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Review

Author(s): Asbjørn Eide


Review by: Asbjørn Eide
Source: The American Journal of International Law, Vol. 95, No. 1 (Jan., 2001), pp. 260-264
Published by: American Society of International Law
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2642071
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260 THE AMERICANJOURNALOF INTERNATIONAL LAW [Vol. 95

itselfas the same issues recur in differentcon- attemptingto advance their interestsand in
texts.Moreover,havingorganizedand analyzed dealing withthe statesthatencompass them.
such a wide swathofmaterial,more of Shelton's Perhaps the mostfundamentalof theseprob-
own observationsand insightswould have been lems is thatin most partsof the world,indige-
welcome. As it is, much of her analysis,along nous peoples continueto have littleor no secu-
withherconclusions,is tuckedintoshortsections rityover the land and material resources on
at theend ofeach chapter.Overall,however,the whichthepreservation and developmentoftheir
book is a valuable resource.Indeed, because of culturesdepend. Moreover,since mostof these
Shelton's comprehensive approach and her peoples havea collectivist conceptionofrightsto
important,well-documentedconclusions, the land, theyneed a degree of self-government to
book willundoubtablychange the international administerthe naturalresourcesin accordance
discourseon theproblemofprovidingremedies with culturaltraditions.But the rightsof self-
forhuman rightsviolations. governmentand ofland ownershipare precisely
BETH STEPHENS
what have been so difficult forindigenouspeo-
RutgersUniversitySchoolofLaw, Camden ples to obtain from their surrounding states.
Aftera hiatus of nearlyhalf a millennium-
datingback to Franciscode Vitoria'sdefenseof
Human Rightsof IndigenousPeoples.Edited by the rights of America's indigenous peoples
CynthiaPrice Cohen. ArdsleyNY: Transna- againstSpanish colonistsin the earlysixteenth
tionalPublishers,1998. Pp. xix,442. $115. century-the concerns of indigenous peoples
once again made theirwayintotheinternational
Duringthelasttwodecades,indigenouspeoples arena and internationallaw in the 1950s (not
have been receivingincreased attentionwithin coincidentally, in the wake of the new inter-
internationallawand international organizations. national human rightsmovementthatbeganafter
CynthiaPriceCohen-the editorofHumanRights WorldWar II). Initially,internationalattention
ofIndigenous Peoplesand a leading authorityon wasfocusedon the effortto promoteequalityin
children'srights-is tobe commendedforbring- the labor market for persons of indigenous
ing togethersuch a fine group of scholarsand origins-specificallythroughthe establishment
practitionersfor the essays collected in this of standardsby the InternationalLabour Orga-
volume.The contributors include scholarsfrom nization (ILO). The overarchinggoal was to
universitiesin Australia,Canada, Sweden, and promote the integrationof indigenouspeoples
the United States,and expertswithinthe Office into societyat large. As this efforttook shape,
of the United Nations High Commissionerfor however,it became apparent that in order to
Human Rights,theInternationalLabourOrgani- avoid discriminationand exploitation of the
zation,and theOrganizationofAmericanStates, indigenous,theywouldalso need to obtainsome
as well as Sweden's ombudsmanagainst ethnic securityregardingthe occupation of theirtradi-
discrimination.Many of the authorshave been tionallands. The ILO's ConventionConcerning
activelyinvolvedin the processestheydescribe. the Protectionand Integrationof Indigenous
The essaysdocument and analyze the recent and OtherTribaland Semi-TribalPopulationsin
developmentsat theinter- IndependentCountries(No. 107) of 1957'-the
legal and institutional
national level in part 1, which is followed by firstinternationalconventionto protectindige-
studies of particularcountriesand theirindig- nous peoples-thereforeincludedprovisionsnot
enous peoples in part2. The twopartseffectively only concerning integration (Article 2) and
complementone anotherin thatthe studiesof equality of opportunity(Article 15), but also
particularpeoples well illustratethe problems concerning land tenure (Part II, particularly
thatthevariousand evolvinginternationallegal Articles11-14).
initiativesare attemptingto address. Added to In the 1970s, the human rightsbodies of the
theessaysare appendices containingthetextsof United Nationsstartedto paymore attentionto
fourconventionsand draftdeclarationsrelating theplightofindigenouspeoples.As explainedin
to the rightsof indigenous peoples. What be- thechaptersbyDouglas Sanders ("The Legacyof
comes apparentthroughthisvolumeis thatdes-
pitetheenormousdiversity ofindigenouspeoples ' ConventionConcerningthe Protectionand Inte-
-nearly 300 millionmembersof fivethousand gration of Indigenous and Other Tribal and Semi-
TribalPopulationsin IndependentCountries,June 26,
groups in seventystates-they face manycom- 1957.The conventions oftheInternational
LabourOrga-
mon challenges and recurrent problems in nizationare availableonlineat <http://www.ilo.org>.

