News headlines for “Rights of Indigenous People”, page 4
Mexico’s Judicial Elections: A Democratic Mirage
- Inter Press Service
MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay, June 30 (IPS) - On 1 June, Mexico made history by becoming the only country in the world to elect all its judges by popular vote, from local magistrates to Supreme Court justices. This unprecedented process saw Mexican voters choose candidates for 881 federal judicial positions, including all nine Supreme Court justices, plus thousands at local levels across 19 states. Yet what the government heralded as a transformation that made Mexico the ‘the most democratic country in the world’ may turn out to be a dangerous deception.
The Cost of Conservation—How Tanzania Is Erasing the Maasai Identity
- Inter Press Service
DAR ES SALAAM, Jun 19 (IPS) - On the vast plains of Tanzania’s Ngorongoro Conservation Area (NCA), the sight of young Maasai men in bright shawls, wielding sticks as they herd cattle, has long symbolized peaceful coexistence with nature. These herders, moving in harmony with zebras and wildebeests, are inseparable from the landscape. But today, that very identity—nurtured for generations—is under siege.
Nia Tero: Indigenous Guardianship the Only Time-Tested Approach To Healthy Ocean Ecosystems
- Inter Press Service
NICE, France, Jun 12 (IPS) - The 2025 UN Ocean Conference (UNOC3) has seen a significant presence from Indigenous peoples, who insist that their perspective and guidance be taken into account in the global efforts for sustainable ocean use and conservation. The sense of responsibility to the ocean and recognition of its history is an example that the international community can learn from.
‘We Are Witnessing Ecocide in West Papua, One of the World’s Richest Biodiversity Centres’
- Inter Press Service
May 29 (IPS) - CIVICUS discusses the devastating impact of palm oil extraction in West Papua with Tigor Hutapea, legal representative of Pusaka Bentala Rakyat, an organisation campaigning for Indigenous Papuan people’s rights to manage their customary lands and forests.
Explainer: What Rural Communities in Tanzania Need to Know about Carbon Trading and Land Rights
- Inter Press Service
DAR ES SALAAM, May 19 (IPS) - As global demand for carbon credits rises, Tanzania has become a magnet for carbon offset projects. From Loliondo in Arusha to Kiteto in Manyara, foreign firms and conservation groups are looking for land to capture carbon and sell credits to polluting industries in the Global North. The growing interest in carbon trading has sparked hope, confusion, and concern— putting millions of hectares of village land and the livelihoods of people who depend on it at risk.
New Forms of Power-Sharing are Needed to Uphold Rights of Indigenous Peoples
- Inter Press Service
KATHMANDU, Nepal, May 07 (IPS) - A UN groundbreaking report published in 1982 laid the legal ground for defining the inalienable rights of Indigenous Peoples.
The document, written by José Martínez Cobo, a United Nations Special Rapporteur, analyzed the complex discrimination patterns faced by Indigenous Peoples.
Mexico Bans GM Corn Cultivation in Constitutional Reform: Action Follows Trade Ruling That Ignored Evidence of Genetic Contamination
- Inter Press Service
CAMBRIDGE, MA., Apr 30 (IPS) - On March 17, Mexican President Claudia Scheinbaum signed into law a constitutional reform banning the cultivation of genetically modified (GM) corn. The action followed a December ruling by a trade tribunal, under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada (USMCA) trade agreement, in favor of a U.S. complaint that Mexico's 2023 presidential decree, with broader restrictions on the consumption of GM corn, constituted an unfair trade practice by prohibiting the use of GM corn in tortillas.
Standing Firm: Civil Society at the Forefront of the Climate Resistance
- Inter Press Service
LONDON, Apr 15 (IPS) - The recent US court case that ordered three Greenpeace organisations to pay damages of over US$660 million to an oil and gas company was a stunning blow against civil society’s efforts to stop runaway climate change and environmental degradation. The verdict, following a trial independent witnesses assessed to be grossly unfair, came in reaction to Indigenous-led anti-pipeline protests. It’s vital for any prospects of tackling the climate crisis that Greenpeace’s appeal succeeds, because without civil society pressure, there’s simply no hope of governments and corporations taking the action required.
‘Energy Transfer’s Lawsuit Against Greenpeace Is an Attempt to Drain Our Resources and Silence Dissent’
- Inter Press Service
Apr 04 (IPS) -
CIVICUS speaks with Daniel Simons, Senior Legal Counsel Strategic Defence for Greenpeace International, about the lawsuit brought by an oil and gas company against Greenpeace and its broader implications for civil society. Greenpeace is a global network of environmental organisations campaigning on issues such as climate change, disarmament, forests, organic farming and peace.
Royalties, a New Indigenous Right for Hydroelectric Damages in Brazil
- Inter Press Service
RIO DE JANEIRO, Mar 25 (IPS) - Indigenous peoples in Brazil have won a new right: a share in the profits of hydroelectric plants that cause them harm when built on or near their lands.
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