Arctic Peoples

By Clive Tesar

People from six villages, three on the Alaskan side of the Bering Strait, and three on the Russian side, are taking part in a ground-breaking monitoring program designed to track changes in the area. The Bering Sea Sub-Network (BSSN) will include the communities of Sand Point, Gambell, and Togiak in Alaska. They will be joined by Nikolskoye, Tymlat and Kanchalan in Russia. These sites provide broad coverage of the Bering Sea, and represent communities with a strong tradition of local and indigenous Knowledge.

This is a wonderful opportunity to draw on the wealth of knowledge possessed by Indigenous Peoples on both sides of the Bering Sea,

says Victoria Gofman, principal investigator of the BSSN.

What struck me as I travelled to the villages has how eager people were to share that knowledge, and to have an opportunity to do something about the changes that are affecting their communities.

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RAIPON Vice-President Pavel Sulyandziga">This is anRAIPON Vice-President Pavel Sulyandziga"> edited version of an interview with Russian Association of Indigenous Peoples of the North ( RAIPON ) Vice-President Pavel Sulyandziga. The original interview by Alexandra Beluza first appeared in the Russian Newspaper “Tribuna”.

Pavel Vasilyevich, recently the [Russian Federation] legislaRAIPON Vice-President Pavel Sulyandziga">tors rejectedRAIPON Vice-President Pavel Sulyandziga">RAIPON Vice-President Pavel Sulyandziga" height="432" style="width: 316px; height: 432px" title=" RAIPON Vice-President Pavel Sulyandziga" /> a bill on ethnological appraisal initiated by RAIPON .

Yes, we did propose that the state should include an ethnological study to find out how a particular business project impacts a traditional life style of an aboriginal community. I can give you an example of such influence from the life of my own people. Until the 1970s, eight ethnic groups of the Udege people existed, while today only half of them are left because the Ussury taiga forest was cut down on the territories where four of them used to live, which deprived them of their hunting grounds and in effect removed the economic basis of their livelihoods from their under their feet.

In my opinion, it is here that the gravest danger lies: depriving the indigenous peoples of opportunities to practice their traditional pursuits on which their culture, language, traditions and customs are based. Many negative developments took place in Soviet times, yet then the authorities supported the traditional economies of Indigenous Peoples. Today the government has practically abandoned any policy regarding the small Indigenous Peoples.

The Law on Guarantees of Small Peoples’ Rights has been so badly mutilated over the past few years that there are practically no rights left. The Law on Territories of Traditional Natural Resources Use of the Small Indigenous Nations of the Russian North, Siberia and the Far East has been in effect since 2001, yet not a single such territory has since been created. Read the rest of this entry »

by Clive Tesar

The United Nations has overwhelmingly passed a Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. The Declaration, more than 20 years in the making, passed by a vote of 143 in favour, four against, and eleven abstaining.

Of the eight Arctic states, the United States and Canada voted against the declaration, while Russia abstained. Denmark and Finland were among a large group of countries that sponsored the Declaration.

The passing of the Declaration was called a “Day of Joy” for Indigenous Peoples by Aqqaluk Lynge, representing Inuit Circumpolar Council – Greenland. Lynge added, “Now it’s time to look at the future and see how we can protect the rights of the Indigenous Peoples and using this Declaration, for the further development of Indigenous Peoples and away from marginalization into being part of the development of the whole world.”

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The Coordinating Council is a Board comprised of 34 regional RAIPON chapters and meets twice a year. The most recent meeting was held on November 25, 2006.

During the meeting, Pavel Sulyandziga, First Vice-President of RAIPON reported on the work of the Permanent Forum. The Board proposed that Mr. Sulyandziga include in the agenda the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation’s meeting issues concerning the Indigenous Peoples’ problems. The Council also discussed the idea of holding the seminar in one of the regions of Russia with participation from the UN Permanent Forum members. The information has been offered on the special seminar on the preparation of the World Report on the State of the Indigenous Peoples which take place in Salekhard on December 1-2, 2006. RAIPON will create an expert group to draft its part of the report. More information will be available in the coming days.
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On November 23-24 RAIPON held a round table discussion on the Ratification of the International Labour Organization Convention (No. 169) concerning Indigenous and Tribal Peoples in Independent Countries in the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation. The first day was given to the representatives of governments and Indigenous Peoples of Norway, Denmark and Guatemala to share their experiences in the realization of the convention status and the submission of the reports to the ILO.

The second day was dedicated to the analysis of the Russian legislation with regard to the provisions of the ILO Convention, discussions and final recommendations.

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Russian Association of Indigenous Peoples of the North ( RAIPON ) is pleased to invite Arctic Council members, Permanent Participants and other stakeholders to attend the International Fair - Exhibition “NORTHERN CIVILIZATION. REGION EXPO 2007 “, which will take place in Moscow (All Russian Exhibition Center), April 25-27, 2007.

This Fair will become the important event for all Indigenous Peoples of the Russian North, Siberia and the Far East and for the Circumpolar region at whole.

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by Clive Tesar

A United Nations declaration affirming the rights of the world’s Indigenous Peoples has been set aside for further consultation. The declaration, which has been in negotiation for more than 20 years, was delayed after a resolution put forward by Namibia was backed by other African countries. Of the Arctic states, Canada and Russia voted in favour of Namibia’s resolution, while the United States abstained. Finland, speaking on behalf of the European Union, spoke against it, calling the move a “groundless delay”. Denmark, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden all joined Finland in voting against the delay.

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