23rd Meeting - 63rd Session of Human Rights Council

Se ruega a los oradores que pronuncien sus declaraciones a un ritmo razonable para garantizar una interpretación íntegra y de calidad. Excellencies, distinguished colleagues, I hereby declare open the 23rd meeting of the 63rd session of the Human Rights Council. And we will begin the annual half-day panel discussion on the rights of Indigenous Peoples, held pursuant to Council resolutions 18/8 and 16/13. The theme of this year's panel is Convention for the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, Indigenous Peoples' Rights and Engagement. up to a total of eight representatives of Indigenous Peoples will be allowed to take the floor to participate in this panel discussion in the implementation of Council resolution 60/13. This panel discussion is accessible to persons with disabilities through the provision of international sign interpretation and real-time captioning, together with the other accessible measures. It is my honor to welcome Ms. Ava Dabo, United Nations Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, who will deliver an opening statement. Let me also welcome our distinguished panelists, Ms. Berta de San Cristobal, head of the Europe and North America unit at UNESCO World Heritage Center, Ms. Carmen Rosa Guerra Ariza, co-chair of the International Indigenous Peoples Forum on World Heritage, And Mr. Francisco Vidargas, Director for World Heritage at Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology and History. Excellencies, dear participants, the list of speakers will close in 15 minutes. I encourage all speakers to intervene in an interactive way, present comments, and ask questions that reflect the panelists' interventions and the discussion. The speaking time limit is one minute and 30 seconds for all, and a maximum of 40 speakers will be accommodated. Delegates inscribed on the list of speakers who cannot take the floor due to time constraints can upload their statements to be posted on the extranet. I now have the honour to invite the Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights to deliver her opening statement.

Madam Vice-President, Excellencies, good morning. The 1972 World Heritage Convention broke new ground by recognizing the links between preserving the environment and protecting the heritage of cultural sites. Today, as we attempt to tackle the accelerating devastation caused by climate change, pollution and biodiversity loss, the Convention is more important than ever, particularly for Indigenous peoples. The triple planetary crisis creates acute threats to Indigenous cultures, disrupting and destroying long-standing ways of life and beliefs. And many world cultural and natural heritage sites are ancestral indigenous lands, homes to the living cultures and spiritual inspirations of indigenous peoples. Indigenous traditions also offer us all invaluable insights into how to prevent, mitigate, and adapt to ecological harms. For example, The milpa farming system of Maya peoples in Central America and southern Mexico, involving the cultivation of crops that are nutritionally and environmentally complementary, shows how traditional knowledge can help everyone adapt in the face of climate chaos. Work by the World Heritage Committee and States Parties to manage World Heritage sites with a strengthened focus on the rights and participation of Indigenous Peoples has been of outstanding benefit. The conservation of the Laponian area in Sweden, where the Sami participate in management and decision making and work to preserve the ancient settlements and ecosystems, or the Taos Pueblo in the United States are just two examples. Empowering indigenous peoples to fully participate in decision making, management and governance of such efforts will be vital to meeting a large range of heritage and human rights challenges in years to come. We therefore welcome UNESCO's recent revisions of its operational guidelines for the implementation of the World Heritage Convention. The guidelines now more strongly recognize the need for state parties to uphold the human rights of indigenous peoples, including their rights to free, prior and informed consent in all decisions that may affect their lands, their territories and their resources. UNESCO's work to strengthen its policy on engaging with indigenous peoples also creates opportunities for their closer cooperation. I want to emphasize the need for states to obtain the free, prior and informed consent of Indigenous Peoples before any site related to their identity and way of life is proposed for recognition on the World Heritage List. We recommend that states and others require evidence of such consent before approving projects. These and other steps to ensure the decision makers uphold the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples will vastly increase the effectiveness of World Heritage protection. The presence and customary practices of Indigenous Peoples have sustained these sites for generations, and they remain essential to protecting them today. Indigenous Peoples also need to share in the benefits of conservation and any tourism activities developed around World Heritage sites. Conservation is strengthened when Indigenous peoples are partners and decision makers with their rights, their knowledge, governance systems and economic interests at the center of heritage efforts. For example, in Australia's Kakadu National Park, World Heritage Project is supported by a system in which traditional owners have a majority on the board of management and revenues from tourism are shared. Traditional owners have exercised their majority regarding access to certain areas of the national park and measures to protect both cultural and natural heritage. Where Indigenous peoples' rights are not respected, they must have access to justice and remedy. World Heritage protection should never involve the forced removal of people, their loss of control over lands and territories and resources, restricted access to sacred sites or livelihoods, or the criminalization of spiritual and religious traditions, customs, and ceremonies. Madam Vice President, the protection of humanity's natural and cultural heritage and respect for Indigenous peoples' rights are important and mutually reinforcing goals around the world and for our office. We work extensively to strengthen the capacity of Indigenous representatives and human rights defenders to participate in decision-making. We also contribute to promoting dialogue between Indigenous Peoples, states, UN bodies and heritage actors. Last December, we convened a consultation on biodiversity and forest stewardship with Indigenous Peoples and others across Southeast Asia to identify ways to better integrate Indigenous knowledge and rights into environmental programs. we have helped low-lying Pacific Island states to protect their cultural heritage as they deal with rising seas by using traditional knowledge to support adaptation to new conditions. For the past two years, the Voluntary Fund for Indigenous Peoples has enabled representatives of Indigenous people to participate in meetings of the World Heritage Committee. We encourage steps to enable Indigenous Peoples to participate more consistently and effectively in all World Heritage Committee processes, and we look forward to working more extensively with the Committee to advance our shared goals. The civic space for discussion and action by all those who seek to safeguard lands, cultures and nature must be protected, and this must include all Indigenous human rights and environmental rights defenders. They work for the rights of all of us. Thank you.

Thank you very much. I will now give the floor to the panelists for their initial presentations. And first, I have the honor to give the floor to Ms. Berta de San Cristobal. You have the floor.

Thank you, Madam Vice Chair, distinguished delegates, representatives of Indigenous peoples, dear colleagues. UNESCO has a long-standing commitment to advancing human rights through its mandate in education, culture, science, and communication. This commitment is reflected in UNESCO's support for the implementation of the United Nations system-wide action plan on indigenous peoples and its efforts to strengthen right-based approaches across its programs. In recent years, the relationship between cultural and natural heritage, human rights, and sustainable development has become an increasingly important area of engagement across the United Nations system. This evolution is reflected in the recent proclamation of the International Decade of Culture for Sustainable Development, 2027-2036, which recognizes that cultural diversity, indigenous knowledge systems, living heritage, and sustainable stewardship practices are essential contributors to resilient societies and sustainable development. Today's discussion is a welcome reflection of this broader evolution and of the growing recognition that culture, nature, and people cannot be addressed in separate compartments. Allow me to begin with a simple observation. Across UNESCO-designated sites, including World Heritage properties, biosphere reserves, and UNESCO Global Geoparks, it is estimated that at least one quarter overlap with Indigenous Peoples' lands and territories. Many of these places recognized today as part of humanity's heritage are therefore not empty spaces or isolated conservation areas. They are living territories that have been shaped, inhabited, managed, and cared for by communities over generations. The Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage was adopted by UNESCO General Conference in 1972 to identify, to protect, and to transmit to future generations cultural and natural heritage of outstanding universal value. One of its greatest strengths, as it has just been recalled, lies in bringing culture and nature together within a single normative international framework. The fact that this discussion is taking place today within the Human Rights Council reflects a growing recognition that heritage conservation and the rights, knowledge system, and cultural values of Indigenous peoples are closely interconnected. This reality points to an increasingly important lesson. The effective safeguarding of heritage depends not only on laws, institutions, or on technical expertise, but also on the experience, the traditions, the custodial practices of the people whose lives remain connected to these places. The implementation of the Convention has evolved significantly in response both to broader developments within the United Nations system and to the engagement of Indigenous Peoples themselves through UNESCO, through the World Heritage Committee, through the International Indigenous Peoples Forum on World Heritage and United Nations human rights mechanisms. At the same time, it is important to recall that the Convention is an intergovernmental treaty. Its policies and procedures are shaped through decisions adopted by State Parties within its governing bodies, particularly the Committee and the General Assembly. The developments discussed today therefore reflect an ongoing process through which State parties have progressively explored how the rights, perspectives and values of Indigenous Peoples can be more effectively reflected in the implementation of the Convention. Significantly, this panel originates from a proposal of the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which called not only for greater recognition of Indigenous Peoples' rights in the implementation of the Convention, but also of their values. This distinction is important. It reflects a growing understanding that effective conservation depends not only on protecting places, but also on recognizing the worldviews, practices, spiritual relationships, and custodial traditions through which many of those places have been sustained over generations. From today's perspective, one of the most significant evolutions of this convention has been the growing recognition that what we consider the common heritage of humanity often arises from the care, experience, knowledge, and values of diverse peoples, including Indigenous peoples. Indeed, an important milestone was the addition to the Convention of a fifth strategic objective in 2007, communities. Since then, the Convention has moved beyond a predominantly site-centered and expert-driven approach towards one that recognizes communities and Indigenous peoples as custodians, knowledge holders, and partners in understanding heritage and its conservation. This evolution is consistent with UNESCO's policy on engaging with Indigenous Peoples and with the objectives of the International Decade of Indigenous Languages. For many Indigenous Peoples, language, culture, nature and territory are inseparable. Indigenous languages are repositories of environmental knowledge, memory and customary practices that are often essential to the conservation of both heritage and biodiversity. And this is an understanding that has progressively influenced implementation of the Convention over the past decade. Important milestones have included the adoption of the policy for the integration of a sustainable development perspective into the processes of the Convention, the establishment of the International Indigenous People Forum on World Heritage, and the strengthening of reference to consultation, cooperation, and free, prior, and informed consent in the Operational Guidelines. Most recently, the World Heritage Committee has initiated discussions on how Indigenous peoples' heritage values and narratives may be more effectively reflected throughout the Convention processes including nominations, statements of outstanding universal value, management systems and governance arrangements. This direction has also been welcomed by the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues at its last session, which expressed its interest in supporting the implementation of the Committee's decision and participating in future discussions concerning Indigenous peoples' engagement with this Convention. Underlying this discussion is an increasingly important recognition Many challenges arise not only from insufficient participation, but also from the fact that Indigenous conceptions of heritage are not always fully reflected in existing approaches. The question is therefore not only who participates, but also how heritage is understood, interpreted, and presented. These developments are increasingly evident in nomination processes. A number of examples have already been quoted, but let me also quote Pimashowinaki in Canada, which remains one of the most compelling examples of an Indigenous-led World Heritage nomination. Developed through the leadership of the Anishinaabe First Nations, it demonstrates that Indigenous stewardship systems can themselves form an integral part of a property's heritage significance. These examples reflect an important shift in the implementation of the Convention. Indigenous peoples, as it was just recalled, are increasingly recognized not merely as beneficiaries of conservation outcomes, but as rights holders, knowledge holders, and essential partners in the identification, protection, and management of heritage. At the same time, progress should not obscure ongoing challenges. The World Heritage Convention does not operate in a vacuum. It cannot by itself resolve historic grievances, determine land right, or address all the complexities of relationships between Indigenous peoples and states. Many concerns raised with World Heritage processes reflect broader issues that long predate a nomination or an inscription. Existing Convention mechanisms nevertheless remain important. While the Convention does not establish a formal grievance mechanism, it does provide avenues through which serious concerns may be brought to international attention. Information concerning threats to World Heritage property may be transmitted to UNESCO by sources other than the State Party concerned, and such information is examined through the Convention-established monitoring and reporting processes, including by the World Heritage Committee. These provisions provide an important means of ensuring that concerns can be heard and considered at the international level. Yet, experience demonstrates that prevention is more effective than remediation. Recent reforms, including the preliminary assessment process, provide opportunities to identify issues relating to governance arrangements, rights holders, participation and Indigenous Peoples' engagement at an early stage, before positions become entrenched and disputes emerge. Allow me to conclude. More than 50 years after its adoption, the World Heritage Convention continues to evolve in response both to developments within the United Nations system and to the growing engagement of Indigenous Peoples themselves. One lesson has become very clear. Many places recognized today for their outstanding universal value have been sustained through generations of Indigenous stewardship, knowledge, cultural practice, and governance traditions. The continuing evolution of the Convention is not only about expanding participation, it's also about ensuring that these contributions, Indigenous peoples' contributions, are more fully recognized and reflected through its implementation. The trajectory is therefore clear. Conservation is strongest when it is grounded in partnership, dialogue, and mutual respect. The challenge before all of us, Member States, Indigenous peoples, UNESCO, and the wider United Nations system, is not only to conserve those exceptional places, it is to ensure that conservation approaches reflect the living relationships between people, culture, nature and territory that sustain them. And in this endeavour, Indigenous Peoples are shaping not only the future of heritage conservation, but also the continuing evolution of the World Heritage Convention. Thank you.

