International Day of the World's Indigenous People: United Nations Headquarters tells you about the situation of indigenous peoples in the Asia Pacific region

Good friends, welcome to listen to "Today's United Nations." We broadcast from the headquarters in New York to bring you the latest developments in the United Nations around the world. I'm Huang Liling.

Today's summary:

- UN Headquarters celebrates "International Day of the World's Indigenous People"

- United Nations agencies: Gaza faces closure and relies entirely on the brink of aid

- Feature article: The situation of indigenous peoples in the Asia Pacific region

First of all, please listen to the details of the news broadcast by Li Maoqi.

Sha Zukang: Protecting indigenous people is a manifestation of world civilization

The United Nations held a ceremony Thursday to commemorate the "International Day of the World's Indigenous People." Through the observance of the International Day of the World's Indigenous People, the United Nations hopes that the international community will have the opportunity to recognize the enormous challenges that indigenous peoples face and to assist them in the areas of development, human rights and education.

Sha Zukang, the deputy secretary-general for economic and social affairs, said that the protection of vulnerable groups and the protection of indigenous people are a manifestation of world civilization.

Sha Zukang: "Indigenous people, one of the world's most vulnerable groups, have been discriminated against all year long and their disasters and misfortune have drawn the attention of the international community. Over 20 years ago, the United Nations set up a working group to study how to improve the situation of indigenous people Last year the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples was reached, which was approved by the Human Rights Council and submitted to the General Assembly this year. We hope that this declaration will further arouse the international community's sympathy for indigenous people. "

The United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Mickey and others also attended the ceremony.

The program will have more coverage later on the International Day of Indigenous People.

UN agencies: Gaza faces closure and relies entirely on the brink of aid

Philippine Grandi, the UNRWA deputy commissioner in charge of assisting Palestine refugees, said after his visit to Gaza on Thursday that Gaza is facing the danger of being trapped in isolation, closure and total reliance on relief within a few weeks. United Nations Deputy Spokesman Farhan Haq said the current situation in Gaza is worrying.

Huck: "UNRWA has been forced to stop its $ 93 million construction project in Gaza, and agricultural production is one aspect of concern."

Grandi called on the Palestinian authorities, Israel and all other parties concerned to take immediate and concrete steps to liberalize the Karni crossing point in northern Gaza and to allow the passage of goods for import and export as well as humanitarian aid. He pointed out that only by doing so would it be possible to keep Gaza's economy going.

WFP: The impact of floods in South Asia can hardly be eliminated at this moment

The World Food Program said on Thursday that the impact of the flood disaster in South Asia will continue for some time and the international community will therefore need to give long-term relief to the region. WFP spokesman Paul Risley said WFP stands ready to provide food aid and logistics support to the disaster-stricken areas. He also called on the international community to provide financial support for the post-disaster recovery.

RASLEY: "There is nothing salient about this year's floods compared to five years ago and 10 years ago, but the number of people lost and affected is much larger than in the past One of the reasons could be the increase in population and agricultural activity in the area, which has caused the loss of a large amount of arable land. "

According to reports from United Nations agencies, a large number of impoverished families in the affected areas of India, Bangladesh, Nepal and Pakistan have lost their livestock, crops and even family members and are still in a difficult position after the floods have receded.

So far, Nepal has been the only country that formally demanded that the international community provide food aid. WFP has taken urgent measures to provide 3 months of food for 60,000 of the 330,000 most affected people. WFP expects an additional $ 1.5 million in additional funding for disaster relief in Nepal.

Emergency Relief Officer: Increasing global disasters but decreasing casualties thanks to the establishment of an early warning system

At a press conference held in New York headquarters Thursday, United Nations Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator Margareta Wahlstrom said that although the number of floods has risen in recent years, the casualties caused by the disaster have been brought under control.

Valström: "(English) Despite the tremendous impact that massive disasters have on the lives of countless people, the number of deaths is therefore limited, thanks to the fact that over the past three or four decades the international community has been Early warning systems and preparedness, as a result of warnings and timely precautions, coupled with the availability of rescue systems, the number of casualties has been significantly reduced. "

Valström said that in the past 10 years, the number of floods has increased from over 200 to over 400 times a year. As of 2007 to August, 70 floods have occurred in the world.

WHO warns of the rise of dengue fever in Southeast Asia

On Thursday, the World Health Organization warned that countries in Southeast Asia should promptly take measures to prevent a large-scale dengue outbreak. According to WHO, the number of Dengue Fever cases reported by many countries in Southeast Asia this year has been on the rise.

