Distinct identity and cultural integrity

2. Distinct identity and cultural integrity

The Declaration provides for the protection of the distinct identity and cultural integrity of indigenous peoples through:

The right to maintain and strengthen their distinct cultural institutions⁶⁰

The right to belong to an indigenous community or nation in accordance with the customs of the community or nation concerned⁶¹

The right to practice, revitalize and transmit their cultural traditions and customs⁶²

The right to control their education systems and institutions providing education in their own languages⁶³

The right to promote, develop and maintain their institutional structures, customs, spirituality, traditions and juridical systems⁶⁴

The right to maintain, control and develop their cultural heritage and traditional knowledge⁶⁵

The right not to be subjected to forced assimilation or destruction of their culture.⁶⁶

In this context, it is worth noting that article 8 (j) of the Convention on Biological Biodiversity requires States to “respect, preserve and maintain knowledge, innovations and practices of indigenous and local communities embodying traditional lifestyles relevant for the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity and promote their wider application with the approval and involvement of the holders of such knowledge, innovations and practices and encourage the equitable sharing of the benefits arising from the utilization of such knowledge, innovations and practices”.

States are also under an obligation to take action to prevent and provide redress for any action that deprives indigenous peoples of their integrity as distinct peoples, their cultural values or ethnic identities and any form of forced assimilation or integration.⁶⁷

The Expert Mechanism has provided the following non-exhaustive definition of indigenous culture:

The Human Rights Committee has held that, for indigenous peoples, the right to culture can require that a range of other rights are also fulfilled. These can include the right to participate in customary activities;⁶⁹ the right to access lands, territories and resources;⁷⁰ the right to family;⁷¹ and the right to participate in decision-making processes that affect their cultural rights.⁷²

The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination has called upon States to “recognize and respect indigenous distinct culture, history, language and way of life as an enrichment of the State’s cultural identity and to promote its preservation”, to “provide indigenous peoples with conditions allowing for a sustainable economic and social development compatible with their cultural characteristics” and to “ensure that indigenous communities can exercise their rights to practise and revitalize their cultural traditions and customs and to preserve and to practise their languages.”⁷³

Further, the concept of indigenous spirituality is inherently connected to culture. Adopting policies that promote certain religions or prohibit indigenous spiritual practices, or the failure of laws or other governmental institutions, such as the police and courts, to respect indigenous spiritual practices, can undermine the right to culture. The Expert Mechanism has drawn attention to the right of indigenous peoples to repatriation of their ceremonial objects and human remains, which may require the cooperation of individuals and organizations where such remains are kept, including museums.⁷⁴ The Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples, while commending efforts to promote cultural diversity through policies and programmes that seek to support aesthetic aspects of cultural expression, has emphasized that States must similarly commit to recognizing cultural diversity in all its forms, including political and social structures, land use patterns and approaches to development.⁷⁵

The Expert Mechanism has further highlighted that indigenous women and children are often holders of significant cultural knowledge.⁷⁶ However, they can also be disproportionately affected by violations of the right to culture. In this regard, the Committee on the Rights of the Child has held that States may have to adopt special measures to facilitate the right to culture of indigenous children.⁷⁷ In adopting such measures, States must pay heed to the significance of the collective nature of indigenous children’s enjoyment of their cultures and the need to include indigenous peoples in decisions about the best interests of indigenous children, including the need for cultural sensitivity.⁷⁸ Language education is absolutely critical to the preservation of indigenous peoples’ cultures. It is important that effective measures are taken to preserve indigenous languages and that indigenous children be taught in their own language during the early school years and receive a multicultural education that does not devalue their indigenous cultural identity.