Thank you very much for your contribution I have now the owner to give the floor to Miss Carmen Rosa Agera Ariza you have the floor please.

Thank you very much vice president it's a great honor for me to be here with you I speak on behalf of the international indigenous Forum on World Heritage. This is an independent platform through which Indigenous Peoples connect to the World Heritage Convention. The World Heritage Committee has officially recognised us. as a key platform for reflection on the participation of Indigenous Peoples on the identification, conservation and management of World Heritage sites. According to the World Heritage Centre, around 25% of all World Heritage sites are located in our territories, and the number of sites on the tentative lists of States Parties that impact us is equally large. this means that the footprint will only grow. The majority of those sites were enlisted without free, prior and informed consent with relevant indigenous peoples, and often without any consultation, despite its impact on our territorial rights, self-determination, cultural continuity and ways of life. When it is done With our full and effective participation and respect for our cultural and collective rights, the conception and management of World Heritage sites can play a positive role for Indigenous Peoples, thus contributing to protect our territories, our cultural heritage and our traditional ways of life in the face of development such as mining activities or infrastructure projects. It can also create trade and employment opportunities for Indigenous Peoples. in the area of tourism or directly in the management and conservation of the site. In some cases, sites were designated precisely on the basis of Indigenous Peoples' initiatives in order to protect ancestral territories or establish new opportunities for ways of life. We recognize that the Committee adopted practical guidelines for the management of the Convention, urging States Parties to adopt a human rights-based focus and to respect the rights of Indigenous Peoples in the designation, management and protection of World Heritage sites. In 2025, the Committee approved Decision 47 COM 11 that explicitly recognizes the challenges confronted by Indigenous Peoples. when they are developing themselves in the World Heritage system, and requests a comprehensive proposal to address those challenges, which should be presented in the 49th session in 2027. Our Forum is actively working on this proposal alongside UNESCO and advisory bodies. Despite these positive efforts, however, the situation on the ground is radically different. The management of many World Heritage sites continues to be characterised by a lack of respect towards the relationship between Indigenous Peoples and their territories, and a disdain for our World Heritage and sacred sites. Serious violations against the human rights of Indigenous Peoples persist in many sites. Wide-ranging evidence of this was clearly demonstrated in a report drawn up by an independent expert panel established by the World Wildlife Fund in protected areas in Africa and Asia, the majority of which are world heritage sites. Abuses against indigenous peoples included murder, sexual violence, torture, physical aggression, illegal detention and arrest, raids on homes and the destruction and theft of personal possessions. Throughout the history of the convention, indigenous peoples have often raised concerns regarding violations of their rights in the implementation of the convention, not only domestically but also internationally, in the practice of the World Heritage Committee, the centre and advisory bodies. Those concerns include, among other things, a lack of respect for Indigenous Peoples to self-determination and development and the participation in identification, designation and registration of sites, as well as sidelining them in the management and governance of sites, violations in rights and access and use of our lands, as well as territories and resources and the management of sites, harassment and criminalization of Indigenous Peoples making a traditional use of resources, the violations of the right to equitably share the benefits arising from tourism, and a lack of consultation by evaluation and monitoring missions at the sites. It is therefore possible to identify a pattern of violations against indigenous peoples in some of the sites, as has been widely documented by the special procedures of this Council. In Tanzania, in Ngorongoro, the prohibition of subsistence farming promoted by a voluntary relocation strategy of indigenous communities has led to hunger and food insecurity, which have been documented in the Maasai residents. In Kenya, Bogoria Lake was recorded on the World Heritage List in 2011 without free, prior and informed consent of the Endoris people. the same community that had just received a historic ruling in the African Commission concerning their rights to their territory. In Thailand, the Kayan Khrasan forest territory was put on the list in 2021 against the explicit request of the IUCN and UN experts, following persistent failings in obtaining consent by the Karen people and the human rights documented against them. In this regard, the expert mechanism, the special rapporteur and the international expert workshop, which took place in Geneva in 2024, identified the following priority questions and actions. Firstly, The exceptional universal value of the majority of sites located on Indigenous lands was defined without our participation and without recognition for our cultural interpretations and is based on a Eurocentric distinction between natural and cultural heritage and tangible and intangible heritage, which is incompatible with the holistic perspectives of Indigenous peoples. The expert mechanism urged the Committee to review its criteria for assessing exceptional universal values, so that our own values could be recognised in a full and consistent manner in all sites. Furthermore, we invite a systematic revision of existing world heritage sites in this regard. Secondly, there is an inconsistent and non-systematic application of free, prior and informed consent. This isn't currently a obligatory requirement which is systematically applied when States Party designates sites affecting Indigenous Peoples. Submission files are kept away from public access until sites are on the list. Thirdly, it's impossible to have effective participation of representatives of Indigenous Peoples in the Committee's processes. The rules of procedure do not guarantee representatives of Indigenous Peoples or UN experts the use of the microphone before decisions are adopted. Fourthly, it is important to establish a dedicated human rights mechanism, as well as an independent complaints and reports mechanism, to generate proper reparation across the entire world heritage system and to formalise cooperation between the Committee and the United Nations human rights system. Thank you very much.

I thank you for your contribution, and I have now the honour to give the floor to Mr. Francisco Vidargas. Please, you have the floor.

Thank you very much, Vice-President, and also to Deputy High Commissioner, distinguished members of the Council, and representatives of Indigenous Peoples. I speak on behalf of the Wirarica community, but also of the institute that I represent as part of the government of Mexico. Mexico in 2025 included a new site on the World Heritage list of UNESCO, the Wixarika route through sacred sites to Wirikuta, whose technical dossier took more than 30 years to be agreed on and accepted by the Wixarita communities. Every year, representatives of that community cover national territory travel to have spiritual dialogue with their gods and trying to transcend the ephemeral, the past, the present, and confront current problems affecting them directly in the fields of, in terms of the economy, social issues, cultural issues, as well as the environment. environmental issues that are harming their sacred land. The final destination of each journey is to reach Wirikuta, a colossal sacred land where the gods performed creative feats in primordial times. There is barely a rock, spring, plant pond, cave, abyss or hill that is not linked to a mythical event or ritual. In this journey, everything is significant and acquires a higher nature. First, the authorities, both from Unesco and from the advisory evaluation body, ICOMOS recommended favourably its listing, as well as did subsequently the members of the World Heritage Committee by adopting the corresponding decision. They recognised and supported unanimously protection of the Wirratjika world, which includes both the countryside and its elements, like trees, rocks, abysses, and the fauna that inhabit the region, as well as the sacred places of pilgrimage and as an act of redemption for the peoples of the world. The route is made up of various culturally associated landscapes that are situated in the north and centre of Mexico and extend 500km from west to north-east. The importance of protecting the sacred sites on that route is crucial to keeping alive the memory of our native peoples, the interest in the heritage of the past and the still-living testimonies. By conserving the main principal sites of Tatiwahabi Hawaje, chosen as per the agreements in assemblies by the wiyaritari communities and authorities met their concern at the vulnerability of these sites in the face of factors such as urban sprawl, inappropriate tourism, the disrespectful consumption of peyote, limited access to private properties and, above all, mining in Virikuta. The National Institute for Anthropology and History has supported them since 2003, first by listing the route in the Mexico indicative list and then, from 2011, through advice in implementing both the technical nomination dossier and its management plan. Finally, the submission of the final document to the UNESCO World Heritage Centre authorities in 2023, in so doing fulfilling one of the most pressing requests from the Wiraritari communities to various presidents of Mexico, which finally was reflected in the commitments under the Justice Plan for the Wirarica, Nayeri, Odum, Odum and Mexican peoples, submitted by ex-president of Mexico, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, in Santa Catarina Quezcomatitlan, a municipality in the heart of Huichol territory. The route enjoys federal protection, which is bolstered by recent normative updates, including the federal law for the protection of the cultural heritage of indigenous and Afro-Mexican peoples and communities, the decree recognising, protecting, preserving and safeguarding sacred shrines and pilgrimage routes of the indigenous peoples, the and Mexican, and finally, the decree reforming various provisions of article. Two of the constitution on indigenous and Afro-Mexican peoples and communities signed by our president, Clyde, Claudia Sheinbaum. Currently, we are establishing a new general law on the rights of indigenous and Afro-Mexican peoples, which seeks to reform article 2 of the constitution to recognise peoples and communities as subjects of public law with the capacity to protect their knowledge and, in general, their cultural collective heritage of indigenous communities and peoples, both tangible and intangible. The Wiradika route through the sacred sites to Wirikuta, the 36th site in Mexico on the world heritage list, is a braid of trails that is profoundly linked to spiritual, ritual and cultural practices. Recognition from the international community of the sacred route Tatuarai Waiyue, the path of our grandfather fire, signified an act of justice for this noble indigenous people after so many years of struggle for the recognition and protection of their sacred sites, which hold the essence of life and in which our deities dwell. As was stated by the representative of the Veradica last year at the UNESCO headquarters, respect, knowledge of that site, its correct management, conservation, its safeguarding and dissemination concern us all, both themselves and ourselves, as a tribute to humanity. Thank you.

Thank you very much for this. Excellencies, distinguished participants, we will now begin the first segment of the list of speakers. All interventions from the floor are limited to one minute and 30 seconds, and the list of speakers is now closed. And first, I have the honor to give the floor to the distinguished, His Excellency, Honorable Minister, Rama Otswana, Nelson Rama Otswana, Minister of Justice and Correctional Services of Botswana. Honorable Minister, you have the floor.

Thank you, Madam Chair, panelists. Botswana appreciate this important discussion on the rights of Indigenous people and reaffirms the central role in heritage protection. We fully align with the assertion that, "Indigenous peoples have long been stewards of many of these places, and their knowledge, practices, and relationship with the land have been central to maintaining, protecting, transmitting, and safeguarding their cultural and natural values." Botswana recognizes indigenous people in its national context and reiterates its commitment to ensuring that their rights, cultural heritage, and traditional knowledge system are respected and protected. We remain committed to the effective implementation of the World Heritage Convention. Efforts are underway to enhance our indigenous peoples' participation in heritage identification and management, improve consultation processes, and ensure that conservation studies reflect both outstanding universal and cultural values of Indigenous communities. Botswana also continues to engage with UNESCO processes and supports the human rights-based approach reflected in the revised operational guidelines. We will study the recommendations emerging from this panel and remain committed to advancing measures that ensure full, effective and meaningful participation of Indigenous Peoples in the heritage governance at all levels. I thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you very much. Next, I give the floor to the European Union.

Deputy High Commissioner, Vice President, we reiterate the European Union's commitment to promote, fulfill, and protect the rights of Indigenous Peoples as set out in the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and international human rights law. Many World Heritage properties are located in the lands and territories of Indigenous Peoples. Indigenous Peoples have long been stewards of these places, contributing to protecting and transmitting their heritage.

When Indigenous Peoples are effectively involved and their rights and culture is respected, World Heritage status can

help protect ancestral territories and cultural heritage, support livelihoods, and advance self-determined development. We welcome examples of Indigenous-led site management. Digital technologies can support the documentation of Indigenous cultural heritage when developed and used with Indigenous peoples and in respect of their rights, knowledge, and data. We're concerned, however, that Indigenous peoples may face exclusion from the governance of World Heritage sites, including restrictions on access to their lands and cultural sites. In line with the UNDRIP, Indigenous Peoples should participate fully, effectively, equally and meaningfully in decisions affecting them, and States should consult and cooperate with them in good faith to obtain their free, prior and informed consent. Distinguished panelists, could you share good practices for ensuring Indigenous Peoples' participation and free, prior and informed consent in World Heritage processes? I thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Denmark on behalf of a group of countries.