WHO pointed out that the number of dengue cases in Indonesia doubled from the same period in 2005, while Myanmar and Thailand also increased by 29% and 17% respectively. In many other Asia-Pacific countries, the number of cases has also seen an unprecedented increase. WHO data show that 70% of the world's dengue cases occur in Southeast Asia and the Western Pacific.

Dengue fever is a mosquito-borne acute tropical viral disease. Patients typically experience symptoms of high fever, joint pain, nausea and headache, and some people experience internal bleeding and circulatory disorders.

WHO said there is currently no specific drug or vaccine against dengue, and prevention and control work mainly on the control of media mosquito breeding. The main solution is to clear up stagnant water.

The UN urged Sri Lanka to investigate the killing of humanitarian workers

At the conclusion of his visit to Sri Lanka, UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Holmes once again urged Sri Lankan authorities to investigate in depth the killings of humanitarian aid workers. Sri Lanka's President Mahinda Rajapaksa said after his meeting with Holmes that an investigation into the killings of a number of humanitarian workers will be completed as soon as possible, in particular the encounter of 17 humanitarian workers in the "Action Against Hunger" one year ago Execution of killings.
On 6 August last year, 17 staff members of the French non-governmental organization Action Against Hunger were executed and executed in a murderous manner in Muttur, in eastern Sri Lanka. In the past year, another 11 aid workers were killed in the country.

In 2007, the United Nations and other non-governmental organizations conducted a joint rescue operation valued at $ 120 million in Sri Lanka. Holmes stressed the crucial importance of ensuring that humanitarian agencies can provide sustained and unimpeded assistance to the northeastern region of Sri Lanka.

Current Affairs: International Day of the United Nations to Commemorate the World's Indigenous People

Thursday, August 9 is the "International Day of the World's Indigenous People." A ceremony was held at United Nations Headquarters to commemorate this day of recognition and affirmation of the unique cultures and traditions of Indigenous peoples and their lifestyles associated with nature and to arouse the world's attention to the issue of indigenous peoples. Please listen to Xiao Fan's report.

Perhaps people have forgotten that the upper New York state, just a few tens kilometers from Manhattan, where the United Nations headquarters in New York is located, still lives in Indians living here and now. What you have heard just now is the concert of the Mohawk Women's Choir Team from there at the UN ceremony to commemorate the "International Day of the World's Indigenous People."

At present, there are about 300 million indigenous people in the world, located in about 70 countries. Through the observance of the International Day of the World's Indigenous People, the United Nations hopes that the international community will have the opportunity to recognize the enormous challenges that indigenous peoples face and to assist them in the areas of development, human rights and education.

Deputy Secretary-General Mickey Luo read out a speech by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

Ban Ki-moon "(English) Today, indigenous peoples have their own home in the United Nations, but we should also bear in mind today that indigenous peoples still face discrimination, are marginalized from society, run abject poverty and are caught in conflicts; their traditional lands and Their means of livelihood may be deprived, they may be displaced, their belief systems, culture, language and way of life may be damaged, and they may even be extinct. "

At a commemorative event, Sha Zukang, the UN Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs, reviewed the long course of the indigenous rights issue.

Sha Zukang (English) Today, 25 years ago, the first session of the United Nations Working Group on Indigenous People held its primary goal of drafting a declaration on the rights of indigenous peoples. Last year, the Human Rights Council adopted a declaration that the current declaration has been submitted At the UN General Assembly, the United Nations today has no more important task than the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples at this session of the Joint Assembly. The manifest manifestation of the declaration is that it respects the rights of indigenous peoples and allows us to work together to bring it to fruition. "

Elsa Stamatopoulou, secretariat of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, read

Forum Chairman Victoria Tauli-Corpuz's speech.

Tory-Coleps: "(English) A significant step forward in ending the violation of the rights of indigenous people around the world at the forthcoming General Assembly Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, I ask the General Assembly to conclude the 61st Session on September 17 Before the declaration. "

Sha Zukang expressed the hope that Member States would participate in the consultation on the "Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples" in the spirit of sympathy for the indigenous peoples and in the spirit of mutual understanding and mutual accommodation, and expressed optimism at the declaration adopted at this session of the General Assembly.

Sha Zukang: "It should be no problem for the adoption of the declaration before the end of this UN General Assembly. The key issue is the form by which we all hope that the declaration can be adopted by consensus - that is, by consensus and by no objection So that it can increase the moral and political power of the declaration, but so far a few individual countries still have some opinions about what is written in the declaration, and the relevant consultations are still under way. "

Feature article: The situation of indigenous peoples in the Asia Pacific region

On the "International Day of the World's Indigenous People", the international community will naturally pay more attention to the issue of indigenous people than usual. However, the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues has made this easily overlooked issue normalized and constantly reminding the world of the fate of indigenous peoples. At a special session of the Permanent Forum held at Headquarters in New York not long ago, a special seminar was held on indigenous issues in the Asia-Pacific region. Please listen to Hu Shengqiao's report.

