UN-backed information summit called on to help progress of indigenous peoples (fwd)

[phil cash cash]

...link
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp? 
NewsID=9180&Cr=indigenous&Cr1=people

On Dec 12, 2003, at 11:47 AM, phil cash cash wrote:

> UN-backed information summit called on to help progress of indigenous  
> peoples
>
> 11 December – Indigenous people today called on a United  
> Nations-backed global information summit to put information and  
> communications technologies (ICTs) into the service of economic and  
> social development in their communities around the world.
>
> The call came in a declaration and action programme adopted at the  
> conclusion of the Global Forum on Indigenous Peoples and the  
> Information Society this week in Geneva, one of three official side  
> events to the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS). The text  
> will be officially transmitted to the Summit tomorrow by Ole-Henrik  
> Magga, Chairperson of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues.
>
> “This Global Forum is a chance for indigenous people to become engaged  
> with the World Summit on the Information Society. By discussing  
> opportunities and challenges facing people around the world, we are  
> creating solutions that will help indigenous peoples move forward in  
> meaningful ways,” Mr. Magga said at a press briefing.
>
> The Global Forum, which began Monday, addressed topics ranging from  
> e-health, e-learning, cultural preservation through digital media and  
> citizen empowerment. It identified many challenges, including a lack  
> of resources as well as a lack of control most indigenous peoples  
> experience in terms of having to adapt to a new technology rather than  
> being able to adjust the technology to suit their needs.
>
> The meeting also agreed that indigenous peoples should play a part in  
> the preparatory process for the second phase of the Summit in 2005 in  
> Tunis, and win concrete results at that conference, after having been  
> given short notice to prepare for and participate in the Geneva phase.
>
> “The value of information technology becomes most apparent when we  
> examine how it is benefiting indigenous communities, particularly  
> those in remote locations,” Mr. Magga said. “Indigenous peoples are  
> keen to preserve and pass on their diverse culture to future  
> generation and are examining the new tools of the information society  
> to see how they can assist.”
>
> Joining Mr. Magga was Mililani Trask, a member of the Permanent Forum,  
> who lamented the decision by the Member States to delete references in  
> the Summit's draft Declaration of Principles and Plan of Action to  
> such issues as the protection of indigenous peoples' rights and the  
> preservation of cultural diversity and language.
>
> The Secretariat for the UN Permanent Forum assists the 16-member panel  
> in carrying out its mandate, which covers economic and social  
> development, culture, the environment, education, health and human  
> rights. It provides expert advice and recommendations on indigenous  
> issues to the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and to UN  
> programmes, funds and agencies, and helps to raise awareness of  
> indigenous issues within the UN system.
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