Thank you, Madam Vice-President. I have the honour to speak on behalf of the Nordic-Baltic states, together with Greenland. We thank the panellists for their valuable contributions. Indigenous peoples have been custodians of lands, territories, natural resources and cultural heritage for generations. Their knowledge, practices, and relationship with the environment make an invaluable contribution to preserving our shared cultural and national heritage. The rights of indigenous peoples must be fully respected in decisions concerning their lands, territories, and cultural heritage, as set out in the UNDRIP, which provides a clear framework in this regard. The protection of world heritage must go hand in hand with the protection of human rights, Conservation measures must not lead to restrictions on traditional practices or denial of access to the indigenous people's cultural and sacred sites. This includes respecting indigenous people's knowledge systems and cultural values and to consult and cooperate in good faith in order to obtain free, prior, and informed consent. Distinguished panelists. How can states best ensure indigenous peoples are included in decision-making processes on World Heritage sites affecting their heritage? I thank you.

Thank you very much. Next, I give the floor to Guatemala.

Thank you very much, Vice-President. With all respect, I'd like to begin by requesting that the Spanish interpreters say Los pueblos indigenas in the plural Guatemala is grateful for this panel which has a theme established pursuant to resolution 60/13 in this Council presented jointly by Guatemala and Mexico this dialogue also has a historic significance. For the first time, indigenous peoples' representatives are participating on an annual panel in their own capacity and not as NGOs. From this point of view, Guatemala believes that the protection of heritage should be built on effective participation of indigenous peoples. In Guatemala, the experience of the city Tikalik Abaj has been converted, being converted into the National Archaeological Park, demonstrates how Indigenous Peoples' participation can directly contribute to the conservation and management of World Heritage. In 2025, the World Heritage Committee recognized Guatemala's efforts to strengthen the involvement of Indigenous Peoples in the conservation of the site, an experience which continued to be promoted during the first National Encounter of World Heritage, Meeting of World Heritage Managers, which took place in April 2022. Distinguished panelists, although we have seen progress, there are still challenges in this area, and in this context, we wonder which institutional changes and governance changes you consider to be priorities to guarantee the effective participation of indigenous peoples. Thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Mexico.

Thank you very much, Vice-President. We are grateful to the panellists for their interesting presentations and the presence of Francisco Gallina. Mexico believes that it is particularly important that, on the basis of resolution 60/13, this is the first time that indigenous peoples' representatives are participating in their own capacity in an HRC roundtable. We are grateful to the President and the members of the Board for their support in achieving this. This is a significant step forward for the participation of indigenous peoples in the work of the Council. This panel's issue is directly connected to constitutional and legal reforms fostered by Mexico in recent years. the 2024 constitutional reform recognizes indigenous peoples as subjects of public law with legal personality and their individual heritage, including cultural heritage. To this, we add the federal law for the protection of the cultural heritage of indigenous peoples and Afro-Mexican communities, and the decree recognizing and protecting sacred sites and pilgrimage routes of the Wixarika, Nayarit, Odam, and Mexican peoples, both dating to 2023. Mexico will continue to lobby for indigenous peoples' rights with concrete actions, both multilaterally and nationally. Thank you very much, Vice-President.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Brazil.

Thank you, Madam Vice President. Brazil highlights the connection between Indigenous peoples' rights and the protection of cultural and natural heritage. For Indigenous peoples, heritage is inseparable from their territory, knowledge, spirituality, and ways of life. Their practices and relationship with the environment are essential to its preservation and transmission. This understanding should guide implementation of the World Heritage Convention. Indigenous Peoples must meaningfully participate in World Heritage processes, including in identifying heritage values. In Brazil, free, prior, and informed consultation is incorporated into nomination processes, and Indigenous Peoples participate in managing sites where heritage and traditional territories intersect. Protecting heritage also requires addressing cultural objects displaced by colonial legacies. In 2024, 607 indigenous cultural objects were returned to Brazil from France, while the sacred Tupinamba mantle was returned from Denmark. Brazil appreciates both countries' cooperation, showing how restitution can reconnect heritage with the peoples, spiritual meanings and knowledge systems to which it belongs. Protecting heritage means recognizing Indigenous Peoples as protagonists in defining, preserving, and transmitting their own heritage. This principle must guide international forums, ensuring their voices, perspectives, and knowledge are directly represented. Thank you.

Thank you very much. I would like to remind all speakers that speaking time is one minute and 30 seconds. And next, I have the honour to give the floor to Spain.

Vice President, Spain aligns itself with the EU statement and is grateful to the panellists for their contribution. We underscore our commitment to the rights of indigenous peoples in line with the Indigenous Peoples Declaration, among other instruments. Cultural and natural heritage is a core part of the cosmovision of indigenous peoples As a result, the management and governance of World Heritage sites should be based on respect for their territorial rights and the principle of free, prior, and informed consent. Indigenous women and men's knowledge and the ways that they use and relate to their lands are essential for sustainable, fair, and respectful governance of those lands. the basis of human rights. That vision guides the international cooperation and feminist foreign policy of Spain, prioritizing full participation, which is equitable and effective for indigenous peoples, taking decisions concerning what impacts them. We urge a strengthening in coordinating the human rights mechanisms and cultural and environmental conventions The 1992 Convention on Biodiversity and the 2024 International Treaty on Genetic Resources and Traditional Knowledge are demonstrations of international recognition of the rights and wisdom of indigenous peoples and their heritage. As other delegations mentioned beforehand, we'd like to ask the panelists which good institutional practices do they consider to be priority to ensure the participation connecting Indigenous communities to the designation, assessment and management of World Heritage sites and ancestral lands. Thank you very much.

Thank you. Next, I have the honor to give the floor to His Excellency Mr. Mugiarto, Vice Minister of Human Rights of the Republic of Indonesia. You have the floor, please.

Madam Vice President, Indonesia welcomes the theme of this annual panel, and we appreciate the panelists for their very interesting presentation. In Indonesia, the role of preserving world heritage falls also in the adat communities as stewards of our heritage landscapes. Across generations, their knowledge and practices remain integral to conservation. Let me name two cases in point. At the Subak World Heritage Site in Bali, traditional governance rooted in the Tri Hita Karana philosophy continues to sustain both cultural and natural heritage. At Komodo National Park, the Ata Modu community maintains the customary kinship-based relationship with the landscape. Their grassroots ecotourism offers a locally driven model of conservation. distinct from state-led tourism development. Similar practices are shared widely across the Indonesian archipelago. Having said that, I would like to express that Indonesia remains fully committed to advancing inclusive governance for sustainable conservation in partnership with other communities in Indonesia. I thank you, Madam Vice President.

Thank you very much. Next, I give the floor to China.

Madam Vice President, China has taken note that the panel focuses on the impact of the World Heritage Convention on the rights of the indigenous peoples. Indigenous peoples have made a valuable and unique contribution to the diverse development of human civilization. In implementing the Convention, all countries should respect indigenous peoples' traditional knowledge, cultural heritage, and land resources, erosion to their cultural foundations and living environment and ensure their equal participation in conservation management decision making and benefit sharing. China takes note that the Western colonial history, as well as the longstanding systemic and structural discrimination and inequality, continue to have a negative impact on the indigenous peoples' efforts to preserve and pass on their unique culture, languages, and customs. China calls on the countries concerned to effectively redress historical injustices, eliminate prejudices and discrimination against indigenous peoples, and generally safeguard their fundamental rights, including economic, social, and rights, China stands ready to work with the international community to operationalize the global civilization initiative and play a constructive role in the implementation of the heritage convention. Thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Malaysia.

Madam Vice President, Malaysia welcomes this annual panel discussion on the rights of indigenous people, focusing this year on their engagement in the protection of the world's cultural and natural heritage. Indigenous communities are often closely connected to the lands, ecosystem, tradition, and knowledge system that form part of our shared heritage. Malaysia believes that their meaningful engagement can strengthen conservation efforts while ensuring that cultural identity, traditional knowledge, and community well-being are respected. Malaysia has been a state party to the 1972 World Heritage Convention since 1988 and remains committed to protecting cultural and natural heritage for future generations. At the national level, our approach to indigenous communities also emphasizes cultural preservation alongside socioeconomic development. In this regard, Malaysia is developing a new Orang Asli development policy covering seven areas, including land, leadership, infrastructure, and cultural preservation. Its formulation involved Orang Asli respondents to ensure that policies affecting them are informed by their perspective. We are also reviewing the Aboriginal Peoples Act 1954 with proposed measures including recognition of customary institution and strengthen mechanism for consultation on land related matters. Malaysia believes that heritage conservation should be pursued through constructive partnership with indigenous communities while respecting national legal frameworks and national and development priorities. Their knowledge, participation and stewardship are important to preserving shared heritage sustainably and inclusively. I thank you.

I thank you. Next, I give the floor to Peru.

Thank you, Vice-President. For Peru, the protection of cultural and natural heritage requires the recognition of cultural diversity and the particular recognition that indigenous peoples have with the lands that they occupy and locations of spiritual significance. Their participation is essential in the whole World Heritage cycle, from the identification and designation of sites to their management, conservation and monitoring. Among the 13 Peruvian sites, there is an Andean network which connects a number of territories and countries whose value is inextricably connected to the peoples conserving their practices and traditions. This commitment is reflected in our National Indigenous Peoples Policy. as well as our national cultural policy. Both policies promote the protection of collective rights, the safeguarding of cultural heritage and its intergenerational transmission. Vice President, Peru recognizes that we still have challenges in ensuring sustained participation and reconciling this with traditional rights, equitably distributing the benefits and strengthening the capacity of communities to be involved in management. APRE will continue to promote an intercultural focus which will foster the participation of indigenous peoples in the preservation and transmission of World Heritage. Thank you very much.

I thank you. Next, I give the floor to Russian Federation.

Madam Vice-President, the issue of the role of indigenous peoples' activities to preserve cultural and natural heritage is important. The theme requires further deep study and analysis of existing experience in countries, as also within the UNESCO specialised agency. Russia has adopted a law on tangible and intangible ethno-cultural heritage. The UNESCO list contains many cultural sites of indigenous peoples, there is a single state register of historical and cultural monuments. Special attention is given to special laws. For example, in one Russian region, a law has been adopted on shrines, where certain landscapes are attributed as cultural heritage. The list of sacred places is established at the initiative of indigenous peoples themselves. Also, conservation of natural monuments is facilitated by the activities of small-numbered indigenous peoples' territories. The aim is to protect the traditional land and way of life and to support biodiversity in those territories, providing for a special legal regime and a prohibition on industrial activities Russia proceeds on the basis that to preserve cultural heritage for future generations, what's needed are general efforts both from the international community, states, indigenous peoples, academia, and the business community. Thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to United Republic of Tanzania.

Thank you, Madam Vice-Chairperson. We welcome this important discussion. We note that there is no universally agreed definition of indigenous peoples. This provides an opportunity for approaches reflecting different historical and regional realities, particularly Africa colonial experience and efforts to build inclusive nation states based on equal citizenship. Our constitution guarantees equal citizenship and prohibits discrimination based on tribe or origin. This does not diminish cultural rights, traditional knowledge, or legitimate community interests. While conservation is central to the World Heritage Convention, it is also not defined. This notwithstanding, conservation must serve people as well as heritage. Regarding Maasai communities in Ngorongoro, it is urgent to take note of the current state of alarming environmental and ecological degradation that has real consequences for the very heritage site and communities we seek to protect. We therefore need practical, scientifically informed and sustainable solutions that address conditions on the ground, rather than approaches centered on accusations without viable solutions. Particular sensitivity is required when identity is linked to land. Across Africa, overlapping patterns of settlement and land use, including between pastoralists and farming communities, require approaches that promote rather than undermine peaceful coexistence and social cohesion. Tanzania, therefore, supports a flexible, evidence-based, and context-sensitive approach that protects heritage, communities, and their future. I thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to University for Peace.

Madam Vice-President, the World Heritage Convention was established to safeguard humanity's shared heritage. However, Indigenous Peoples have frequently been regarded as subjects of that heritage rather than as rights holders. As documented by this Council's expert mechanism, exclusion from nomination and management processes, restrictions on traditional access and practices, and insufficient application of free, prior and informed consent continue to represent significant gaps between the Convention's stated principles and its practical implementation. The promotion of peaceful coexistence is central to the mission for which the University for Peace was established. Indigenous peoples have demonstrated such coexistence with this heritage for generations. The issue at hand is the need for recognition, not further evidence. The University for Peace welcomes the recent revisions to the operational guidelines that promote a human rights based approach and echoes the call of the expert mechanism for the criteria defining outstanding universal value to fully and consistently reflect the heritage values attributed by indigenous peoples to their lands and territories. We urge states parties to ensure equitable and participatory governance at every stage, from nomination to monitoring. Furthermore, indigenous peoples' free, prior and informed consent should be regarded not as a procedural formality, but as a binding condition for legitimate heritage protection. Thank you.