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2001] BOOK REVIEWS AND NOTES 261

Deskaheh: Indigenous Peoples as International visions regardingemploymentand vocational


Actors") and Kirke Kickingbird ("American training,and emphasizes self-government and
Indians in the InternationalArena: A BriefHis- land control(thoughnot secession).
toryfroma United StatesPerspective"),thisnew While the ILO was negotiatingConvention
attentioncoincidedwiththeincreasingpresence 169, the WorkingGroup of the UN Sub-Com-
ofindigenousorganizationsat international sem- mission on Preventionof Discriminationand
inarsand conferences.Indigenouspeoples were Protectionof Minorities(in 1999, renamed the
no longer satisfiedwithwell-intentioned efforts Sub-Commissionon the Promotionand Protec-
to integratetheminto the cultureand economy tion of Human Rights)intensifiedits effortsto
of the surroundingsociety. Instead, theyde- drafta declarationon the rightsof indigenous
manded standardsthatwouldprotecttheirrights peoples (as described in the above-mentioned
to be different, to maintainand develop their contribution byBurger,whois theUN Secretariat
own cultures,to preservetheircontrol of the expertservicingtheworking group). Representa-
lands theyhad traditionally used, and to have tivesof indigenouspeoples participatedactively
some degree of territorialself-government. and in greatnumbers,and in 1993 the working
Beginningin the 1980s, the above concerns group adopted the Draft Declaration on the
began to have an impacton theprocessbywhich Rightsof Indigenous Peoples (Draft Declara-
standards were set at the internationallevel. tion), whichgoes some stepsfurtherthan Con-
Julian Burgernotes ("Indigenous Peoples and vention169 in important respects.Withregardto
the United Nations") that the United Nations self-determination, the Draft Declaration pro-
firstformally acknowledgedindigenouspeoples vides for it as a matterof right(elaborated in
in 1982,whenit establishedtheWorkingGroup Articles3 and 31), whereasthe ILO Convention
on Indigenous Populationsand, in an unprece- cautiouslyavoidsusingthetermaltogether.With
dented decision,allowedparticipationbyrepre- regard to rightsin land and naturalresources,
sentativesoftheindigenousorganizationsthem- the DraftDeclaration (PartVI) containsa much
selves.Since thattime,theactiveparticipationby broader and more comprehensiveconcept of
indigenousrepresentatives at theUnitedNations
