Sixty five years ago, on December 10, 1948, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights declaring that "all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights." Yet, Indigenous Peoples worldwide still struggle to protect their basic rights and suffer gross human rights abuses.
Today, on International Human Rights Day, Cultural Survival is celebrating the resilience of Indigenous Peoples and people everywhere like you that see a way forward through sovereignty and self-determination for the thousands of Indigenous Peoples and their communities around the globe.
In this spirit, a generous donor has pledged a $50,000 challenge grant to inspire year-end giving to support our work. We need you to make this happen!
1. Support Cultural Survival's work with Indigenous communities. Make a gift today and double your impact.
Thanks to our Board of Directors, all gifts made till December 31 will be matched dollar-for-dollar up to $50,000. Your gift will enable us to continue our critical work with Indigenous radio stations in Guatemala and Belize and launch campaigns to bring attention to violations of Indigenous Peoples' rights of Free, Prior and Informed Consent by agribusiness and extractive industries. We thank you!!!!
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2. Learn about the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and share it widely.
In 2007, the UN General Assembly adopted another important declaration, the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. This document has become a universal agreement for Indigenous Peoples rights and a blueprint for how Indigenous Peoples worldwide should be treated. It seeks to affirm and empower people who for centuries have systematically faced genocide and have continually experienced human rights violation. #UNDRIP
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3. Spread the world about Free, Prior and Informed Consent.
To further advocate for the rights of Indigenous peoples worldwide, Cultural Survival is developing an innovative new radio series to spread the word about the right of Indigenous Peoples to Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC). We are producing and distributing a series of radio programs on the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples to inform Indigenous listeners about their rights under international law. Listen to the programs at consent.cs.org and please help us spread the world about this great resource. #FPIC
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4. Ban Coal Mine, Save Forests and Farm in Bangladesh.
Protests were held outside the Annual General Meeting of British mining company Global Coal Management Resources (GCM) on December 4th over the company’s Phulbari coal mine in Bangladesh. The protests were held by UK solidarity groups the London Mining Network, Phulbari Solidarity Group, and the UK Committee to Protect Oil-Gas and Mineral Resources in Bangladesh. GCM wants to bulldoze 12,000 acres of Bangladesh’s most productive agricultural land and replace it with one of the world’s largest open-pit coal mines. By their own account, they would forcibly displace 40,000 people in the Phulbari region, including at least 2,200 Indigenous people whose history in the area dates back 5,000 years. Seven UN human rights experts have called for an immediate halt to the project.
The Phulbari coal project has been on hold since 2006 due to intense local opposition. Three people were killed and many more injured when paramilitary officers opened fire on a protest against the mine in 2006. See Cultural Survival's campaign here and TAKE ACTION to make sure the Bangaldesh government continues to deny GCM their required permits.
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5. Read our latest issue of the Cultural Survival Quarterly on Indigenous Women.
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6. Spread the Word!
One of the easiest and most effective things you can do is raise awareness about human rights abuses of Indigenous Peoples. Forward, post this message on facebook, or tweet it! #UDHR #UNDRIP #FPIC
