THE CHANGING SCENARIO OF SELF-DETERMINATION OF INDIGENOUS YOUTH

Indigenous Youth as Agents of Change for Self-determination

KAKALI DAS

Introduction

“Indigenous communities, peoples and nations are those which, having a historical continuity with pre-invasion and pre-colonial societies that developed on their territories, consider themselves distinct from other sectors of the societies now prevailing on those territories, or parts of them” – the definition by UN.

Indigenous people are those people who are practising unique traditions, culture and way of life and attain social, cultural, economic and political characteristics that are distinct from other segments of the population in the societies in which they live.

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These people are mostly concerned with preserving their land, protecting and conserving biological diversity and traditional knowledge, protecting the unique language and culture.

However, due to their distinct culture and unique position in society, they often face discrimination from other sections of society. The common problem of indigenous people throughout history has been the loss of their native land due to invasion of their territory, and in subsequent colonization or development by the other sections of society and governments.

The United Nations has chosen “Indigenous Youth as Agents of Change for Self-determination” as the theme of the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples 2023, which is celebrated globally on 9 August. It marks the date of the inaugural session of the Working Group of Indigenous Populations in 1982.

The concept note published by the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues states that while indigenous youths are working as agents of change at the forefront for all kinds of pressing issues, yet they are also facing a variety of tough challenges. In particular, it notes that the adverse effects of indigenous people by colonization has spilled over to the indigenous youths as well.

There is a high probability that the future of indigenous youths will be severely impacted by climate crisis, environmental impact on the land of indigenous people, and the extraction of minerals and other natural resources within their land and territory. The permanent forum also expressed concern about youths facing multiple barriers of inaccessibility to justice, loss of traditional spirituality and faith, and loss of languages and culture.

The purpose of celebrating this day is to protect indigenous people all over the world from the adverse effects caused by globalization, modernization, privatization, market oriented production system and environmental degradation of their social, cultural, economic, political and physical life, to develop them and to protect and promote their rights, language and culture.

The Right to Self-determination of Indigenous Peoples

The selection of the theme for this year’s International Indigenous Day brings into focus the background that United Nations resolution and other international agreements regarding indigenous rights have acknowledged the right to self-determination as one of the fundamental rights of indigenous people.

As a result, the question of right to self-determination of indigenous people becomes a matter of debate. Traditionally, self-determination was recognised as a right of peoples under colonial rule to gain independence. But the inclusion of the right of self-determination into international human rights law allows for a different approach to its interpretation.

The right to self-determination is a foundational principle of international law, enshrined in a number of United Nations instruments including the: United Nations Charter; International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR); International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR); and Declaration on the Rights to Indigenous Peoples.

The common article 1 of both the Covenants states that: All people have the right of self-determination. By virtue of their right they freely determine their political status and freely pursue their economic, social and cultural development.

All people may for their own ends freely dispose of their natural wealth and resources without prejudice to any obligations arising out of international economic cooperation based upon the principle of mutual benefits. The indigenous peoples have the collective right to own and benefit from their land and resources and to promote and develop their culture.

The right to self-determination is usually understood as the right of a group of people to be collectively self-governing. It is a foundational right without which indigenous peoples’ rights cannot be fully realised.

Within the threats of contemporary forms of colonization such as globalisation and bio-colonialism, indigenous people are faced with a pressing situation that calls for the immediate recognition of their inherent right to self-determination and the ability exercising that right freely. The essential idea of self-determination is that human beings individually and as groups are equally entitled to be in control of their own destinies.

It means that indigenous people are entitled to determine the relationships with the States and be involved in being the significant voices in it. 

“All our rights either flow from or are linked to our right of self-determination,” Kenneth Deer, former co-chair of the Indigenous Peoples Caucus said. These includes our right to land, right to natural resources, our right to our language and culture, our right to our songs etc. Free, prior and informed consent also flows from the right to self-determination. Indigenous peoples contend that these rights are inherent and that the struggle is the international world failing to recognize these rights.

Indigenous youth as agents of change for self-determination

“Our youth should be our hope for the future. When we have power over our destiny, our children will flourish. They will walk in two worlds and their culture will be a gift to their country.”

The three articles of the UN Declaration confirm that Indigenous Peoples, including children and youth, have the right to make their own decisions and carry them out meaningfully and culturally appropriate to them.

Indigenous youth plays a significant role in exercising their right to self-determination, as their future depends on the decisions that are made today. They play a central role as the future custodians of culture, community and employment opportunity. Indigenous women and youth are the holders of much indigenous knowledge and are essential agents of change.

Indigenous youth are known to be able to “walk between both worlds” – that is, to navigate both traditional Indigenous Peoples’ cultures and lifestyles as well as those of modern societies.

They play a crucial role with regards to their communities’ representation, mediation and conflict resolution. They can effectively reach the communities, understand their needs, and make public information more accessible for community members (for example through social media) by bridging gaps in technology.