Thank you. We will now turn to the list of speakers of indigenous peoples. And first, I give the floor to Indigenous Movement for Peace Advancement and Conflict Transformation. So I call again, please, Indigenous Movement for Peace Advancement and Conflict Transformation.

Good morning. I could take the floor for this comment. I deliver this statement on behalf of the Anishinaabe Business Professional Association and a rights holder of Gnohkaaming First Nation. We thank the UN Voluntary Fund for Indigenous People for supporting our participation. Nongmin is a treaty number nine First Nation in northern Ontario, Canada. Our ancestral territory encompasses the Ring of Fire in the James Bay Lowlands, one of the Earth's largest intact peatland, carbon sinks and living cultural heritage landscapes. Despite Canada's UN Declaration Act and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada's call to action number 92, speculative mining companies raise capital on stock exchanges to exploit these sacred lands without free, prior, and informed consent. Securities regulators isolate heritage protection from financial market rules, allowing unconsulted claims to be commercialized while ignoring the Crown's constitutional treaty obligations and material operational risks. To safeguard living Indigenous heritage, economic development must strictly comply with UNDRIP. We call upon UNESCO, member states, and capital market regulators to mandate binding FPIC disclosure rules across financial and land use frameworks, placing Indigenous governance at the center of protecting vital global heritage. Thank you and miigwech.

Thank you very much. This was Anish Nauppe Business Professional Association. And we move on. And next I give the floor to Crimean Tatar Youth Center.

Thank you, Madam Vice Chair. We welcome this panel as for Indigenous Peoples' culture heritage is inseparable from their lands and identity. Its effective protection therefore requires a full and meaningful participation of Indigenous Peoples in all decisions affecting their heritage. The experience of the Crimean Tatar people, the indigenous people of Ukraine, demonstrate the consequences of excluding indigenous peoples from such processes. Since the beginning of the temporary occupation of Crimea, Russia has systematically damaged and altered cultural heritage linked to the Crimean Tatar people. One of the most striking examples is the so-called restoration of the Khan's Palace in Bachchisarai, the only surviving example of Crimean Tatar palace architecture in the world. Under the guise of restoration, authentic elements of the monument have been destroyed or irreversibly altered. At the same time, illegal archaeological excavations continue at Chersonesus Taurica, a UNESCO World Heritage site, as well as at other archaeological sites in occupied Crimea, including the cave city of Bakla, causing further damage to cultural heritage. We encourage UNESCO and states to ensure that indigenous peoples are recognized not merely as stakeholders, but as rights holders and to ensure the full participation of our representative institutions in all processes related to culture, heritage, protection and management. Thank you.

Thank you very much. Next, I give the floor to the Royal State of Tahiti and the Islands.

Madame Vice-President, I speak on behalf of the royal state of Tahiti and the islands. For our people, cultural and natural heritage is living. It is constituted of our lands, our languages, our knowledge and the families that transmit that knowledge. A few days ago, two Maori families were expelled from their ancestral lands, even though they held customary land rights, the tomiti. rights recognised by the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples have been invoked, and yet the expulsion still took place. Families have been denied their homes, and children have also been affected. How can we speak of protection of heritage if families who are the guardians can be stripped of their lands? Protecting indigenous heritage is also protecting the people and families that live there. We call for the situation of indigenous peoples living in non-self-governing territories to be fully taken into consideration. Thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Lawyers Association for Human Rights of Nepalese Indigenous Peoples.

I speak on behalf of L'Hornerip, an Indigenous human rights lawyers organization. We offer three important examples of why Indigenous participation in World Heritage governance requires urgent attention. In Khao Krachan, Thailand, the World Heritage Committee itself called for the participatory process consistent with FPIC. In Chitwan, Nepal, the committee has called for the human right-based approach to park management. In Kaziranga, Assam, long-standing concerns over boundaries, displacement, and community rights illustrate ongoing tensions. The sites have documented histories of human rights concerns and violations and point to a common issue. Their values, knowledge, institutions, and relationships with their territories should help the conservation governance itself. This is why the UNESCO roadmap on enhancing Indigenous peoples' engagement in the World Heritage Convention is both and urgent. Its implementation must be firmly grounded in strong regional processes that reflect the diverse experiences, values and governance systems of Indigenous Peoples in Asia. We urge UNESCO and State Parties to make FPIC and Indigenous value-based governance central to this process, including in nomination, management, monitoring and review of World Heritage property. I thank you, Mr. President.

Thank you. I will now turn to the list of non-governmental organizations, and I will first give the floor to the Saami Council.

Thank you, Chair.

The Saami Council recognizes the challenges and human rights violations indigenous peoples face at World Heritage sites, particularly where their cultural values are not recognized as part of the outstanding universal value. The Lapponian area in the Sami homelands in Sweden illustrates how heritage protection and indigenous people's rights can be mutually reinforcing. It was inscribed for its natural features and the Sami reindeer herding culture. Recognizing Sami cultural values in the OUV ensures that these values are considered in conservation decision and gives the Sami people a primary role in decision making. Decisions require consensus between the Sami, two municipalities and government agencies. This shows the importance of integrating indigenous people's cultural values into management and ensuring their full and effective participation and their free, prior and informed consent. Lastly, I must flag a conceptual danger of conflating indigenous peoples with local communities in heritage processes. Recognition of the Sami as an indigenous peoples underpinned the Sami Road in the Lapponian area. Indigenous peoples' distinct rights, including the right to self-determination, are anchored in international law. Blurring these rights risk reducing binding international obligation and discriminatory policy choices. I thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to International Service for Human Rights.

The desecration of our lands and sacred rivers, combined with large-scale gold mining and now the extraction of critical minerals for the energy transition, is destroying the heritage of humanity in Bolivia. Between 2019 and 2025, forest fires consumed more than 30 million hectares of forest for the purposes of agro-industry, extinguishing biodiversity, native seeds and the homes of non-contacted peoples, oil exploration, hydroelectric Hydro projects are destroying key hydro resources for life. These are financed through investment and cooperation at the cost of the lives of the cultural and natural heritage of humanity. The criminalization and loss of lives of human rights defenders is a loss of cultural memory of our peoples. Therefore, states must prioritize the preservation of life instead of economic interests. They must respect the self Video was cut off. Instead of economic interests, they must respect the self-determination of our Indigenous peoples, consistent with international standards such as Convention 169, and stop the criminalization of Indigenous peoples.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to VIVAT International.

Madam Vice President, VIVAT International, in alliance with the National Coordination of Indigenous Pastoral Care of Paraguayan Episcopal Conference, CONAPI, strongly condemn the cowardly murder of community members of Yapo Indigenous community of the Ava-Guarani people, Paraguay, on August 14, 2026. Indigenous leaders Antonio Carrillo and Catalina Correa were amongst those murdered. Vivat International and CONAPE demand that the Paraguayan authorities institute a thorough, objective, independent, impartial and transparent investigation into that sad event, including the use of force, decisions taken before, during and after the operations, and the conduct of institutions and officials involved, and any violations of constitutional guarantees and human rights. We also demand that the Paraguayan government ensure accountability consistent with due process, prevent further violence, protect the life and physical integrity of Yapo community members, and guarantee access to their ancestral lands. There must be no silence, impunity, cover-up, or perfunctory investigation. The truth must be known. We urge the Council to pay serious attention to this situation and the violations of the rights of Paraguayan indigenous peoples. Thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Geneva pour les droits de l'homme, Formation Internationale.

This convention was born in Nubia between 1960 and 1980. UNESCO moved 22 monuments, including Abu Simbel and Philae, above the high waters of the Aswan Dam. This campaign inspired the 1972 convention. Temples have been moved, the Nubian people were not. Tens of thousands of people were resettled, their villages sit on by Nasser Lake. Heritage was saved by separating it from the people that lived with it. Sixty years later, that separation remains. Article 236 of the Egyptian constitution of 2014 provides for the return of Nubians to their ancestral lands within 10 years. That deadline went without being implemented. On the contrary, decree 444 of 2014 closed border areas, including six Nubian villages. Decree 355 of 2016 allegated Nubian lands to the Toshka project. Nevertheless, the Nubians protect their language, architecture and knowledge of the river. Their youth inherits that without the places that gave birth to it. We recommend that Nubians take part in the management of Nubian monuments and that the right of return be immediately implemented. to the World Heritage Center, we have a question: the roadmap proposed, will it address people displaced by the campaigns that led to the birth of this Convention? Thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to China Ethnic Minorities Association for External Exchanges.

Distinguished Vice Chair, China is home to 56 ethnic groups, 55 of which having smaller populations than the Han ethnic group are collectively referred to as ethnic minorities. Although China has no indigenous peoples, we believe that China's experience in ethnic affairs governance may also offer useful reference for protecting the rights and interests of different groups. China safeguards ethnic equality in accordance with the law. The constitution of the People's Republic of China stipulates that the state upholds and develops ethnic relations characterized by equality, unity, mutual assistance, and harmony. The law of the People's Republic of China on regional ethnic autonomy grants ethnic autonomous areas corresponding powers of autonomy. The ethnic unity and progress promotion law prohibits all forms of ethnic discrimination and oppression and promotes the common development and progress of the Chinese nation. Through our organization's exchanges with indigenous peoples in relevant countries, we have learned that indigenous peoples in some countries still face systematic discrimination in education, culture, healthcare, and other fields. We call on the international community to work together to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and effectively protect their legitimate rights and interests. Thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Al-Haq, Law in the Service of Men, for a joint statement.

The occupation of the Palestinian people represents a sustained and systematic assault on indigenous rights through genocide, annexation, dispossession, forcible displacement, and the fragmentation of Palestinian land and isolation of communities. The E1 settlement project, where Israel is advancing plans to construct thousands of properties for illegal settlers, provides a stark.

Example.

This August, Israel opened a new tender for the construction of over 1,000 properties, constituting around a third of the nearly 3,500 approved. If allowed to go ahead, the project would forcibly displace more than 18 Bedouin communities and connect the illegal settlement of Ma'ale Adumim with unlawfully occupied East Jerusalem, thereby severing the West Bank and undermining Palestinian territorial continuity. The E1 project serves to entrench Israel's illegal presence in Palestine and has already directly affected thousands of Bedouin Palestinians. For instance, the community of Khan al-Ahmar has endured years of demolition threats and restrictions, despite Israeli authorities being repeatedly.

Called upon to halt all acts leading to their forcible transfer.

The international community must act, not merely express concern. It must adopt and enforce concrete measures to bring Israel's illegal presence in Palestine, its genocide against the Palestinian people, and settler colonial apartheid regime on both sides of the green line to an end. Indigenous Palestinian rights are non-negotiable and cannot coexist with policies and practices of an illegal occupying power that erase the Palestinian people along with our history, culture, and society. Thank

Thank you. We have exhausted the first segment of the list of speakers, and we will be proceeding with the second segment of the list of speakers, and I have the honor to give the floor to India.

Madam Vice-President, India welcomes this important discussion on the implementation of the World Heritage Convention and its interface with the rights, interests and development aspirations of communities. India reiterates its established position that the entire population of India is indigenous to the country. India does not, therefore, recognize indigenous peoples as a separate constitutional category. At the same time, our Constitution provides specific safeguards for different sections of our people including Scheduled Tribes, whose status is constitutionally defined. These categories should not be conflated. India has developed a comprehensive framework protecting the relationship of tribal communities with their lands, forests, and natural resources. The Fifth and Sixth Schedules provide special constitutional arrangements. PESA, 1996, strengthens local self-governance and the role of Gram Sabhas, and the Forest Rights Act, 2006, recognizes individual and community forest rights, including community forest resource management, habitat rights, traditional knowledge, and access to biodiversity. The 2013 Land Acquisition Law further provides safeguards relating to acquisition, displacement, and rehabilitation. These frameworks demonstrate that conservation and community interests can be mutually reinforcing. India therefore supports meaningful community participation in identification, nomination, conservation, management, and monitoring of World Heritage properties, consistent with national, constitutional, and legal frameworks. India believes that sharing such experiences can advance a more inclusive, patreon people centered implementation of World Heritage Convention. I thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Iraq. So we move on. Next, I give the floor to Pakistan. Pakistan seems to be absent, so we move on and I give the floor to Cuba.

