International Human Rights and

Rights of Indigenous People– Metamorphosing Corporate Social Responsibility of the

Business Organizations

Conceptual and policy framework on Human Rights and transnational corporations rest on 3 pillars :

the State duty to protect against human rights abuses by third parties, including business.

the corporate responsibility to respect human rights, meaning essentially not to infringe on the rights of others.

greater access by victims to effective remedy, judicial and non-judicial.

Indigenous Peoples are those who are having a historical continuity with pre-invasion and pre-colonial societies that developed on their territories; consider themselves distinct from other sectors of societies now prevailing in those territories, or parts of them.

The operations of certain types of companies in specific sectors -mining, oil and gas, infrastructure development, agro-commodities production, tourism, logging and pharmaceuticals, can sometimes impact the way of life of indigenous peoples.

The Right to Govern Territories: Land Conflict.

In the UNDRIP, articles 25-30 -dedicated to protection of rights to “lands, territories, and resources which they have traditionally owned, occupied or otherwise used or acquired” (UNDRIP 2007, Article 26).

The surviving lands of indigenous peoples -most vulnerable and threatened ecosystems on our planet as their territories are richly endowed with minerals, oil and gas and this become a curse because this has attracted and continues to attract extractive industries corporations to their territories.

On top of the history of wrongs are the continuing lack of effective State laws, regulations and administrative practices to recognize and protect indigenous peoples’ rights, and the lack of manifested corporate responsibility to respect those rights.

Recent events and court rulings on mining conflicts on Akawaio Village lands in the Middle

and Upper Mazaruni (a tributary of the Essequibo River in northern Guyana) are tragic examples of this blatant violation of indigenous

peoples’ rights by the mining sector.

Bangladesh: The plight of Indigenous people

In 2012, 16 people including 7 women were reported to be killed and 23 were either arrested or detained throughout the year whereas around 150 were tortured or intimidated, and around 300 indigenous houses were demolished. At least 725 families have faced threat to eviction in connection to land grabbing.

 Self Determination: Right to Autonomy, Self-Governance and FPIC (Free, Prior and Informed Consent)

UNDRIP protects rights to self-determination, access to traditional lands and resources, and processes of Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (Article 32).

The need to embark on a FPIC exercise is attached to the safeguard policies of :

multilateral development banks and international financial institutions;

practices of extractive industries; water and energy development; natural resources

management; access to genetic resources and associated

traditional knowledge and benefit-sharing arrangements;

scientific and medical research; and indigenous cultural heritage.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) of the Business Organizations: ‘Social License to Operate’ and Rights of Indigenous Peoples

CSR -corporate parallel to international regulatory and monitoring system developed within private sector to develop worldwide standards resembling what in the public sector is known as ‘International Law’.

Deficient Regulatory Frameworks -indigenous peoples’ rights remain inadequately protected, and entirely unprotected, in the face of extractive industries.

Significant Legislative and Administrative Reforms are needed in all countries in which indigenous people live

From Policies to Practice; no promises, no paper

Companies should undertake a scoping process to determine the extent to which their activities might affect indigenous communities.

The business should be cognizant to instruments such as UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (DRIP) and the ILO Convention 169 on Tribal and Indigenous Peoples .

“Companies should operate under the presumption that there are rights holders over the land into which they wish to enter and that

prior engagement is required with them.”