For instance, Indigenous youth are working as agents of change at the forefront of some of the most pressing crisis facing humanity today. Since colonization, Indigenous youth have been faced with ever-changing environments not only culturally in modern societies, but in the traditional context as well.

While living in two worlds is becoming harder as the world changes, Indigenous youth are harnessing cutting-edge technologies and developing new skills to offer solutions and contribute to a more sustainable, peaceful future for our people and planet.

Their representation and participation in global efforts towards climate change mitigation, peacebuilding and digital cooperation are crucial for the effective implementation of the right of Indigenous Peoples to self-determination, and to their enjoyment of collective and individual human rights, the promotion of peaceful co-existence, and ensuring equality of all. 

Across the world, we see numerous examples of young Indigenous Peoples creating networks and platforms to advocate for their rights. This network creation provides tailored solutions for their specific needs and connects aid efforts at local and global levels. Furthermore, they can support building connections between Indigenous Peoples, governments and international organizations.

They are pioneers in providing appropriate solutions to struggles and challenges related to climate change. Such achievement can be bolstered by upholding Indigenous youth’s voices and their leadership within local, national and international political debates to trigger positive changes within socio-economic and environmental governance.

In past years, there has been a growing call for the engagement and inclusion of youth, both indigenous and non-indigenous, in decision-making processes.

Moreover, the work of the indigenous youth is crucial to prevent the disappearance of traditional foods and food culture whilst considering the young generations’ rapidly changing values. The inherent cultural attributes of Indigenous youth towards respect for the environment and sustainability, combined with the innovative traits and socio-political activism that are found amongst many of them, can contribute to the sustenance of indigenous food systems’ resilience.

Having this unique position offers Indigenous youth the chance to effectively contribute to creating a more sustainable, resilient and interdependent system for future indigenous and non-indigenous generations. They bear critical potential in bonding traditional capacities with western scientific knowledge and innovative approaches.

In the communities, Indigenous youth plays varied roles and functions while upholding certain rights and responsibilities.

For example, from a tender age, indigenous youth, both boys and girls, are trained by their parents, the community and nature to participate in family activities, socialize with their peers and elders, through games, imitation and collaborating in activities such as agriculture, shepherding, sowing, and household chores, as well as in the way community ties are established between them. Therefore, Indigenous youth also have an intimate relationship with the land and biodiversity.

It is crucial to work with the youth – there are a lot of youth with talent, who are dynamic. The indigenous youth live with an identity crisis when they learn about and survive the impacts of colonisation, when they lose connection with the culture, language because of assimilation policies and also dealing with tradition and modernity.

I think that a culture that is going to survive is a culture evolving and adapting to modernity. And in order to achieve this, mobilisation of indigenous youth both online and offline, promoting their rights, development and awareness of self-determination with cultural identity is significant.

Hence, it is crucial to protect the fundamental rights such as freedom of association and expression, which are critical to allow Indigenous Peoples to express their views and ideas. Young people have a tremendous transformative potential and extra efforts should be made for young Indigenous Peoples to be systematically included and consulted in all dialogues.

Conclusion

The indigenous youth, while growing up, never quite understand why they experience the problems that they do – the experiences of addiction, violence, and hopelessness in the communities and family they grow up in. The structure of oppression and colonialism – which includes, systemic racism, usurping of indigenous lands, the removal of indigenous peoples from their lands etc. to name a few – have been rampant within these communities for generations.

The everyday affairs of these indigenous people have been the loss of culture and language violence, mental health issues, stereotypes, bullying trauma, isolation and a lack of public representation.

Public discourse and media does a tremendous job at affirming the negative, the hopelessness of indigenous communities and youth. But what if we affirmed the positive, what if we fostered local and national narratives that focused more on the beauty and strengths of indigenous communities and youth. Supporting youth means centring youths’ needs and voices and catering to it. Nobody knows what a person needs most more than the person who needs it.

Indigenous youths need to know that they are heard, valued, supported, loved – that there is hope for them to succeed and be connected to positivity both personally and culturally.

It’s time we actively honour indigenous and youth strengths – by directly asking the youth what they need, giving them a space, a decision-making power at roundtables, promoting youth led initiatives, by inviting them into boardrooms – supporting the indigenisation of youth programs and resources, investing in supports and resources that are specific to context and identity, specifically, programs and resources that are rooted in tradition, land, language and culture.

Besides, there is a poor representation of indigenous youths even within their own indigenous organizations. Mainly, the indigenous youths who reside in rural areas are unaware about indigenous movements. Whatever indigenous movements have taken place, they are more city oriented and populist in nature.

In context of the North-eastern part of India, the news of such movements hardly make it to core settlements and villages. Amidst this bleak reality, there is a need for this year’s International Indigenous Day to inspire positivity towards indigenous movement and reshape the movement.

Kakali Das is the Assistant Editor, Mahabahu

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