UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

BBC Reports:

"The United Nations General Assembly has adopted a non-binding
declaration on the rights of indigenous peoples after 22 years of
debate.

The document proposes protections for the human rights of native
peoples, and for their land and resources.

It passed despite opposition from Australia, Canada, New Zealand and
the United States. They said it was incompatible with their own laws.

***********

A leader of a group representing Canada's native communities criticised his government's decision to oppose the declaration.

"We're very disappointed... It's about the human rights of indigenous peoples throughout the world. It's an important symbol," said Phil Fontaine, leader of the Assembly of First Nations.

'Need for balance'

Campaign group Survival International says Canada's Innu tribe, who live in the frozen Labrador-Quebec peninsula, are struggling to maintain their traditional lifestyle as the government allows mining concessions, hydro-electric power schemes, and roads on their land.

The Canadian government said it supported the "spirit" of the declaration, but could not support it because it "contains provisions that are fundamentally incompatible with Canada's constitutional framework."

"It also does not recognise Canada's need to balance indigenous rights to lands and resources with the rights of others," a joint statement from the Canadian ministries of Indian and Foreign Affairs said.