Thank you very much, Vice-President. We are grateful for the presentations made by the panellists. Much of the cultural heritage inscribed under the 1972 UNESCO convention on the protection of heritage, global, cultural and natural heritage, is located partially or totally within indigenous lands. Indigenous peoples have for a long time been the stewards of those territories. calling for the preservation of those protected sites is also defending the self-determination and dignity of indigenous peoples that live there. It is crucial, therefore, to create mechanisms to ensure the proactive participation of indigenous peoples in any initiative on preservation of the sites inscribed on the lists that are located in their lands. In each of the initiatives that we address, we must respect the principle of FPIC. CUBA proposes for consideration dedicating a specific thematic study on the participation of indigenous peoples in the management of sites inscribed under the UNESCO convention. We think that such a study should provide clear guidelines to States and other stakeholders on best practices to implement. We reaffirm our commitment to defending all indigenous peoples' rights, including their right to self-determination. in line with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Thank you very much, Vice-President.

I thank you. Next, I give the floor to Cameroon.

Thank you, Vice-President. Cameroon hails the holding of this panel devoted to the rights and participation of indigenous peoples in implementation of the World Heritage Convention. For my delegation, protection of cultural and natural heritage and the protection of the rights of indigenous peoples must be mutually reinforcing. Conservation can only be durable if it is disassociated from rights, traditional knowledge and effective participation. These two must be merged as contributed for generations preserving these spaces. This approach is particularly important for Cameroon, which includes among its cultural heritage sites the Fauna Reserve of Dja and the Trinational of Sangha. The World Heritage Committee recently also commended efforts to promote the participation, the rights of indigenous peoples and local communities living there. Cameroon believes that special attention should be granted the participation of the communities concerned in the management of sites, recognition of their knowledge and equitable sharing of the benefits linked to their conservation. Ladies and gentlemen, panelists, in your opinion, what best practices would help better reconcile the need to conserve world heritage with rights, ways of life and traditional practices of indigenous peoples, especially in developing countries? Thank you.

Next, I give the floor to Chad. Chad is absent, so we move on. And next, I give the floor to Niger. Niger? Niger is also absent. also absent. So we move on and I will turn to the list of speakers of indigenous peoples and I give the floor to Organization Maya Wajop Cambio.

Vice President, I speak on behalf of the Maya Wajop Organization of Indigenous Peoples. We thank the UN Voluntary Fund for Indigenous Peoples for their valuable support, which has allowed me to be present here today. We express our profound concern at the nominations and inscriptions of UNESCO under the Convention on the Protection of the World's Cultural and Natural Heritage, carried out without the free, prior and informed consent of indigenous peoples. In practice, those declarations have led to pillaging, restriction of access to our sacred and ceremonial shrines and violations of our rights to land, territory and resources. We urge UNESCO to put an end to the systematic omission of the UNDRIP and to guarantee the creation of a standing binding mechanism for participation of indigenous authorities and representatives in all decision-making processes. Our question would be what specific measures and reparation mechanisms will UNESCO adopt to remedy damage and violations of human rights committed against indigenous peoples in the context of World Heritage declarations? Thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Tevran.

Vice President, thank you for this opportunity to take the floor here on behalf of the African Alliance for Indigenous Peoples. Cultural and natural heritage is not just made-up of sites, objects or landscapes. It is also carried by people, their cultures, their languages, their traditional knowledge and their ways of life. The indigenous peoples of Fulbe and Tuareg of Burkina Faso and Mali face an extremely alarming situation, marked, according to many reports, by massacres of civilians, summary executions, enforced disappearance and displacement, particularly in the context of fighting terrorism. How can we protect a living heritage when the peoples who carry it and transmit it are threatened in their very existence? Pastoral traditions, transhumance and knowledge linked to the land and to natural resources are a major cultural richness of the Sahel. Their disappearance or their weakening would also be a loss to heritage of humanity. Protecting global heritage is also protecting the people that are the stewards thereof, protecting their lives, protecting their cultures and their futures.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Vind MM Vintu Tribe.

Thank you, Vice President.

The Winnemem Wintu Tribe is a non-federally recognized indigenous people in the United States. The traditional authority of the tribe is the hereditary matrilineal matriarchal spiritual leader in chief, Kayleen Sisk. The Winnemem Wintu still live on traditional land but face near extinction as a people alongside the tribe's sacred salmon. As a traditionally led indigenous people, the tribe faces not only colonialism, genocide, and legacies therein, but inherent simultaneous ecocide of the salmon and constant threats of systemic cultural genocide by the legal and political eradication of traditional spiritual indigenous systems of tribal leadership, especially in the colonial settler state that does not recognize traditional pre-colonial governance systems, much less many tribes or indigenous peoples. What is UNESCO able or willing to do or already doing to legally and politically protect against the cultural genocide and loss of real-time living sacred cultural ways, traditions, and fundamentally corresponding traditional governance systems therein of, with, by, and for Indigenous peoples? and especially in contexts whereby the surrounding state does not engage with UNESCO or is not party to the convention for the safeguarding of the intangible heritage, cultural heritage, or other related instruments, and/or does not recognize indigenous peoples and/or their traditional and especially spiritual therein governance systems. As a matter of self-determination, how can the traditional authority of the tribe directly engage to protect its heritage? Thank you.

I thank you. Next, taking the floor to Indigenous Movement for Peace Advancement and Conflict Transformation.

Thank you, Chair. This is a statement about the Ngorongoro Conservation Area in Tanzania.

The Tanzanian government has been making an aggressive campaign to relocate indigenous Maasai pastoralists from Ngorongoro, which has triggered severe

human rights crisis.

Impoverishment and denial of social services are forcing the Maasai into supposedly voluntary resettlement program. Authorities have cut off essential health care and education, confiscate livestock, and deploy coercive tactics, violating the Maasai rights to adequate housing, health, education, and self-determination.

This crisis reflects a

pattern across Africa, where the fortress conservation model forcibly displaces Indigenous Peoples at numerous World Heritage sites.

By ignoring UNDRIP and by passing free, prior and informed consent, state-led conservation frameworks violate core human rights instruments.

Global heritage preservation must never become a vehicle for cultural erosion and ancestral land disposition.

A site cannot embody outstanding universal value if its survival relies on the systematic erosion of its original custodians. We recommend that the Council urge UNESCO and OHCHR to establish a formal collaborative

mechanism to establish human rights problems in World Heritage sites and compel states to strictly adhere to international human

standards, guarantee FPIC and immediately halt all conservation-driven forced eviction.

I thank you.

I thank you. I will now turn to the list of speakers for non-governmental organizations and I give the floor to Earthjustice.

Thank you, Madam Vice President. I'm speaking as a partner of Earthjustice. I'm a traditional custodian from Murujuga and my human rights are being violated. I am watching the slow motion cultural genocide and erasure of my history and culture. Without our culture, beliefs and religion, we have no footprint or identity. Murujuga on the Burrup Peninsula is the site of the largest, oldest collection of Aboriginal rock art in the world, dating back at least 50,000 years. Murujuga was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site in July 2025. Three months later, the Australian government approved the extension of Australia's largest gas plant, Woodside's North West Shelf on the Burrup 2070. Woodside are now seeking approval from the Australian Government for Australia's biggest new gas project, Browse, to process at the North West Shelf. Emissions are destroying and desecrating Murujuga's sacred rock art and impacting all countries contributing to climate change globally. The Australian Government continues to fail to protect the outstanding universal values of the cultural landscape. I call all governments to request Australia to implement the expert recommendations to, one, prevent direct harm to the ancient rock art engravings, cultural practice, law and custom, health and the community. Two, prevent any further industrial development, including the Browse to North West Shelf gas proposal. And three, develop a decommissioning and rehabilitation plan for this outstanding World Heritage landscape. Thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Consello Indigenista Misionario.

Madame, we welcome this year's panel focus on World Heritage Convention and Indigenous Peoples' Rights.

As the expert mechanism has emphasized, traditional economies and governance systems are foundational to the self-determination and cultural continuity. Yet, World Heritage processes too often advanced without the free, prior, and

informed consent of Indigenous Peoples, leading to dispossession, restricted access to ancestral lands, and the commodification of sacred sites. We recall the Permanent Forums

2025 recommendations urging states to eliminate structural barriers to Indigenous participation in decision making and upholding FPIC in all

matters affecting to their territories and resources. The convention must not become another instrument of exclusion.

We recall on the Council and the UNESCO to ensure

The World Heritage nominations, management and benefit sharing

fully respect the UNDRIP, including the right to self-determination and the protection of additional cultural landscapes. We urge member states to integrate these standards into the convention's operational guidelines and to guarantee indigenous peoples' direct participation

in all relevant matters.

I thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to International Indian Treaty Council.

Thank you very much, Vice-President. 20 years after the approval of the UN statement on the Indigenous Peoples' Rights, it's urgent that UNESCO bring its conventions, procedures and internal standards into line with those laid down in that instrument. It's essential that we establish an indigenous mechanism urgently to establish the decisive binding and active participation of UNESCO in engaging with decisions around our lands, territories and natural resources and sacred places, complying with free, prior and informed consent principles in the establishment and implementation of World Heritage sites. The Chaco National Cultural Historic Site, located in the southeast of the United States of America, is a World Heritage UNESCO site and has been as of 1987. It has huge cultural, spiritual and historical significance for the indigenous peoples in the area. In July 2026, the government proposed the repeal of a protection measure for 20 years, which has for 20 years been prohibited the mining and minerals in the location and surrounding area of the Chaco Canyon, which jeopardizes its existence. We're wondering what responsibility or authority UNESCO has to protect this canyon. Thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Disabled Women's Association.

Distinguished Vice President. I wish to say that decolonization goes beyond political independence. It also means protecting the people's language, history, and ties to their ancestral homeland. The Circassian experience show why this matter. In the 19th century, mass displacement from the Caucasus creates Circassian communities in many countries. Today, their heritage lived in their homeland, the Adyge language, and tradition preserved by the diaspora. But this heritage must be protected today and tomorrow. UN experts have voiced serious concern about restriction on indigenous and ethnic minority organization in Russia. When community face pressure for defending their identity, it becomes harder for them to teach their language, discuss their history, and participate in the decision about their heritage. They face pressure in different form and at times serious prosecution. Which is why Circassians must take an active part Their voice must be heard in decisions about places linked to their history. They must be able to study and share their history. They must also have free access to relevant documents. Historical justice cannot change the past, but listening to people and standing for their justice today can help us build a better future. Thank you.

I thank you. Next, I give the floor to RSKS.

Thank you, Mr. President. Across the world, 476 million indigenous peoples preserve ancient languages, cultures, and generations of ecological wisdom. Yet many still face displacement, poverty, and decisions about ancestral lands made without their meaningful participation. Imagine a tribal girl in a remote Indian village. Her grandmother protected forests through inherited knowledge. Her mother walked kilometers for basic services. Today, she can attend an Ekla Va model residential school, access healthcare closer to home, and see her Gram Sabha influence local development. This reflects India's continuing journey towards inclusive tribal development. Through PM Jan Dhan, India is expanding housing, water, roads, education, and healthcare for 75 particularly vulnerable tribal groups. Eklavya schools are educating thousands of tribal students, while PESA strengthens community participation in local governance. but development must never erase identity. Mr. President, we urge states to ensure indigenous peoples are meaningful partners in heritage nomination, conservation, management, and benefit sharing. A World Heritage site cannot be truly protected if its original custodians become invisible. Protecting heritage means protecting the people who gave it memory, meaning, and life. Thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Pax Christi International, International Catholic Peace Movement, for a joint statement.

Madam Vice-President, thank you. Pax Christi International and the co-sign organisation reaffirm that the rights of indigenous people cannot be fully realised unless they are able to shape decisions affecting their lives, territory, future and heritage. Indigenous women are essential leaders. They contribute to protect the territories and strengthen social cohesion, yet continue to face discrimination and barriers to equal and meaningful participation. Young indigenous people, likewise, have an essential role in shaping the future and for the continuity of culture and knowledge. Those who peacefully and nonviolently defend their communities, territories, and rights often face intimidation, criminalization, and violence, resulting in space for dialogue narrowing. These and other human rights defenders must be able to speak out, participate, and advocate for their community. This includes the Palestinian people, whose right to their land, dignity, and self-determination must be respected as a part of a just and lasting peace. We call states to protect indigenous human rights defenders from criminalization, intimidation, and reprisal. Guarantee the full, equal, and meaningful participation of indigenous women and young people in the decisions affecting their community. And uphold free, prior, and informed consent in the decision concerning indigenous land, territory, and resources, in line with the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People. Thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to International Workgroup for Indigenous Affairs.

