INDIGENOUS VOICE REPORT
KATHMANDU, FEB.27, 2015
The national conferences of indigenous women concluded on Thursday unveiling 16-point declarations. The conference held continuously for 3-days which brought nearly 50-indigenous women representatives from across country.
The 3-day conference was jointly organized by National Indigenous Women Federation (NIWF) and Women Chapter under Nepal Federation of Indigenous Nationalities (NEFIN).
In the declaration, they have urged government to implement the provisions of International Labor Organization Convention on Indigenous Population in short known as ILO C. 169, Convention on Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Beijing Declaration on the rights of women and other Conventions and declaration relating to Indigenous women.
Similarly, they have urged government to accept the diversity and distinct identity of indigenous women, called to ensure their representation in all decision making level including in the 3-organs of the government—legislative, executive and judiciary, so as in the senior echelons of political parties in proportionate to their population.
Likewise, the declaration also called to ensure the indigenous women's rights relating to economic, social, cultural, including those the rights of indigenous women with disability, children and senior citizens.
At the mean time, they also have called to respect, protect and promote the indigenous knowledge, intangible cultures, skills, language that are inherent among the indigenous women.
Similarly, giving emphasis to communication in mother tongue, they also urged to provide free education in mother tongue, ensure prerogative rights of indigenous peoples in water, forest and natural resources and urged development agencies to maintain the principles of 'Free prior and informed consent while conducting any sort of development activities in the areas of indigenous communities in Nepal.
