had emerged by the end of the Tenth Meeting of Negotiations.

The report on this meeting by the Chair of the Working Group was published as document [GT/DADIN/doc.304/07] of May 11, 2007. At the end of the meeting, the Record of the Current Status was published as document [GT/DADIN/doc.301/07] of April 27, 2007[1], and the Compendium of Proposals of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus held by the Working Group was registered as document [GT/DADIN/doc.255/06 rev.2 add.1] of May 14, 2007. Also on this occasion, the delegation of the United States made a declaration that was published as document [GT/DADIN/inf.31/07] and was also included in the Record of the Current Status.

- The Eleventh Meeting of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus of the Working Group to Prepare the Draft American Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples was held in the city of Washington, D.C., United States, on April 14-18, 2008, pursuant to resolution AG/RES. 2294 (XXXVII-O/07). The meeting was chaired by Ambassador Reynaldo Cuadros, Permanent Representative of Bolivia to the OAS. It was attended by 35 representatives of indigenous peoples, as set out in the list of participants. At the start of the meeting, a presentation was given by special guest Prof. S. James Anaya on the common ground between the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the American Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. This was followed by a lengthy dialogue. (The presentation can be found in Annex 3 of document GT/DADIN/doc.339/08 of May 12, 2008.)

Given the difficulties encountered in reaching agreements while dealing with the provisions in article order, the working method was modified: it was decided that those articles where consensus could be more easily reached were to be agreed upon by earlier informal consultations and dealt with first, in order to shorten the time spent by the plenary sessions and make them more effective. In this context use was made of the document “Classification of Provisions that could Facilitate Consensus,” prepared by the Department of International Law (document GT/DADIN/doc.329/08 rev.2 of August 22, 2008).[13]

It should be noted that before the text negotiations began, the delegations of both the United States and Canada lodged reservations about the negotiation process. In its statement, the delegation of the United States said, inter alia, that it was “reserving its position on the final text under discussion and does not join in any text that might be approved or otherwise appear in the Chair’s rolling text for the 11th meeting of the Working Group.” Similarly, the delegation of Canada said: “We will no longer actively negotiate or table text. We will, however, continue to be present and will occasionally speak about Canadian experience and perspectives.” In response, the Caucus issued a written reply setting out its position vis-à-vis these two statements. All the statements were included in the annexes of the Record Of The Current Status [GT/DADIN/doc. 334/08 rev. 3] of December 30, 2008.

The meeting discussed nine articles, six of which were approved by consensus in their entirety (II, V, XI, XXXIII, XXXVI, and XXXIX) and another three in part (VIII, XVII, and XVIII).

Article II

The States recognize and respect the multicultural and multilingual character of the indigenous peoples, who are an integral part of their societies. (Adopted on April 16, 2008, at the Eleventh Meeting of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus.)

Article V. Full effect and observance of human rights

Indigenous peoples and persons have the right to the full enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedoms, as recognized in the Charter of the United Nations, the Charter of the Organization of American States and international human rights law. (Adopted on April 16, 2008, at the Eleventh Meeting of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus.)

Article XI. Guarantees against racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia, and other related forms of intolerance

Indigenous peoples have the right not to be subject to racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia, and other related forms of intolerance. The States shall adopt the preventive and corrective measures necessary for the full and effective protection of this right. (Adopted on April 18, 2008, at the Eleventh Meeting of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus.)

Article XXXIII

Indigenous peoples and persons have the right to effective and appropriate remedies, including prompt judicial remedies, for the reparation of all violations of their collective and individual rights. The States, with full and effective participation of indigenous peoples, shall provide the necessary mechanisms for the exercise of this right. (Approved on April 16, 2008, at the Eleventh Meeting of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus.)

Article XXXVI

The nature and scope of the measures that shall be taken to implement this Declaration shall be determined in accordance with the spirit and purpose of said Declaration. (Approved on April 16, 2008, at the Eleventh Meeting of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus.)

Article XXXIX

The rights recognized in this Declaration constitute the minimum standards for the survival, dignity, and well-being of the indigenous peoples of the Americas. (Approved on April 16, 2008, at the Eleventh Meeting of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus.)

The meeting also approved the first paragraphs of Articles XVII and XVIII and studied paragraph 5 of Article XVII and paragraph 2 of Article XVIII.

Article XVII. Health

1. Indigenous peoples have the collective and individual right to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical, mental, and spiritual health. (Adopted on April 18, 2008, at the Eleventh Meeting of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus.)

Article XVIII. [Right to] protection of a healthy environment

1. Indigenous peoples have the right to live in harmony with nature and to a healthy, safe, and sustainable environment, essential conditions for the full enjoyment of the right to life, to their spirituality, world view and to collective well-being. (Approved on April 16, 2008, at the Eleventh Meeting of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus.)

At the end of the meeting, the Record Of The Current Status [GT/DADIN/doc. 334/08 rev. 3] of December 30, 2008, and the Compendium of Proposals of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus held by the Working Group was registered as document [GT/DADIN/doc.255/06 rev.2 add.2] of April 18, 2008. The Report on the Ninth Meeting by the Chair of the Working Group can be found in document [GT/DADIN/doc.340/08].