Thank you, Madam Chair.

We want to underscore the importance of ensuring that Indigenous peoples'

own heritage values and cultural interpretations of sites are consistently reflected in the outstanding universal value of World Heritage sites in Indigenous territories. The outstanding universal value of World Heritage sites provides the basis for the protection and management and heavily affects conservation strategies and management priorities. States must ensure that human use within a site fully respects its outstanding universal value. The classification of Indigenous territories as so-called natural sites without recognizing Indigenous peoples' relationship to the land and

cultural values and outstanding universal value

as in many cases, led to or reinforced exclusionary management frameworks that undermine Indigenous peoples' customary rights to their ancestral lands and resources, livelihoods, and the protection of their intangible cultural heritage. It is one of the underlying causes of the persistent human rights abuses against Indigenous peoples in many World Heritage sites. We therefore considered imperative that the criteria for the inscription of natural sites be changed to enable the recognition of interconnections between culture and nature and human interaction with the environment in the outstanding universal value of those sites. This is also one of the key recommendations in the outcome document of the International Expert Workshop on Recognizing and Respecting Indigenous Peoples' Heritage Values in World Heritage Sites that took place in Geneva two years ago. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to China Society for Human Rights Studies.

thank you Madam vice president the operational guidelines for the implementation of the

world Heritage convention encourage human rights based approach nonetheless significant gaps remain in the consistent implementation the critical

question is how to achieve Synergy among Heritage conservation indigenous people's rights and development China's Jai Mountain

may offer an answer in 2023 the culture landscape of old tea Forest of Jai Mountain in yunan became

world's first tea-themed world heritage site.

Since then, diverse pathways to sustainable conservation have been explored.

First, institutional building.

Local regulations were enacted.

defining the scope of protection and the responsible entities providing a legal framework for the site second shared custodianship honoring the Blown ancestors precept to cherish the teach as one's own eyes local communities and the indigenous peoples serve as as the main actors they have formed teach guardianship teams change representative inheritors of cultural heritage and become

disseminators of tea culture and beneficiaries of the tea industry gaining the tangible

from protection. Third, digital empowerment. Intelligent monitoring system provides round-the-clock ecological guardianship, giving the millennium-old tea forest enduring vitality. Jinmai Mountain demonstrates that heritage conservation and sustainable development can advance hand in hand.

I thank you.

This was the last speaker we could accommodate. Delegates inscribed on the list of speakers who couldn't take the floor due to time constraints can upload their statements to be posted on the extranet. And I will now give the floor back to panelists to react to the many questions and observations from the floor and for their concluding remarks. You have four minutes each. And first, I give the floor to Ms. Berta de San Cristobal.

Thank you, Madam Vice-Chair, and thank you for all the interventions from delegates, non-governmental organizations and indigenous peoples' organizations. I think the very fact that this conversation is happening in the Human Rights Council is a beginning of an answer to some of the calls I heard in the room for a more structured cooperation between human rights mechanisms and the World Heritage Convention. There were a number of delegates asking for best practices, and my co-panelists will be probably in a better position than me to answer that, but it's very difficult to provide best practice when every community has its, every indigenous community has its own indigenous governance arrangements, et cetera, and also every site has its specific outstanding universal value and has been nominated for very specific reasons. So I will not give best practice. You heard some examples throughout the different speakers. But what I would say is that this cooperation, this dialogue, nominations can only be put forward by state parties. It's a convention. It's an intergovernmental treaty. This is part of the constraints on which we operate. Now, there are many phases before and after a nomination, and it's important that cooperation happens at every stage, and the very first one is inscription on the tentative list. There's already one step where the conversation between the different actors on identifying the site and defining its values needs to happen even before their nomination is considered. And I think you heard from Francisco that it took 20 years or 30 years to put together the nomination, and I think time is of essence, genuine collaboration needs time. And this is sometimes on some of the criticism that I heard. They could have been addressed if the necessary time had been taken before putting a nomination to the World Heritage List. And the other important point is that free, prior, and informed consent needs to embed the possibility of a no. So time, it's also leaving the door open for an informed decision not to be a World Heritage site. So I think these are not, I'm not quoting best practice, but I think having this, generating the spaces for this genuine collaboration to happen, it's very important. From the World Heritage system, once the nomination enters the World Heritage system, I mentioned it in passing in my initial intervention, but there have been some progress in creating processes ahead of nomination, what it's called preliminary assessment, in which this dialogue can already involve the advisory bodies, can already, involve the World Heritage Centre, and where these concerns can be brought forward before it reaches the committee examination. So there has been some progress on this aspect. Now, I think it comes out very clearly in this conversation, and it comes out very clearly also in the many conversations we have between the advisory bodies, International Indigenous People World Heritage Forum, and the World Heritage Centre, UNESCO, is that There are two different work streams on which we need to focus our attention. One, of course, is improving the mechanism going forward. And you probably heard-- most of the examples you heard are relatively recent inscriptions. And some of the inscriptions that have benefit from this enhanced operational guidelines. But there is also, as I heard in the room, work to be done on properties that were already inscribed well before the revisions of the operational guidelines. And as I said in my intervention, the convention doesn't operate in a vacuum, and sometimes these inscriptions where free, prior, and informed consent, dialogue with indigenous people had not happened, the inscription itself can on the one hand aggravate the situation. On the other hand, it also puts it on the spotlight of the international discussion. And this is really, I don't have a clear answer to what can UNESCO do now on this aspect. As I mentioned, the operational guidelines are adopted by the committee. It's an intergovernmental treaty. But what I can assure this assembly is that we are working very closely with the International Indigenous People Forum on World Heritage and the advisory bodies to look into the situation of those sites that were already inscribed, some of them more than 40 years ago, without due diligence and due free prior and informed consent. But just allow me to conclude to say that in any event, it is very clear for UNESCO that the Convention for World Heritage needs to be grounded in human rights, and that there is only one way of protecting heritage, is protecting the rights of those who inhabit these heritage places. Thank you.

Thank you. I now give the floor to Miss Carmen Rosa Guerra Ariza.

Thank you very much, Vice-President, and thank you very much to my indigenous sisters and brothers, particularly for the courage that they've shown today in bearing testimony of such important and relevant cases, and in some cases very painful cases for the territories, peoples, and their lives themselves. I'm going to begin with the theme Roberta picked up on, presenting something very important here. Human rights cannot be relativized when we are looking at the implementation of the World Heritage Convention. It is absolutely key that human rights be respected and taken into account, but also that indigenous peoples' rights are fully respected and taken into account holistically. This isn't a choice. This isn't just a checklist. The people who live in these territories, the peoples who live in these territories, are daily confronting the reality in their territories, and they must be included from the outset. We are looking at a scenario with rigorous human rights frameworks and serious human rights violations are being reported. We mustn't be afraid of human rights. We must recognize what's happening. that we are looking at serious situations in these territories and they must be resolved. So that brings me to my proposal on some questions raised and that is begin to generate reparation mechanisms when these situations arise. What happens when you get an indigenous people who are directly affected and how is reparation done? And as Roberta said, how do you go back and you need to look at all of the cases of existing world heritage sites and each case is reviewed on a case-by-case basis to understand, first of all, whether or not free, prior and informed consent was in fact used, but, second, whether or not there have been other violations of rights which occurred to ensure the comprehensive protection of rights. Secondly, and not only thinking at the national level but at all levels, including the the World Heritage Committee itself, the voices of indigenous peoples cannot just be an option. I told you in my statement that we are given the floor only out of choice following the taking of decisions. This is unacceptable, because it does not allow us to get involved in the debate or to contribute the territorial realities of what we are seeing on the ground. It is essential that, at all stages of the committee's process and upstream of that, indigenous peoples can have their voices represented and all of the information that we can bring from our territories be taken into account. We believe that it is essential to establish special mechanisms And perhaps we can propose that UNESCO and the Office of the High Commissioner establish a special mechanism to rigorously collaborate in the mechanism reviewing situations arising in World Heritage sites, including in monitoring missions. Today, we heard about the case of Korongoro. In this World Heritage site, there was a monitoring visit carried out. and other visits were carried out without representation by the UN Special Rapporteur on the rights of Indigenous Peoples, for example, when we had been reporting that there were situations that should be reviewed by those special procedures. Finally, last but not least, I want to highlight that the Indigenous Peoples' Institutions themselves in national and international contexts in territories are key. They're not just lip service. It's essential that those self-government institutions be taken into account. The political and spiritual indigenous authorities must be respected and they must be heard in all scenarios and at all points in the process of declaring a World Heritage site. Thank you very much.

Thank you very much for your contribution. And last but certainly not least, I give the floor to Mr. Francisco Vidargas.

Thank you very much, Vice-President. I reiterate that it's a great honour for me to be joining you here in this Assembly. The World Heritage Convention reached the issue of communities quite late. The famous 5C of the convention goals appeared after the World Heritage Convention promoted and triggered in 2003 the establishment of the Intangible Cultural Heritage Convention. But the World Heritage Convention that is a very active instrument within UNESCO rapidly corrected those steps along the lines of everything that you've been saying. We cannot resolve all of the problems that have arisen. Unfortunately, UNESCO doesn't have the ability to do that, but they can establish, as you've requested, mechanisms to work jointly with the United Nations in that vein. And above all to ensure that primary responsibility is incumbent on all UNESCO member states and UN member states. Mention has been made here about how we might achieve good practice in the conservation and management of sites and one of the instruments that Mexico has ensured is most robust is the consolidation of comprehensive management, conservation, sustainability and safeguarding plans for sites that are registered. The case of the trail, the Wirikuta route I spoke to you about, the management plan was worked on directly in collaboration with the communities on the ground and they are the ones that designate their representatives to provide us with the blueprint as to what process we should follow in the whole decision-making and management process, on the basis of the recommendations by the World Heritage Committee when we first registered the site. That informs how we act and the primary interests that we take into account. The Mexican State and local government are in a supporting role to that. We support the decisions by the Indigenous Peoples Council to implement the management plan. Tourism is always something that is discussed a great deal, but we should clarify that the vocation of the World Heritage Convention is not to convert sites into tourist marketing locations. There is a plan that has been set up by the World Heritage Committee to look at sustainable tourism in the context of World Heritage and many countries, including ours, are putting that into practice. And of course, there's a lot of challenges connected to that. I'll conclude on this point. The fundamental issue here is the connection between UNESCO cultural conventions and their role in strengthening comprehensive protection and safeguarding. We have heard mention made of problems in countries with armed conflict, and we have heard about a variety of other challenges that impact the culture of original peoples, their intangible heritage and the connection Between these conventions is being looked at and implemented by Mexico, this allows us to strengthen the comprehensive protection that we are putting in place for both tangible and intangible heritage. Finally, let us not forget that the world heritage convention is one of the best instruments that we can use to strengthen the spirit of peace that the United Nations and UNESCO want to promote. It is the most important multilateral instrument that UNESCO has to bring to bear in that vein to ensure joint work by all countries. Let's not lose sight of that fact. And let's not lose that underlying spirit of peace that is being promoted by the United Nations. Thank you once again.

Thank you very much for your presence and contribution. Excellencies, distinguished participants, this brings us to the end of this annual half-day panel discussion on the rights of Indigenous peoples. I wish to thank the Deputy High Commissioner for her opening remarks and, of course, our distinguished panelists for their contributions and all participants who have contributed today to our discussion. We will now take a very short break before resuming the general debates under agenda item 4. Excellencies, distinguished participants, before we proceed with the general debate in accordance with established practice, I would like to announce that the Human Rights Council, in a closed meeting, has examined the reports of the Working Group on Situations on its 36th and 37th sessions under the complaint procedure established pursuant to Human Rights Council resolution 5/1 of 18 June 2007. No case was referred by the Working Group on Situations to the Human Rights Council for action at its 63rd session. And we shall now continue the general debate under agenda item 4. We return to the list of speakers for national human rights institutions and non-governmental organizations, and I give the floor to Community Human Rights and Advocacy Center.

