The Development of Minimum Standards for the Protection and Promotion of Rights for Indigenous Peoples

In Brazil, the government condones the killing of Indians by miners in the Yanomamo region.The same government treats the Kayapo Indians as a threat to national security for their opposition to the government's proposal to build a dam on their land.'In El Salvador, the government does not even recognize the existence of their indigenous population, despite the fact that a substantial portion of the population considers themselves indigenous. 2 Although these descriptions may sound like something out of a history book, they describe th6 present situation facing not only indigenous peoples in South and Central America, but throughout the world.Once free in their practice of self-government, traditional forms of livelihood, use of land, language, education, and religion, indigenous peoples find themselves the subjects of discrimination on a worldwide scale.Few dominant governments are willing to recognize and protect the cultural distinctions in indigenous cultures.Government aid to these peoples more commonly takes the form of encouraging the minority to become part of the dominant culture.Thus, the government endangers the qualities which distinguish indigenous peoples and their culture may be lost.An international effort is underway to establish a universal declaration of rights of indigenous peoples.Proponents hope that a declaration will establish basic minimum rights that every state will guarantee its indigenous populations.