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Eide2001 PDF
Eide2001 PDF
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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
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262 THE AMERICANJOURNALOF INTERNATIONAL LAW [Vol. 95
This content downloaded from 137.52.76.29 on Tue, 15 Dec 2015 22:04:00 UTC
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2001] BOOK REVIEWS AND NOTES 263
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264 THE AMERICANJOURNALOF INTERNATIONAL LAW [Vol. 95
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