Mohan Bhagwat freely moved through London, New York and Toronto. The RSS's political and ideological offspring, the BJP and Narendra Modi, continue to imprison Kashmiris for exercising fundamental rights enshrined in law and by the UN. I speak for those this council cannot hear. Masarat Alam has been in jail for half his life.

Could the speaker's...

...In prisons and Shabir Shah has spent most of his adult life in detention. Former president of the Kashmir High Court, Bar Miah Qayyum, remains incarcerated while his home confiscated. Yasin Malik is on death row since 2019 for a 66-year-old case revived against him. Asia Andhabi, a grandmother whose--

Excuse me.

Can you please slow down a little bit? Interpreters cannot proceed. Excuse me. Can you please slow down the pace a little bit of your intervention, because the interpreters cannot follow. Please continue.

From where? From the beginning? While RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat freely moved through London, New York and Toronto, the RSS's political and ideological offspring, the BJP, and Narendra Modi, continue to imprison Kashmiris for exercising fundamental rights enshrined in law and by the UN. I speak for those this Council cannot hear. Masarat Alam has been in jail for half his life. Qasim Fakhdu has spent more than three decades in Indian prisons, and Shabbir Shah has spent most of his adult life in detention. Former president of the Kashmir High Court, Bar Mian Qayyum, remains incarcerated while his home confiscated. Yasin Malik is on death row since 2019 for a 36-year-old case revived against him. Asia Andrabi, a grandmother who's already spent 15 years in jail, now given three life sentences. Fahmida Sofi given 30 years and reported bedridden as her health collapses. Nahida Nasreen another 30 years and challenged the judge why it was so short. Defiance in the face of tyranny. The council already knows what prolonged incarceration can become because I've reminded you repeatedly. Ghulam Muhammad Butt died in prison 16,000 kilometers away from home. 77-year-old Ashraf Sahrai and 92-year-old Saeed Ali Shah Gilani died after years of detention and house arrest. Altaf Ahmad Shah died in custody of cancer because of India's medical negligence. Legitimate Kashmiri political voices are being buried alive. This Council has already heard official UN concerns about arbitrary detention and the closing of political space in Kashmir. So I ask, how many more names must this Council hear after the dead? Mr. President, human rights cannot wait until a prisoner is dead. Act while they're still alive. Call to end the elimination, eradication, annihilation of Kashmir and the people of Kashmir. Thank you.

Thank you. I would like to remind all speakers to speak at a reasonable pace because the interpreters have to follow also. So next I give the floor to Tournay Lapage.

I speak on behalf of the Tamil refugees in Tamil Nadu, India. Since 1983, tens of thousands have fled the conflict in Sri Lanka. Today, around 60,000 refugees live in 104 camps across 29 districts, many for over four decades. We acknowledge welfare measures, including housing and scholarships. However, serious concerns remain. Many camps are overcrowded and poorly maintained. Refugees face restrictions on movement and employment and lack citizenship, identity, and travel documents. Some remain in special camps under conditions amounting to arbitrary detention. We therefore recommend release of all Uyum Tamim refugees from special camps and close these facilities. issue recognized travel documents to enable lawful movement, family reunification, and durable solutions. Adopt a national asylum framework with a clear pathway to citizenship or long-term residency. Respecting non-refoulement. Through this platform, I would like to request to the Home Minister of India to reach them directly without the involvement of any mediator. We ask this Council act. Thank you for your attention.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Association Pan-Africa.

Pan-Africa.

Remains profoundly concerned by the fresh outbreak of the Ebola virus in the east of the DRC, a region facing multiple violence perpetrated by the M23 armed group supported by Rwanda. Given the gravity of the situation, this epidemic has thus far caused the loss of 3,545 human lives. The WHO declared the Ebola epidemic a public health emergency of international scale. Our organisation calls on the M23 AFC to open humanitarian corridors to enable access for the population to medication and to guarantee protection of doctors and humanitarian personnel from all forms of violence. Moreover, since the election of President Donald Trump, we have witnessed mass expulsions as well as torture and persecution of immigrants in irregular situations in the US. Thus far, more than 25,000 people have been forcibly expelled to third countries of which they are not natives of, citizens of. The US uses these methods to divert its international obligations, including the prohibition on sending a person towards a country where they are at risk of being in danger. Our organisation condemns this inhumane practice and calls on the US to respect its human rights and international legal obligations. Pan-Africa calls on all African states to denounce the admission agreement signed with the United States. Thank you.

Next, I give the floor to Forum Mediterraneeen for la promotion.

Des droits du citoyen.

Madame Vice President, we would like to speak of what the inhabitants of the Rif, Moroccan Rif, are living through. We evoke the Rif War. Between 1921 and 1926, chemical weapons were used. Since 1923, those chemical weapons have been used increasingly. Between 1924 and 1925, they were used against the Rif inhabitants. We would like to say that this question has been raised. and in the work of the United Nations in the context of a meeting of one of the treaty bodies. We don't want to reopen history for political considerations. What we want is transitional justice, truth, justice and reparations. We want to call on the Special Rapporteur as follows: your mandate, can it ensure that the United Nations adopt an approach to provide compensation to offset the harm suffered by the inhabitants of the Moroccan reef in order to guarantee the right to truth, reparations and non-recurrence? Thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Midline for Human Rights.

President, Midline for Human Rights expresses its profound concern and condemnation regarding the destabilizing external interventions carried out by.

The United Arab Emirates in Yemen. Credible international and UN.

Reports document the UAE's continuous funding and arming of unlawful armed militias, bypassing state sovereignty and fanning the conflict.

Furthermore, the UAE maintains control over strategic maritime zones.

And island hubs while operating a network of secret detention facilities across southern Yemen. Within these sites, widespread practices of torture, arbitrary detention, and enforced disappearances have been systematically documented. These state-sponsored operations violate international humanitarian law and constitute complicity in war crimes.

We therefore call upon the Council to demand the immediate cessation of all UAE.

Funding, military supplies, and support to unlawful militias in Yemen, and investigate secret detention facilities and ensure.

Full legal accountability for perpetrators of torture and enforced disappearances.

Thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Tumuku Development and Cultural Union.

Thank you, Madam Vice-President. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan has tracked Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir's recurring unrest since 2023, when residents first took to the streets of Rawalpuri and Muzaffarabad over flour and electricity subsidies. Forced disappearances and prolonged, uncharged detention of PoJK residents have become recurring complaints against the Pakistan state's crackdown. Reporters claimed that the federal government placed 147 JAAc activists and supporters on the fourth schedule of the anti-terrorism act while offering rewards of 10 million Pakistan rupees each for core leaders Mir Shaukat Nawaz, Umar Najir Kashmiri, Khaja Mehran Arshad, and Mir Shad Raman, JAAc central leaders. The puters of enforced disappearance, arbitrary detention, Denial of timely medical care to detainees and reprisals against human rights defenders and political activists in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir raise serious concerns under international human rights law. Madam Vice President, under agenda item four, the Human Rights Council should give urgent attention to these allegations and should independent scrutiny and promote accountability for violations that continue to undermine fundamental freedoms, civic space and the rule of law.

Thank you, Madam Vice President.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Association P for la lutte contre la contrainte et l'injustice. They are absent, so we move on. Next, I give the floor to International Muslim Women's Union.

Dear Mr. President, I take the floor under agenda item 4 to draw the Council's attention.

To the continuing human rights concerns in Jammu and Kashmir.

The question of Jammu and Kashmir cannot be separated from international law and fundamental right to self-determination. relevant United Nations Security Council's resolutions, including resolutions.

47, 91, and 122, remain central to the international legal framework concerning the dispute.

The events of 5 August 2019 and subsequent changes to domicile, land, and other laws have raised serious concerns regarding the region's demographic and legal status, and this must be examined against applicable international law.

At the same time, allegations of arbitrary detention and forced disappearances, custodial abuse, restriction on peaceful assembly, expression and media freedom.

Demand credible and independent resolutions and scrutiny. Laws providing for prolonged detention and limitations on accountability for security personnel must not.

Become a shield against human rights obligations.

Mr. President, the right to self-determination cannot be extinguished by constitutional measures or military presence. We therefore call for an independent investigation into alleged violations, unhindered access for UN human rights mechanisms and special rapporteurs, and meaningful protection of the fundamental rights and dignity of the Kashmiri people.

Thank you, Mr. President.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Al-Hakim Foundation. They are absent. So next, I give the floor to Ecumenical Federation of Constantinopolitans.

Mrs. Chair, the Lausanne Treaty of 24 July 1923 establishes the international status of the Greek Orthodox minority of Istanbul and guarantees its rights. Its signatory states, including Turkey, undertook international obligations to protect these rights. Yet, despite these obligations, the minority suffered severe and systematic rights violations between 1923 and 2003, causing a dramatic population decline from 120,000 members in 1950 to around 700 residents today. The minority will number fewer than 100 people in 10 years, should no immediate action be taken. For 15 years, the Ecumenical Federation of Constantinopolitans, EFC, has pursued dialogue with the Turkish government based on UN resolutions, including support for the return of younger generations of the diaspora to Istanbul, yet with no progress. The signatory states of the Lausanne Treaty, including Turkey, together with relevant European institutions, have remained inactive despite these clear obligations. The EFC has therefore launched Lausanne Treaty Minority Initiative, calling on the signatory states to honour their obligations and support effective measures. Thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Indigenous People of Africa Coordinating Committee.

Madam Vice President, we draw the Council's attention to concerns surrounding the eco-sensitive zone of Kaziranga National Park in Assam, India, where environmental protection and the rights of Indigenous and the local communities are deeply interconnected. The Assam government has reportedly proposed reducing the ESD from 10 kilometers to between one and three kilometers. Rather than a uniform approach, any revision should be guided by science and Kaziranga's ecological realities and realities of the communities living around Kaziranga National Park for generations. We are also concerned by reports of displacement of indigenous and local communities linking to the construction of five star resort and the reported arrest of community leaders protesting the project. We urge the government to ensure transparency, consultation and meaningful community participation in decisions affecting land, livelihoods and development. Protecting Kaziranga exceptional biodiversity must go hand in hand with protecting the rights, dignity, livelihoods, and voices of indigenous and local communities who have long-standing relationship with its landscape. Thank you, Madam Vice President.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Shivi Development Society. I'm told that they are absent. So with this, we have concluded the general debate under agenda item 4. Dear participants, I understand that certain delegations have requested to exercise the right of reply pertaining to the statements under agenda item 4. And first, I have the honor to give the floor to Turkey. You have three minutes.

Thank you, Madam Vice-President. We would like to recall once again that the only occupation in Cyprus is the usurpation of the 1960 partnership state by the Greek Cypriot side through force of arms and its transformation into a Greek Cypriot state. None of the United Nations Security Council resolutions on Cyprus have ever referred to the legitimate and rightful Turkish intervention as invasion or subsequent presence of the Turkish troops to deter further Greek Cypriot atrocities on the island as occupation. The presence of the Turkish peace forces prevents the recurrence of violence on the island. The Turkish Cypriot people are still subjected to gross human rights violations and the restrictions and are denied of their rightful representation and participation in meetings, activities, and events held by international organizations, including here in this very relevant forum of the United Nations, which is mandated to promote and protect the human rights of all the peoples in the world. Madam Vice-President, it is worth recalling that the Turkish Cypriot side has established the Immovable Property Commission, recognised by the European Court of Human Rights as an effective domestic remedy for addressing property issues of Greek Cypriots. Unfortunately, no parallel mechanism has been established by the Greek Cypriot side to address the long-standing property claims of Turkish Cypriots. We therefore call for an honest and constructive approach that avoids politicization and abuse of legal matters and respects the independence of judicial processes in the Turkish Cypriot side. In this respect, we are calling upon the international community to reaffirm the inherent rights of sovereign equality and equal international status of the Turkish Cypriot people so that they can take their rightful place on international platforms. I thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to China. You have equally three minutes.

