Indigenous Peoples and Protected Areas: Rights, Principles and Practice

NB: We do not resell your papers. Upon ordering, we do an original paper exclusively for you.

NB: All your data is kept safe from the public.

Table of Contents

Purpose
Question
Information
Inferences
Implications
Point of view

Purpose

The article’s main purpose is to give an insight into how conservation of indigenous lands and wilderness was historically executed. The author gives an analysis how land was conserved in America during the civil war. An account on how the Indians were evacuated from the wilderness and establishment of national parks provides insightful information on land conservation practices.

From the article, the reader observes how land conservation was not an environmental responsibility, but for economic purposes. For example, the wilderness was conserved and transformed into national parks for ecotourism purposes.

The article also provides information about the law required to protect the human rights of the indigenous people. From the article, it is evident that human rights were historically violated when evacuating indigenous people from their native lands. In this regard, the article highlights several laws that protect the rights of the indigenous people.

Another purpose of the article is to understand the international environmental agreements that describe the indigenous people as a major group in environmental conservation. Moreover, the article enlightens the reader on what the term indigenous is defined from a legal perspective.

The article also tries to give an insight into social implication related to protection of buffer zones. From the article, new ideologies on protected area management are discussed giving an insight into new practices in environmental conservation.

Question

The author seeks to answer the following key question. Should the rights of the indigenous people be recognized in conservation of protected areas?

Information

The author revisits the colonial conservation history in America to support the significance of indigenous people in conservation of protected areas. From the article, the author revisits how colonial conservation was evidenced in Congo. It is evident that almost every protected area in history had natural inhabitant like animals and humans included.

For example, the Wild West was known to be inhabited by plain Indians and animals. The pygmies were a common feature in the Congo forest. Although colonial conservation of the natural habitats was driven by an economic goal, natives who inhabited the lands were evacuated without reference to any law. In most cases, evacuation of natives form their natural inhabitants violated human rights.

Most of the natives fought against extinction as they languished in hunger and poverty. In this regard, a need to respect human rights of indigenous people during the conservation process became paramount. Therefore, laws that led to involvement of indigenous people in conservation of protected areas were established.

Observation of cultural rights as interpreted by UN Human Rights Committee in the year 1994 revolutionized how indigenous people were treated. International Covenant on Civil Rights and Political Rights through Article 27 ensured that indigenous people cultural values are not eroded by acts of conservation.

In this respect, indigenous people were to continue with their activities within the protected areas irrespective of the conservation efforts. By the year 2000, the UN Human Rights Committee had ratified article 27 by ensuring that indigenous people had a right to reclaim their land titles.

However, these laws applied to states party to the UN. Additional laws that protect the laws of the indigenous people included equal rights as majority ethnic groups in any country. Example of laws that ensured indigenous people right to natural resources within protected areas were citified by the International Labor Organization (ILO) in 1989.

In recent years, international law has continued to recognize indigenous people rights as evidenced by creation of the collective rights. Collective rights provide indigenous people with rights to owning land and natural resources irrespective of the existing national laws of the country. Corrective rights validate the existence of customary laws observed by minority groups.

Involving indigenous people in conservation of protected was first proposed through international environmental agreements. This was first envisioned in Rio Declaration of 1992 Erath Summit. From this development, indigenous people are to be accorded stakeholders rights in decision making process related to environmental conservation.

It is such development that now has allowed the development of biosphere reserves and buffer zones. The biosphere reserves are areas strictly inhabited by the human form. However, biosphere reserves are protected by indigenous people living adjacent buffer zones. An example of such scenarios is the Maasai Mara national park in Kenya, which is protected by adjacent Maasai communities in the Mara.

Since the year 1992, newly established practices in environmental management have emerged. For example, more countries have accepted to adopt World Conservation Union (IUCN) resolutions on indigenous people living in protected areas.

In this context, indigenous people are now part of decision making on matters related to environmental management. Moreover, governments are jointly owning and managing protected areas with the indigenous people. Finally, rights as citizens and owners to land and natural resources within protected areas are observed.

Inferences

The author agrees that rights to indigenous people cannot be compromised under any cost. However, the author cautions against competing enterprises like politics and economic activities that hinder implementation of conservation initiatives.

According to the author, unjust laws against the indigenous people result from prejudice attitudes. Moreover, the author agrees that exclusionary model of conservation resulted to violation of human rights against indigenous people.

From the article, protection of indigenous people rights should also consider the need to protect the natural value of the environment. The author also recommends the use of protected areas for socio-economic benefits. Nonetheless, the involvement of the indigenous people in conservation of protected areas is a necessity.

Implications

The author provides the reader with adequate information that may result to improved practices in environmental management. The author research on indigenous people is critical in making reasonable decisions in regard to protection of human rights.

Moreover, the above article can be used by the government in establishing conservation policies in areas habited by indigenous people. Identification of laws that protect human rights, as well as protected areas is vital to environments, economists and the government.

A failure in implementing the author’s argument can result to abuse of human rights against the indigenous people. It is also probable that the government may fail to understand its international obligations in conserving protected areas by applying redundant laws.

Lack of joint engagement between the indigenous people and the government can spark a conflict of interest, which inhibits efforts in the conservation of protected areas.

Point of view

The author’s main question is whether rights of the indigenous people should be recognized during the conservation of protected areas. In this regard, the author establishes the historical relation between the indigenous people and protected areas. The author seeks to understand previous efforts made to conserve protected areas and how they violated human rights of the indigenous people.

An understanding of human rights as envisioned by the international law is significant in developing new environmental management concepts. In this respect, the indigenous people right to their native environment cannot entirely be separated from the conservation efforts. Therefore, protection of the indigenous people right is critical in complementing the environmental conservation efforts.

Click Here To Order Now!