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	Tens of Thousands march for Indigenous Rights to New Zealand Parliament by NYT, news agencies   19 Nov. 2024   Over 50,000 people marched to outside New Zealand's Parliament in Wellington on Tuesday to protest legislation that would dilute Indigenous rights by reinterpreting a treaty signed in 1840 by the British Crown and more than 500 Maori chiefs.   The peaceful demonstration was the culmination of a nine-day march, or hikoi, that began at Cape Reinga, the northernmost point of New Zealand and the most spiritually significant place in the country for Maori, who comprise 20% of the 5.3 million-person population.   The Treaty Principles Bill targeting the Treaty of Waitangi, or Te Tiriti o Waitangi, is being pushed by the ACT New Zealand party, a junior partner in the right wing coalition government, which also includes the National Party and New Zealand First (NZF).   Although the National and NZF have said that they are only supporting the legislation for the first of the three readings—meaning it is highly unlikely to pass—Debbie Ngarewa-Packer, co-leader of the Maori Party, or Te Pati Maori, said that even allowing it to be tabled is a "deep shame."   "We deserve better than to be used as political pawns," said Ngarewa-Packer. "The fact that National Party has decided that we were tradeable and the mana of the coalition agreement was so much more important than the mana of Te Tiriti and tangata is the deepest betrayal that we've ever had from a National government."   Pointing to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, who won earlier this month after being ousted in the previous cycle, Ngarewa-Packer added, "We're a country that had the first women's vote, we have always punched above our weight in the anti-nuclear space, the anti-discrimination space, and here we are in 2024 with the sort of Trump-like culture coming into our politics."   The New York Times noted that "a year before American voters' anger over the cost of living helped Donald J. Trump win the presidency, similar sentiments in New Zealand thrust in the nation's most conservative government in decades. Now, New Zealand bears little resemblance to the country recently led by Jacinda Ardern, whose brand of compassionate, progressive politics made her a global symbol of anti-Trump liberalism."   "The new government—a coalition of the main right wing party and two smaller, more populist ones—has reversed many of Ms. Ardern's policies. It has rescinded a world-leading ban on smoking for future generations, repealed rules designed to address climate change, and put a former arms industry lobbyist in charge of overhauling the nation's strict gun laws.   And in a country that has been celebrated for elevating the status of Māori, its Indigenous people, it has challenged their rights and the prominence of their culture and language in public life, driving a wedge into New Zealand society and setting off waves of protests".   Parliament was briefly suspended last Thursday after Maori members staged a traditional dance called a haka to disrupt the first reading. The haka—which garnered global attention—was started by Member of Parliament Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke, who tore up a copy of the bill.   Speaking to the Wellington crowd on Tuesday, Maipi-Clarke, "We are the sovereign people of this land and the world is watching us here, not because of the system, not because of the rules, but because we haka."   Other participants in the action included the Maori Queen, Nga Wai Hono i te Po, and Te Pati Maori Co-Leader Rawiri Waititi, who led the crowd in a chant to "kill the bill."   The Northern Advocate reported taht ACT Leader David Seymour, "the architect of the Treaty Principles Bill, was booed inside the Beehive today by the tens of thousands protesting against his controversial bill."   Ella Henry, professor of Maori Entrepreneurship at Auckland University of Technology, warned the bill was an effort to roll back New Zealand's previous progress in terms of relations with Indigenous people.   "So we have gathered in our tens of thousands, not just Maori, but others who support an inclusive, diverse, equal partnership that our country has been a world leader in pioneering," Henry toreporters. "Those are the people who are marching."   Hayley Komene, who is from the Ngati Kauwhata tribe, told Guardian News that there was a "real strength and pride" at the march, and "there are people from lots of different backgrounds here for the same reason to protest the Government and the outrageous bill."   Komene also criticized the government's Maori policies as "absolutely ridiculous" and stressed that "Te Tiriti is a constitutional document of our country."   http://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/nov/19/tens-of-thousands-to-converge-on-nz-parliament-as-march-to-protest-controversial-maori-rights-bill-reaches-capital http://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/18/world/asia/new-zealand-conservative-maori-protest.html