ownershipto natural resources than does the
has growndramatically: themostrecentsessions
ILO Convention.Moreover,withsome qualifi-
oftheworkinggroupwereattendedbymorethan
cations,theDraftDeclarationrequiresrestitution
one thousandparticipants, mostof themindige-
ofland takenfromindigenouspeoples-an issue
nous representatives,
not dealt within the ILO Convention.
As described by Lee Swepston ("The Indige-
Followingthe sub-commission'stransmission
nous and TribalPeoples' Convention(No. 169):
of the DraftDeclaration to the Commissionon
EightYearsAfterAdoption"), theUnitedNations'
Human Rights,the latter established its own
increased attentionto the needs of indigenous
workinggroupto reviewthetext.Overthecourse
peoples, coupled witha rapidlyevolvingviewof
ofthedeliberationsin theCommission'sworking
whatthose needs are, influencedthe ILO deci-
group duringthe last six years,strongdisagree-
sion that it needed to revise Convention 107,
mentshave emerged,and thefinaltexthas yetto
which,as discussed earlier,dated back to the
be decided upon. Many governmentsare op-
1950s. The new efforts culminatedin the adop-
posed to therightto self-determinationunlessit
tionin 1989 of theILO ConventionConcerning
is narrowly circumscribed,and wantalso to limit
Indigenous and Tribal Peoples in Independent
the extensivescope of controlover naturalre-
Countries(No. 169).2 Convention169 setsforth
sources that is envisaged for the indigenous
policy guidelines for the recognitionof, and
peoples in PartVI of the DraftDeclaration.
respectfor,the collectivevalues of indigenous
Whereas most of the internationalhuman
peoples; protectstheirrightsto determinetheir
ownpriorities,to maintaintheircustomsinsofar rightseffortsconcerning indigenous peoples
as these are compatiblewithindividualhuman have primarilyaddressed theircollectiverights,
rights,and to ownand possesstheirtraditionally editor Cohen's own essay ("InternationalPro-
occupied lands; and providesfor a degree of tectionof the Rightsof Indigenous Children")
internalautonomy.UnlikeConvention107,Con- focuseson theneed to protccttheindividualhu-
vention169 givessecondaryimportanceto pro- man rightsof indigenouschildren.The founda-
tionforherdiscussionis the1989UN Convention
2
Convention Concerning Indigenous and Tribal
Peoples in Independent Countries,June 27, 1989, 3See UNDoc. E/CN.4/SUB.2/1994/2/Add.1(1994),
reprinted
in 28 ILM 1382 (1989). from<http://www.unhchr.ch>.
obtainable

