These two mechanisms were agreed to by IUCN and should start to be implemented this year so that results can be tabled before WCC 5. These decisions are very encouraging. I concur with Udom Charoenniyomphrai, representative from the Inter Mountain Peoples’ Education and Culture in Thailand Association (IMPECT), who said, “The agreements reached in the meeting are good. We are now hoping that they will be effectively implemented.” As for international resolutions, the impact of these decisions will hinge on the effectiveness of their implementation.
Question: How far do you think redressal of past grievances (displacements, loss of livelihoods, lack of re-settlement and rehabilitation, etc.) would be possible? Would governments be amenable on this aspect? What kind of support are you looking at?
I think that the redressal of past grievances is not only possible but crucial. In fact, one of the demands by indigenous representatives at the high-level dialogue was to set up a Truth and Reconciliation Commission on Indigenous Peoples and Protected Areas to investigate and redress past injustices, which was already accepted at the 3rd World Parks Congress in Durban in 2003. Without redress for past injustices, it will not be possible to build a relation between conservation agencies and indigenous peoples that is based on trust and respect. Acknowledging and redressing the mistakes of the past is a necessary step to move ahead.
The IUCN has already acknowledged this need with resolution 4.052 (2008), where it “INSTRUCTS the Director General and Commissions to identify and propose mechanisms to address and redress the effects of historic and current injustices against indigenous peoples in the name of conservation of nature and natural resources”. The implementation of this mechanism depends on political will from the IUCN and its members.
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