	Indigenous organizations launch alliance in defense of the Amazon, traditional peoples by Tenure Facility, 350.org, UNHCR Pan-Amazon region   Cali, Colombia – Indigenous organizations from nine Amazonian countries launched on October 26, at COP16 (UN Convention on Biodiversity) in Cali, Colombia an unprecedented alliance in defense of the Amazon, traditional peoples, biodiversity and the global climate.   The Indigenous Amazon G9 will function as a coalition to coordinate actions and strengthen the common demands of Indigenous peoples from all countries where the largest tropical forest in the world is located.   The first demand of the Pan-Amazonian Peoples is that governments around the world recognize that traditional peoples are the main moral authorities when it comes to conserving biomes, protecting species diversity, and regulating the climate.   This moral authority is based on the fact that governments have repeatedly failed to increase their commitments to address the climate and biodiversity crisis’s gravity and fulfill their promises.   In contrast, Indigenous peoples have always acted to protect nature and have been the best territorial managers on the planet, even without adequate funding for their actions and despite the insufficient space for participation they have in international negotiations.   Traditional knowledge and the dedication of Indigenous Peoples to protecting the environment have helped to curb the expansion of fossil fuels and the loss of vegetation and species, essential measures to limit the climate crisis.   Scientific research has already shown that Indigenous Peoples play a particularly important role in the Amazon, where their territories act as barriers to environmental destruction.   Largely thanks to Indigenous Peoples, around 80% of the Amazon rainforest, one of the largest carbon sinks on a global scale and one of the planet’s most biodiverse areas, remains preserved.   Despite “holding up the sky” for all humanity, as Indigenous thinkers have noted, Amazonian peoples continue to suffer persecution and attempts to erase their presence.   They are also among the communities most vulnerable to the climate crisis, as extreme droughts and abnormal temperatures reduce the volume of their rivers, hinder fishing and hunting, and make it difficult to maintain their traditional culture.   Priority Themes   By strengthening the common demands of Indigenous Peoples in the Pan-Amazon region, participating organizations hope to increase pressure on their governments to take action to guarantee the rights of these peoples and preserve their territories.   The main areas of work of the G9 will include:   Biodiversity Conservation: Ensure that global policies and decisions respect the territorial rights of Indigenous Peoples and recognize their role in conserving biodiversity.   Territorial Rights: Support the legal security of Indigenous territories through titling, demarcation and legal mechanisms to protect the collective ownership of Indigenous Peoples over their territories.   Direct Financing: Demand direct financing mechanisms for Indigenous Peoples in the Amazon region, enabling them to manage their resources and conservation and sustainable development projects autonomously, in accordance with their knowledge and governance systems.   Protection of Indigenous Peoples in Isolation and Initial Contact: Work to ensure that States respect the principle of “no contact”, ensuring the effective protection of the rights of these peoples and the ecosystems they protect.   Unity of the Amazon Indigenous movement: Offer a space for articulation that expands the power of Indigenous Peoples to influence international negotiations, with a focus on defending territorial rights, conserving biodiversity and combating climate change.   * The following organizations are taking part:   Confederacion de Naciones y Pueblos Indigenas del Chaco Oriente y Amazonia de Bolivia (CIDOB, from Bolivia); Coordination of Indigenous Organizations of the Brazilian Amazon (COIAB, from Brazil) Organizacion Nacional de los Pueblos Indigenas de la Amazonia Colombiana (OPIAC, from Colombia); Confederacion de Nacionalidades Indigenas de la Amazonia Ecuatoriana (CON FENIAE, from Ecuador); Asociacion de Pueblos Amerindios de Guyana (APA, Guyana); Federacion de Organizaciones Amerindias de Guyana Francaise (FOAG, from French Guiana); Asociacion Interetnica de Desarrollo de la Selva Peruana (AIDESEP, from Peru); Organizacion de los Pueblos Indigenas de Surinam (OIS, from Suriname); Organizacion Regional de Pueblos Indigenas de Amazonas (ORPIA, Venezuela)   http://350.org/press-release/amazon-indigenous-organizations-from-nine-countries-launch-alliance/ http://thetenurefacility.org/learning-exchange/colombia-learning-exchange-international-meeting-of-indigenous-peoples-of-the-amazon-basin-on-the-road-to-cop16/ http://www.unhcr.org/news/stories/indigenous-leader-takes-her-people-s-fight-survival-biodiversity-summit
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