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262 THE AMERICANJOURNALOF INTERNATIONAL LAW [Vol. 95

on the Rightsof the Child,4now nearlyuniver- thatthe resultingtensionsbetweenconcepts of


sallybinding. That Conventionmakes explicit group rightsand the individualare an echo of
referencesto indigenouschildrenin Articles17, the tensionsbetween traditionand modernity
29, and 30,butthepartiesto theConventionare, thatcan be seen in [ILO Convention169] and
of course, obligated to ensure that indigenous theU.N. [D] raftDeclaration'seducationarticles"
childrenare also protectedbyall oftheConven- (pp. 61-62). Group rightsand individualrights
tion'sotherprovisions.Cohenfears,however,that can, in myopinion,be harmonized.Both can be
the rightsofindigenouschildren,consideredas partsof evolvingmodernity(or postmodernity).
individuals,may conflictwiththe wayin which Mostinstruments includeprovisionsthatcan and
the group rights of indigenous peoples are should be interpretedto givepriority to individ-
formulatedor implemented. ual human rightsin case of conflict.It remains
the ultimateresponsibilityof the stateto ensure
There is a dangerthatin therushto protect
the rightsof the indigenous group, the thatindividualhuman rightsare respectedand
declarationswill inadvertentlytreat indig- protected,evenwhengroupsare givenextensive
enous children as tribalproperty.... Consid- autonomy.The relevantprovisionin the Draft
eringthatthe "childas property" conceptis Declaration (Article2) states:"Indigenousindi-
completelyantitheticalto the principlesof viduals and peoples are free and equal to all
theConventionon theRightsoftheChild,if
other individualsand peoples in dignityand
existingchildrightsprinciplesare notappro-
priatelyrecognizedby those in the indige- rights,and have the rightto be free fromany
nous rightsmovement, thereis thepossibility kindofadversediscrimination, in particularthat
thatthiscould createserioustensionsatsome based on theirindigenous origin or identity."
timein thefuture.(P. 38) This provisionmustbe interpretedto mean that
Cohen's main point is thatthe referencesto indigenouschildrenhave the same rightsas any
the rightsof indigenouschildrenwereincluded other children and cannot be denied any of
almostas an afterthought in the Conventionon those rightson the basis of theirbeing indige-
theRightsoftheChild-and thenonlyin regard nous children.Likewise,Article3 of ILO Con-
to some particularaspects(access to appropriate vention 169 provides: "Indigenous and tribal
informationin Article17, determiningthe aims peoples shall enjoy the fullmeasure of human
of education in Article29, and the provisionin rightsand fundamentalfreedomswithouthin-
Article30 that the children of minoritiesand drance or discrimination. The provisionsof the
indigenousgroupsshall not be denied the right Convention shall be applied withoutdiscrimi-
to theirowncultures).These specificreferences nation to male and female members of these
to indigenouschildrenmightgivetheimpression peoples." Although not explicitlystated, it is
thatthe otherarticlesof the Conventionwould clearlyimpliedthatchildrenoftribaland indige-
not applyto indigenouschildren.That was not, nous peoples shallalso enjoythefullmeasureof
of course,what the draftersof the Convention human rightsand fundamentalfreedoms.
intended, but Cohen fearssuch an interpreta- Despite thisdisagreementwitheditorCohen
tion mightbe the outcome unless the issue is about how to analyze group versus individual
properlyaddressed.She also pointsout thatthe rightsas theypertainto indigenous children,I
rightsof the child are generallyoverlookedin do agreewithherthattheprocessofformulating
the DraftDeclaration. and implementingthe rightsof the individual
What editorCohen addresseshere is, in this indigenous child needs to be given careful
reviewer'sopinion, part of the much broader attentionin orderto ensure thatthereis no dis-
question of the relationshipbetweenthe rights criminationrelativeto nonindigenouschildren.
of groups-indigenous peoples, minorities,and Group rights,which are essential in order to
so on-and theimplementationofthe"regular," protectself-esteem and identity,can also contain
individualhuman rights.But I am reluctantto a riskforthe individual.
endorse her suggestionthat"[i] t mightbe said The essaysin part2 of HumanRightsofIndige-
nousPeoplesfocus on the national situationsof
4 UN Conventionon the Rightsof the Child, Nov. indigenousgroups and on the statusand evolu-
20, 1989, 1577 UNTS 3. It is the mostuniversallyrati- tionoftheirrightsin particular
countries. Develop-
instrument.
fiedinternational One hundredninety-one mentsin theAmericas,India,Papua New Guinea,
stateshavebecome partiesto theConvention.Onlytwo and Scandinavia are explored. Deepal Kumar
states have not ratifiedit: Somalia and the United
States. Behera ("'So-CalledDevelopment'and ItsImpact

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2001] BOOK REVIEWS AND NOTES 263

on the Human Rightsof Indigenous Peoples in bytheestablishment ofreservations.The indige-