At the UN annual meeting of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, there are not only the United Nations officials responsible for indigenous issues, experts, representatives of governments, but also representatives of some non-governmental organizations. Joan Carling, from the Asian Indigenous People's Caucus, believes there should be clear, legally binding standards for who is indigenous. She said that the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples could provide principles for the definition of indigenous peoples and clarify the definition of indigenous people as a matter of urgency.

Karling: "(English) The progress made in defining the issue of indigenous peoples is an urgent issue that needs to be resolved in order to completely solve the issue of the legal rights of indigenous peoples in the interest of the nation, and we believe that the clear identification of indigenous people The definition will help address the protracted conflicts and other complex issues that indigenous peoples face. "

Karling urged all governments to adopt the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and hoped that various organizations, especially private ones, could support indigenous development projects. She also suggested that oversight mechanisms should be established in projects that may pose a threat to indigenous peoples with the funding of multilateral agencies to protect the rights of indigenous peoples.

Rodolfo Stavenhagen, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous peoples, said that the situation of indigenous and tribal peoples in the Asia-Pacific region has long been neglected and has only recently become a special focus of international forums focus. He said that this is mainly due to the provisions in some countries that discriminate against and treat indigenous peoples differently in their domestic legislation and policies. Stavenhagen said many Aboriginal peoples in the Asia-Pacific region are facing human rights abuses because of the loss of land left by their ancestors.

Stavenhagen: "The tendency of indigenous peoples to lose their land has been on an upward trend in recent decades, leaving indigenous peoples at a total loss of traditional territory and losing their uniqueness as indigenous peoples. Due to the expansion of the plantation economy, which occurs in Indonesia, Malaysia and other Southeast Asian countries and partly because of the sharp decline in the number of forests caused by illegal deforestation. In Laos, Thailand and Viet Nam, the so-called economic modernization is leading The abandonment of traditional farming methods and the loss of indigenous lands. "

Only 5% of the world's population is indigenous, but the share of indigenous people is as high as 15% of all poor people. The situation in the Asia-Pacific region is no exception. There are 250 million indigenous people in the Asia-Pacific region, many of whom are marginalized and marginalized. Ganesh Thapa is an official with the UN International Fund for Agricultural Development.

Tapa: "(English) Much of the remaining poor in the Asia Pacific region will be indigenous and other marginalized groups, even if the Asia-Pacific region achieves the Millennium Development Goal of halving the number of poor by 2015. They live on the plateau , Mountainous areas, drylands and remote coastal areas.For example, in Viet Nam, a projection shows that in 1993, 20% of Indigenous peoples were in poverty and this proportion would rise to 42% by 2010. In China, Poor people are concentrated in remote mountainous areas, where agricultural conditions are poor, with 11% of rural population being indigenous in 2000, but accounting for 48% of the country's poor.

Tapa believes that factors such as geographical conditions, agricultural conditions of production and education are the reasons for the high proportion of indigenous people living in poverty. The International Fund for Agricultural Development provides loans and resources to indigenous peoples in India, China, Laos and Bangladesh. He said that some countries, notably Bangladesh and Vietnam, have included indigenous issues in poverty reduction strategies and Nepal is very likely to adopt ILO Convention No. 168 concerning indigenous and tribal peoples.

In his report, Stavanhagen, Special Rapporteur on the human rights of indigenous peoples, also pointed out in his report that the lives of indigenous people in several Asian countries, including Bangladesh, Myanmar, Nepal, Indonesia, the Philippines and northeastern India, are also affected by armed conflicts.

Stavenhagen: "(English) Some people often use the name of the protection of indigenous rights to choose or force indigenous participation in rebellion, indigenous people thus entered a vicious circle of violence, they face the dual repression of insurgents and authorities. Many reports have been made indicating that many indigenous leaders and communities are caught up in conflicts that have led to serious human rights abuses, such as massacres, extrajudicial executions, enforced disappearances and torture. "

Stavenhagen also said that the national strategy against smuggling of drugs and drugs in some Asian countries has also led to a state emergency that in turn has infringed the human rights of indigenous peoples. In the Philippines, dozens of indigenous chiefs and activists were killed for political reasons, drawing the attention of international human rights bodies. In Viet Nam and Laos, mountain peoples and Miao people were still persecuted by the authorities because of their involvement in the armed conflicts more than 30 years ago. These people and Hmong tribes had to flee into the mountains or escape to Cambodia or Thailand.