National Party leader Bill English has called for an end to the exclusively Maori seats in Parliament. Mr. English has argued that “modern Maori are highly skilled operators in our current political system, their voices are heard at every level and the Maori seats have outlived their usefulness." This view has been rejected by the New Zealand Government, which counters that the Maori seats “safeguard against tyranny of the majority.” The Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand is also opposed to English’s plan.

"Before the gold was yellow, now it is black, but the color of the blood that pays for them continues being red, continues being Indian..."- U'wa Traditional Authorities

“Plan Colombia is a death sentence for us… [It] is a plan for violence. The money the United States is spending in Plan Colombia will go to protecting the international companies by purchasing arms, more sophisticated equipment, and to constructing military bases in the richest [resource] zones.” - Roberto Perez, President, U'wa Traditional Authority, Feb 7, 2001

The United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (known as MONUC) confirmed in a January 15 report accusations that rebel soldiers in the northeast have been murdering and cannibalizing the indigenous Mbuti, or Pygmies, and other civilians in the region. MONUC documented witness accounts of Mbuti being killed and eaten, or forced to cook remains of their neighbors and relatives near the town of Beni.

The Norwegian University of Tromso Center for Sami Studies is at the forefront of Sami advocacy, research, sustainability studies, education, and cultural preservation. The University offers specialized degrees, hosts lectures, steers committees, holds forums, provides multilingual courses, and awards grants to scholars and organizations. Much of their efforts are aimed specifically at sustaining and studying the Sami culture.

The European Roma Rights Center released a report on September 12 describing the ongoing human rights abuses and marginalization suffered by Roma in Poland. The report, entitled “The Limits of Solidarity: Roma in Poland After 1989”, examines episodes of racially motivated violence and discrimination against Roma, and the systematic judicial neglect of Romani victims. The document provides a detailed and troubling picture of the Roma’s exclusion from and persecution in many sectors of Polish society.