India") uses empirical materialfrom India to nous persons living on reservationswere not
explore the natureof the problemsmanyindig- even givenU.S. citizenshipuntil1924, but from
enous peoples have faced and continue to face thenon therehas been an almostcompleteturn-
in many states.Under the heading "So-Called about. A policyof assimilationin the 1920s and
Development,"the authorargues that 1930s was followed-beginning in 1953-by a
"termination"policyaimedatendinganyrelation-
environmentaldegradationin India arises
primarilybecause ofa ruthlessexploitationof ship betweenthe tribesand the federalauthor-
the biosphere by a small clique of greedy ities.More thana hundredtribesand bandswere
people whoare unmindfulofthesuffering of thus"terminated."Worthenobserves,however,
thevastmajorityof indigenouspeoples and thatduringthelastthirtyyears, federalpolicyhas
unconcerned about their future.This is begun to recognizethecentralplace of thetribe
possiblebecause thatgroup controlsa dis-
proportionately largepartofthebiosphere, in the resolutionof the "Indian problem"-a
especiallythe land: the agricultural,forest, change thathas allowed tribesto have greater
and urban space. The "so-called develop- self-determination.There neverthelessremains
ment" has made India's living resources considerable public opposition to tribalsover-
mostvulnerableand leftitsbiodiversity ex- eignty,which has also been limitedin several
posed tovariousecological threats.(P. 110) cases decided bythe U.S. Supreme Court.
The author notes thatdam and miningpro- Worthenargues convincinglythatneitherof
jects,as wellas manyindustrial,commercial,and the two above approaches provides a satisfac-
shrimp-farming projects,have oftenhad devas- torysolution.
tatingconsequences fortheindigenouspeoples
The Chilean systemhas ignoredindigenous
of the areas affected."The outrageous techno- groups. The United States has recognized
logical model ofdevelopmentand the notionof theirexistence,buthas thengenerallyforced
nationalinteresthaveprogressively depletedthe individualNativeAmericansto choose be-
survivalbases oftheindigenouspeople and their tweenfullmembershipin theAmericansoci-
alreadylimitedpoliticalautonomy"(p. 122). He etyor fullmembershipin the tribe.Neither
has soughtto focuson thewayin whichthe
refersto a studyshowingthat56 percentof the group itselfmightbe empowered to solve
slum dwellers in the larger Indian cities are the problems that individualmembers of
indigenous and tribal people who have been the groupfaceand to contribute to theover-
forcedtoleavetheirvillagesbecause oftheimpact ofthenation.(P. 266)
all well-being
of such "developments."In the cityslums to The answer,he concludes, is to ensure ade-
which these people have been displaced, the quate space for"intermediateorganizations"-
inhabitantslive in continuous insecurityand "groupsbetweenthe individualand the nation"
subhumanconditions.Social servicesare scarce, (p. 266)-in the constitutionalsystem.Such an
and hygienicconditionsareunsatisfactory." [T] he intermediateorganization-forexample,a parlia-
responseof the cityplannersto slumshas either mentelectedbyan indigenousgroupsuch as the
been apatheticor authoritarian"(id.). Saami (see discussion below)-can serve as a
In viewofsuch recurrent,structural problems "mediatingstructure,"
thatconfrontindigenouspeoples in manyparts
of theworld,whatpoliciesare requiredin order as a bufferbetweenthe individualand the
megastructuresof society, such as the
to avoidsuchdispossessionand marginalization? Nation-State.It is a group thathas connec-
What can be done? tionswithboththeindividualand theState.
In "The Role ofIndigenousGroupsin Consti- It has both a public face (whichit presents
tutionalDemocracies:A Lesson fromChile and to the State) and a privateface (which it
the United States,"Kevin Worthenreflectson presentsto itsmembers). (P. 267)
the differencesbetween Chile, where the basic The existence of intermediate organizations
approach since 1819 has been to emphasize the makesitpossibleforthemembersofeach group
equalityof everyoneon an individualbasis,thus to recognize theirrightsand duties withinthe
leading to theneglectoftheindigenouspeoples largerstatewhile also providingthemwithpro-
as groups,and theUnitedStates,wherethebasic tectionagainstextremeassimilationistpressures.
approach has long been to separate the indige- The present reviewerfinds this approach a
nous peoples or tribesfromtheAmericannation veryconstructiveone. It corresponds,indeed, to

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264 THE AMERICANJOURNALOF INTERNATIONAL LAW [Vol. 95

therecommendationssetforthin myownstudy5 concerning,therightsofindigenouspeoples and