- The Thirteenth Meetings of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus took place at OAS Headquarters from January 18 to 20, 2011. It was preceded by the meeting of the Indigenous Peoples’ Caucus held on January 15 to 17, 2011.

The Thirteenth Meeting of Negotiations in the Quest for Consensus approved the following articles and paragraphs: the revised title and paragraph 1 of Article XII (Right to cultural identity and integrity); paragraphs 2 and 5 of Article XVII (Health); the entire provision is now approved; article XIX (Rights of association, assembly, freedom of speech and thought); paragraphs 2 and 4 of Article XXI (Indigenous law and jurisdiction); a new title in Article XXII (Participation of indigenous peoples and contributions of indigenous legal and organizational systems); a modified title and paragraphs 2 and 3 of Article XXIII (treaties, agreements, and other constructive arrangements); paragraphs 1, 3, and 4 of Article XXVII (Labor rights); article XXXIV.

Still pending approval are: paragraph 2 of Article XII; paragraph 1 of Article XXI; article XXII; paragraph 1 of Article XXIII; paragraph 5 of Article XXVII; new paragraphs ter, quat, and quint of Article XXXIV. Record of the current status of the Draft American Declaration was updated upon the conclusion of this meeting and was published as document [GT/DADIN/doc.334/08 rev. 6. corr. 1], dated March 20th, 2011.

- The Fourteenth Meeting of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus took place at OAS Headquarters from April 18 to 20, 2012.

The meeting approved paragraph 2 of Article XV (Indigenous spirituality), the introductory paragraph of Article XXIV (Traditional forms of property and cultural survival. Right to land, territory, and resources), and paragraph 1 of Article XXIII (Treaties, agreements, and other constructive arrangements), with which that article was approved in toto. In addition, in Article XXVIII (Protection of cultural heritage and intellectual property), the meeting approved paragraph 1 ad referendum of the delegations of Brazil, Costa Rica, and Peru, and paragraph 3.

Still pending approval are: paragraphs 3 and 4 of Article XV; paragraphs 1 through 7 of Article XXIv; paragraph 2 of Article XXVIII. Record of the current status of the Draft American Declaration was updated upon the conclusion of this meeting and was published as document [GT/DADIN/doc. 334/08 rev. 7], dated May 2nd, 2012.

- The Fifteenth Meeting of Negotiations was held from February 9 to 11, 2015 at OAS headquarters, pursuant to operative paragraph 3 of resolution AG/RES. 2867 (XLIV-O/14). That meeting approved articles: XX (paragraph 2), XXIX (paragraphs 2 and 4), and XXXI (paragraph 1).

Meanwhile, the following were approved pending consultation by the delegations: III, IV, and XXIX (paragraphs 1 and 5).

Lastly, the following articles were considered and were awaiting approval: XVI (paragraph 2), XVIII (paragraph 2), XX (paragraph 1), XXIX (paragraphs 3 and 6), and all of XXX.

The February 20, 2015 version of the Record of the Current Status, published as document [GT/DADIN/doc.334/08 rev. 8], is available at: http://www.oas.org/en/sla/dil/docs/GT-DADIN_doc_334-08_rev_8.pdf.

The document containing the compendium of the negotiations is at the following link: http://www.oas.org/consejo/CAJP/Indigenous documents.asp.

- The Sixteenth Meeting of Negotiations was held from March 9 to 11, 2015 at OAS headquarters, pursuant to operative paragraph 3 of resolution AG/RES. 2867 (XLIV-O/14). Said meeting approved articles: XII (paragraph 2), XVI (paragraph 2), XVIII (paragraph 3), XX (paragraph 1), XXII (paragraphs 1 and 2), XXIV (paragraphs 2 and 4), XXV (paragraphs 1 and 2), XXVII (paragraph 5), XXVIII (paragraph 2), and XXX (paragraph 1).

Meanwhile, the following were approved pending consultation by the delegations: XXIV (paragraph 5).

Lastly, the following articles were considered and were awaiting approval: VI (paragraph 2), XVIII (paragraphs 2, 3, 5, 6, and 7), XXI (paragraph 1) XXII (paragraph 3), XXIV (paragraphs 1 and 3), XXIX (paragraph 6), XXX (paragraph 2), XXXIV (ter, quat, and quint,), and the Preamble .

The March 24, 2015 version of the Record of the Current Status, published as document [GT/DADIN/doc.334/08 rev. 9], is available at: http://www.oas.org/es/sla/ddi/docs/GT-DADIN-doc_334-08_rev9_ES.pdf.

The document containing the compendium of the negotiations is at the following link: http://www.oas.org/consejo/CAJP/Indigenous%20documents.asp.

