Human Righs Council has appointed Jose Francisco Cali Tzai, a new Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. He will assume the post from 2021, after the tenure of current Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Victoria Tauli-Corpuz ends in 2020.
Cali Tzai is the fourth person to serve as Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. The first person to serve as Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples was Dr. Rodolfo Stavanhagen from, Mexico, followed by Prof. James Anaya from USA and then Victoria Tauli Corpuz from Philippines.
Jose Francisco Cali Tzay comes from Mayan Kaqchikel indigenous community, from Guatemala. He previously served as president of the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD), the first Indigenous expert to hold the highest position in the UN system.
Human Righs Council has appointed Jose Francisco Cali Tzai, a new Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
Special Rapporteurs are independent experts appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council to examine and report on a country situation or a specific human rights issue. They serve in their personal capacity and are independent from any government.
Special Rapporteur on the rights of Indigenous Peoples has mandates to conduct fact-finding missions and submit reports on the human rights situation of indigenous peoples in specific countries and address the cases of alleged violations of the rights of indigenous peoples through communication with governments and others. Similalry has a mandate to promote good practices to implement international standards concerning the rights of indigenous peoples and conducts thematic studies on the topics of special importance to the promotion and protection of the rights of indigenous peoples globally.
Likewise, Human Rights Council also appoints Binota Moy Dhamai, as member from Asia-Pacific at the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (EMRIP). EMRIP is a subsidiary body of the Human Rights Council. It conducts research works and studies and provides expert advice to the Council. Binota comes from Jumman-Tripura indigenous community from the Chittagong Hill Tracts, Bangladesh.