forthe United NationsSub-Commissionon the theirmembers.There has been a dynamicdevel-
Preventionof Discriminationand Protectionof opmentoverthelastthreedecades-both inter-
Minorities,in which I argued that solutions nationallyand withinmanystateswhereindige-
should combinethreeelements:ensuringequal- nouspeopleslive.Pastinjusticesand discrimination
ityin thecommondomain;facilitating pluralism have been widelyrecognized, and there is an
in togethernessby allowingforsome degree of increasingwillingnesstofindbettersolutions.In
cultural autonomy;and the use of territorial searchingforsuchsolutions,itis important torec-
subdivision,which would make possible a lim- ognize thathuman development-construed col-
ited,territorial
self-government overcertainissues. lectivelyand historically-isnot mainlya ques-
The wisdom of Worthen's conclusion is ap- tion of capital accumulationor technologicalad-
parent in BradfordMorse's essay ("Two Steps vancement. Humandevelopmentrequiresrespect
Forwardand One Step Back: The Frustrating forthedignityand theidentityofhumanbeings,
Pace of Buildinga New Aboriginal-Crown Rela- includingthe indigenouswho have in the past
tionshipin Canada"), as well as in FrankOrton been marginalized,neglected,or exploited.Ade-
and Hugh Beach's essay ("A New Era for the quate solutions require the protection of a
Saami People ofSweden"). Morsesees reasonfor combination of human rightsfor all and of
hope and progressin Canada's acceptance-on suitablegroup rightsforthe indigenous.
thefederallevel-both ofthe"'inherentright'of In the formulationand implementationof
self-government" (p. 356) and of the need for group rights-including limited autonomy or
improvedconstitutional protectionofaboriginal sovereignty-itis essentialto make them open
and treatyrights.He is similarlyencouraged by and flexible,makingitpossibleforthemembers
Canada's renewed emphasis on creating eco- of such groupsto move back and forthbetween
nomic opportunitiesfor aboriginalpeople, on theirgroups and the larger society,and to be
improvingeducation,and on developingbetter culturalinnovatorswithintheirgroupswithout
methodsforsettlingland claims.The Saamis of riskof exclusion or repression.Above all, it is
northernScandinaviaand Finland, as noted by essential that members of indigenous groups,
Orton and Beach, have also in recent years likeeveryoneelse in society,enjoytheiruniversal
found increasingacceptance of theirdemands human rightsas set out in the UniversalDecla-
forgreaterlocal autonomy.In each of the three rationof Human Rights.
countriestheauthorsstudied-Norway,Sweden, Itwouldhavebeen desirablefortheauthorsto
and Finland-separate Saami parliamentshave discussin greaterdepththedilemmainvolvedin
been established,even while the Saamis enjoy harmonizinggrouprightsand individualhuman
thefullrightsofcitizenshipand participatefully rights.EditorCohen touchesupon it,and itis im-
in the general political life of theirparticular plicitin the chapterbyWorthenon the Chilean
countries.Althoughthe Saami parliamentsini- and U.S. experiences. The relativescarcityof
tiallyhave been givenmainlyadvisoryfunctions, analysisreflects,however,thegeneralorientation
theintentionis to transfer an increasingamount of the book, which provides rich background
of authorityto them.It is alreadyapparent that information-foodforfurther thought-without
these bodies servejust in the waythatWorthen presentingextensiveanalysisor criticism.
suggests-as mediating buffersbetween the Human RightsofIndigenous Peopleswould be a
Saami and theirlargersocieties,whose cultures, usefulcomplementto human rightsstudies at
languages,and prioritiesfordevelopmentdiffer universitiesby providinga deeper insightinto
significantlyfromthoseof the Saami. issuesrelatedto the collectiverightsof peoples.
By way of conclusion, I have found Human The book would also prove useful in the ever
RightsofIndigenous tobe a veryusefulbook.
Peoples increasing number of law school courses on
Bycombiningnationalstudieswitha reviewand indigenous or aboriginallaw. Finally,it should
analysis of the internationaldevelopments,it be especiallyvaluable forthe growingcadre of
provides an excellent background for under- policymakersand administrators-atboth the
standing the currentstatus of, and prospects national and internationallevels-who have to
addressindigenousissues.
'Possible Waysand Means ofFacilitatingthePeace- ASBJ0RNEIDE
ful and ConstructiveSolution of ProblemsInvolving
Minorities,UN Doc. E/CN.4/Sub.2/1993/34 (1993). Institute
Norwegian ofHumanRights

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