- The Seventeenth Meeting of Negotiations was held from April 22 to 24, 2015 at OAS headquarters, pursuant to operative paragraph 3 of resolution AG/RES. 2867 (XLIV-O/14). Paragraphs 1 and 2 of the Preamble and the following articles were approved at that meeting: XV (paragraphs 3 and 4), XVIII (paragraphs 2 and 6), XXI (paragraph 1), XXIV (paragraphs 2, 3, and 4), XXVIII (paragraph 2) , XXX (paragraphs 3,4, 4.b, and 4.g ), and XXXIV sext.

Meanwhile, the following articles were approved pending consultation by the delegations: XVIII (paragraph 1), XXVIII (paragraph 1) XXIX (paragraph 6), XXX (paragraphs 2 and 5) Finally, the following articles were considered and were pending approval: III (paragraph 1), IV (paragraph 2), XVI (paragraph 2) XVIII (paragraph 5 and 7), XXIV (paragraph 5), XXVII (paragraph 5), XXXIV (ter, quat, and quint), and XXXVII.

The April 30, 2015 version of the Record of the Current Status, published as document [GT/DADIN/doc.334/08 rev. 10], is available at: http://www.oas.org/es/sla/ddi/docs/GT-DADIN-doc_334-08_rev10.pdf.

The document containing the compendium of the negotiations is at: http://www.oas.org/consejo/sp/cajp/Indigenas%20documentos.asp.

- The Eighteenth Meeting of Negotiations was held from May 13 to 15, 2015 at OAS headquarters, pursuant to operative paragraph 3 of resolution AG/RES. 2867 (XLIV-O/14).

Paragraphs 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, and 13 of the Preamble and the following articles were approved at that meeting: VI (paragraph 2), XVI (paragraph 2), XVIII (paragraph 7), XXIX (paragraph 6), and XXX (paragraphs 2, 4.f, and 4.g).

Meanwhile, the following articles were approved pending consultation by the delegations: III, IV, XVI, XXII (paragraph 2), XXIV (paragraph 5), XXV, XXVIII (paragraph 1), XXIX (paragraphs 1, 5, and 6), and XXX (paragraph 5).

Lastly, the following articles were considered and were awaiting approval: XVIII (paragraph4) and XXXIV (ter) .

The May 18, 2015 version of the Record of the Current Status, published as document [GT/DADIN/doc.334/08 rev. 11 corr. 1], is available at: http://www.oas.org/es/sla/ddi/docs/GT-DADIN-doc_334-08_rev11_corr1.pdf.

The document containing the compendium of the negotiations is at: http://www.oas.org/consejo/CAJP/Indigenous%20documents.asp.

- The Nineteenth Meeting of Negotiations in the Quest for Points of Consensus will take place at OAS Headquarters from May 17 to 19, 2016.

The main working document, corresponding to the outcome of the Eighteenth Meeting of Negotiations, published as document [GT/DADIN/doc.334/08 rev. 11 corr. 1], can be accessed from the following link: http://www.oas.org/en/sla/dil/docs/GT-DADIN-doc_334-08_rev11_corr1.pdf.

[1] The Record of the Current Status was later reviewed and registered as document Record Of The Current Status [GT/DADIN/doc. 334/08 rev. 3] of December 30, 2008.

[2] Working Group to Prepare the Draft Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Populations. See the Final Report in OEA/Ser.K/XVI GT/DADIN/doc.5/99.

[3] On that occasion, the Chair submitted document GT/DADIN/doc.214/05 containing background information from the Special Meetings, intended to facilitate dialogue among the participating delegations.

[4] The Chair of the Working Group submitted a reference document proposing May 2006 as a possible date for the Working Group to finish drafting the text of the Declaration, with its subsequent adoption by the General Assembly by December of that same year. See: Chair’s Proposal (OEA/Ser.K/XVI GT/DADIN/doc.189/04).

[5] Information recorded in document [GT/DADIN/doc.324/08 rev.1] of February 14, 2008.

[6] The comments of the three states that were received before the deadline (Argentina, Bolivia, and Ecuador) were included in document [CP/doc.4263/08] of February 29, 2008. Additional comments were received from the United States ([CP/doc.4263/08 add.1] of April 7, 2008).

[7] See: Chair’s approved text of August 28, 2003, [GT/DADIN/doc.140/03 rev.1].

[8] The first three meetings were held pursuant to resolution [AG/ RES. 1919 (XXXIII-O/03)], adopted by the General Assembly at its meeting in Santiago, Chile, in June 2003.

[9] See the result of the negotiations in document GT/DADIN/doc.151/03. rev.1.

[10] The fourth and fifth meetings were held in compliance with resolution [AG/RES. 2029 (XXXIV-O/04)], adopted by the General Assembly in Quito, Ecuador, in June 2004.

[11] The sixth and seventh meetings were held pursuant to resolution [AG/RES. 2073 (XXXV-O/05)], adopted by the General Assembly in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States, in June 2005.

[12] The eighth, ninth, and tenth meetings were held in compliance with resolution [AG/RES. 2234 (XXXVI-O/06)], adopted by the General Assembly in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, in June 2006.

[13] Reflecting the provisions adopted by consensus at the eleventh meeting, the most recent version of that document was recorded as GT/DADIN/doc.329/08 rev.2 of August 25, 2008.