Madam Vice President, a handful of countries, Australia, Finland, Ireland, Sweden, Germany, Denmark, Japan, and NGOs abuse the platform of the Council, fabricating disinformation, smearing sovereign states, which China strongly opposes and categorically rejects. The rights of all ethnic groups in China, Xinjiang, Xizang, and the region fully guarantee. China has repeatedly stated its solemn position on so-called Xinjiang assessment report. The report, so-called report, completely illegal, now and avoid implementation of recommendation. These calls are utterly grounded spaces. Hong Kong affairs, purely China internal affairs, broke no external interference. Since implementation of national security law of Hong Kong and SAR, the rights of residents under law are fully effectively safeguarded. Ethnic unity progress promotion law provides legal guidance guarantee for China's cause of ethnic unity progress. Slandering, smearing are nothing but the political manipulation. China protects fundamental rights, freedoms of speech and religious according to law. No freedom is absolute at the same time, exercise of which must comply with constitutional laws. This is common practice of all countries consistent with spirit of international human rights instrument. Law-based international law enforcement cooperation, a legitimate right of all sovereign states, smearing sovereign states with so-called transnational repression betrays obvious selectivity double standards. Japan took the evil path of militarism, launched laws of aggression, and forced comfort women and forced labor, committing war crimes. Also, long record of human rights violations, such as infringement of rights of indigenous people in Okinawa, gender inequality, discrimination against migrants, other groups. It is no position to lecture others on human rights. While certain countries keep smearing developing countries, turn a blind eye to the right of life of teachers, students, attacks in school in Iran, they have grown accustomed to national domestic excessive use of force by law enforcement, rampant drug problem, racial discrimination, violation of migrants and people, trafficking of women, and the region hatred in the name of human rights. They willfully interfere in the country internal affairs, including UCMs, infringing upon human rights of countries, developing countries. China admonish that these countries concerned to engage in self-reflection, stop acting the several point human rights lectures, loading it over on others, take concrete action to truly promote protect human Thank you, Madam Vice-President.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to India. India, you have three minutes.

Thank you, Madam Vice-President. India exercises its right of reply in response to Pakistan's extraordinary combination of historical revisionism, invented statistics and sectarian insinuation. Since Pakistan appears to need the reminder under every agenda item, Jammu and Kashmir was, is, and will always remain an integral and inalienable part of India. The only part of Jammu and Kashmir under foreign occupation is the part Pakistan holds, which we again call upon it to vacate. Madam Vice President, among the grievances Pakistan listed, it included temples in the same breath as liquor shops. We will not dignify the claim itself, but the Council should note what it reveals. A state that counts a place of worship as evidence of a crime. That is how Pakistan sees the faith of others, and its own minorities live with the consequences. India is home to one of the largest Muslim populations in the world, and our minorities vote, legislate, sit on our highest court, and lead our institutions. In Pakistan, Hindu, Sikh, and Christian communities have shrunk drastically since independence. Their daughters are abducted, forcibly converted, and married off. Blasphemy laws hang over every minority household. Its own Muslim minorities, Shias, Ahmadiyyas, Ismailis and Hazaras, face systemic persecution and their places of worship are attacked and desecrated. A state with that record is in no position to lecture anyone on minorities. Pakistan speaks of ethnic cleansing in the Kashmir Valley. The Council does not need Pakistan to explain it. It happened in 1990. to the Kashmiri Pandits, driven from their homes by terrorists Pakistan armed, trained and sent across the border. Those same terrorists have since killed Kashmiris of every faith, many of them Muslim. The state that sponsored them is now asking the Council for an inquiry. The irony will not be lost on this Council. Madam Vice-President, Pakistan says the situation it describes meets every objective criterion for this Council's attention. We agree that such a situation exists. This Council was told last Friday of scores of civilians killed since June in the territory Pakistan occupies, of students arrested in Islamabad and Rawalpindi, and of food and medicine held back. When those accounts were given, Pakistan's answer was a point of order. If any delegation in this room meets every objective criterion for this Council's scrutiny, it is Pakistan. Madam Vice-President, Pakistan would better serve its people by focusing on development. rather than coveting territory of others or exporting terror, because neither these nor its theatrics in this Council would help repay the loans its economy survives on. Thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Democratic People's Republic of Korea. You have three minutes.

Thank you, Madam Vice President. My delegation would like to exercise its right to reply in response to Japan's reference to the so-called abduction issue. The DPRK made its position clear on countless occasions. The issue has been settled completely and irreversibly. Full stop. By contrast, the issue of Japan's responsibility for the crimes committed in Asia in the last century remains unresolved. The systematic and organized atrocity committed by Japan constitutes serious crimes against humanity, for which no statutes of limitation would apply. Nevertheless, the Japanese government continues to disregard the truth regarding these crimes, while obscuring historical facts and instilling a distorted interpretation of history in younger generations. Japan also raised concern about the human rights situation in China. However, given the enormous suffering inflicted by Japan on the Chinese people in the past, Japan is in no position to pass judgment on China's human rights situation. In conclusion, my delegation reaffirms its support for the One-China policy and rejects unfounded allegations and politicized criticism relating to the human rights situation in Xinjiang, Tibet, and Hong Kong. I thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Belarus. You have three minutes.

Madam Vice-President, we categorically reject the unfounded accusations regurgitated in this hall by the Western delegations against Belarus. In Belarus, there is no persecution on political grounds. Individuals who have committed unlawful activities receive proportional sentences on the basis of judicial decisions. We regret that humanitarian steps to release people who have served their sentences is misinterpreted and exploited by certain countries as grounds for another wave of politicised tirades. We stress that the whole Belarus legislative system functions strictly on the basis of the constitution, ensuring lawfulness, law and order with respect to all citizens located on its territory. Choosing Belarus as a target for accusations on political grounds, the Western countries are trying to draw the attention of the human rights system away from the growing problems in their own backyard. Declaring their commitment to rule of law, the European Union in practice takes steps to suppress dissenting voices, introducing harsh censorship, purging the information space and banning dissenting media on the pretext of preserving sustainability of democracy, a controlled socio-political environment is being created. A hallmark of the cynical approach of the EU is the policy of double standards, which is starkly borne out by the situation in specific member states. Lithuania, worried about confiscation of passports, says nothing about the practice of stripping passports from individuals with dual citizenship on the grounds of threats to national security. Estonia, claiming repression, ignores pressure on NGOs at home and criminal persecution of human rights defenders on trumped-up accusations for having an alternative point of view. A source of human rights violations in France is the national justice system. UN human rights mechanisms have repeatedly drawn attention to the fact that that problem is leading to lengthy prison sentences and, as a result, to systemic overcrowding in prisons and pre-trial detention facilities in Norway and Finland. The UN treaty bodies continue to record discrimination against children and teenagers from migrant families on grounds of language, origin and ethnicity. The joint report by the Belarus and Russian foreign ministries on violations of human rights in certain countries contains numerous other examples of systemic human rights violations in Western countries. We suggest that you do your homework and study this document closely. Thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Sudan. You have equally three minutes.

Thank you very much, Vice-President. We are exercising our right of reply. Following what the organization, Organisation for V has stated, the statement contained partialized and aggressive criticism of our government and we refute those claims. They are baseless. The Sudanese government and army takes very seriously its responsibility to protect the rights of all citizens in line with international law, without the use of prohibited weapons. We are parties to the nuclear prohibition treaty and the treaty on weapons of mass destruction, and this is why we wholeheartedly refute the allegations of weapons we have used as we have travelled the very challenging road that we have been challenging. We are a wholehearted party of our regional organisation. We have always supported and underpinned peace in the region. Notwithstanding, this organisation has chosen to regurgitate the versions of stories that have not been properly substantiated and have undermined the peaceful management of Sudanese society. Other reports by the organisation have also come to light. They have cast light on negative and undermining practices. The rapid support forces have been engaged in violations of human rights, and the organisation has not properly taken into account reports that have published by the HRC itself, which have cast light on these reprehensible practices. Thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Japan. You have three minutes.

Thank you, Madam Vice President. My delegation would like to exercise its right of reply in response to the statement made by China and North Korea. Regarding matters related to history, every country and region should approach its own past with humility and engage with it sincerely. Japan has done so diligently, and Japan's postwar trajectory as a peaceful nation is a testament to this commitment. With remorse for its past, Japan has firmly upheld the purpose and the principle of the UN Charter and championed freedom, democracy, and the rule of law, protected and promoted human rights, thereby continuously contributing to prosperity, not only in Asia, but also throughout the world. Regarding the abduction issue, the victims and their family are now well advanced in age, and some of them have passed away. There is no time to lose in resolving the abduction issue, which is a humanitarian issue with a time constraint. We strongly urge North Korea to resolve the abduction issue as quickly as possible. Let me emphasize that the claim and the figure mentioned regarding Japan are groundless and based on factual errors. I thank you, Madam Vice President.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Indonesia. Indonesia, you have three minutes.

Madam Vice President, Indonesia exercise the right of reply to the statements delivered by NGO yesterday. Our government remains committed to protecting the displaced populations in Papua provinces, ensuring their safety and basic needs and creating conditions conducive to their safe and sustainable return. Any discussion of displacement must also acknowledge its underlying cause. The brutality of the armed separatist group continue to terrorize civilians, urging them to flee and are today displaced. In the past three months, a logistic driver was shot dead after being forced to hold a separatist flag. Nine women were abducted, with seven remains unknown today. Three civil servants were murdered in broad daylight, in cold blood, while on duty, and an American pilot delivering essential logistics for the locals in a remote area was also shot dead. No one should find these atrocities acceptable, and no one should justify them under any circumstances. Madam Vice-President, on the national strategic project, it is a national initiative to realise the right to development for all people. Amid climate volatility and disruption to global supply chain, this initiative is critical to strengthen food security, create employment, and expand economic opportunities. In Papua provinces, the projects are also aimed at accelerating the regional development in line with Papua's special autonomy framework, prioritizing improved welfare of the Papuans. The implementation involves coordination and consultations with local authorities and civil society, while considering spatial planning, environmental protection, cultural heritage, as well as the rights and interests of other communities. Vice Presidents, finally, on impacts of current economic and development models on women, Indonesia believes development and human rights must advance together. Women should participate meaningfully in decision-making and benefit equally from development, contributing to poverty eradications and to people's welfare. We note that the constitutional review of the job creation law also demonstrate an available and functioning legal avenue to challenge public policies. We do not condone excessive use of force and unequivocally condemns violence against women, including sexual violence. Our law on sexual violence crimes provides protections, access to justice and remedies for victims. For us, women are and will remain central agents of our democracy and development. We remain firmly committed to protecting their rights, participation and freedom from violence. I thank you, Madam Vice President.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Iran. You have three minutes.

Thank you, Madam Vice-President. My delegation would like to exercise this right of reply in response to use of the false designation for the Persian Gulf by certain delegations. The Islamic Republic of Iran firmly rejects that terminology. The name of this body of water is not a matter of political interpretation. It is an established geographical name rooted in history and consistently reflected in authoritative maps, geographical works, navigational charts, and official documents over centuries. The established name is the Persian Gulf. The United Nations has, over the case, maintained the established designation Persian Gulf in its official document publications. UN practice cannot be replaced by unilateral political preferences or by terminology introduced for political purposes. Iran has repeatedly raised this matter through the appropriate diplomatic and institutional channels, including in relation to the United Nations publications where inconsistent terminology has appeared. Such usage should be corrected in accordance with the established UN terminology and editorial practice. The Islamic Republic of Iran calls upon all delegations to respect the established geographical nomenclature and to refrain from introducing false terminology into the official discourse of the United Nations. The name is clear, established, and internationally recognized, the Persian Gulf. I thank you, Madam Vice President.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Cuba. You have three minutes.

Madam Vice-President, the key person in "Tatufo" is Tatufo, the eponymous protagonist, a person who presents himself as holding great values, but there is a consistency between what the eponymous protagonist promotes and reality. Attributing a moral authority to him, other characters have clearly lost their way. We can see in this room what happens when policies of systemic discrimination are well known, that are being applied in the country of other speakers against people. Roma children in the Republic of Czechia are experiencing such discrimination in their classrooms. The European Union has also found that the country is denying basic core services to these people. Migrants and refugees are victims of xenophobia and intolerance. The Czechia representatives must demonstrate more modesty and practice self-awareness and criticism before they assess others. and accuse them of serious violations of human rights when these are occurring in their own country. Vice-President, let us not forget the shameful action of the Republic of Czechia protecting the impunity of Israel committing atrocities in Gaza and other occupied territories. They have opposed all resolutions aimed at providing any minimal protection to the life and human rights of the Palestinian people. The Republic of Czechia, alongside the United States and Israel, have supported an unacceptable campaign of attacks and pressure against the Special Rapporteur for the Occupied Territories in order to attempt to silence these. We demand that the Republic of Czechia respect the autonomy of independent experts who have been designated by this Council. They feign interest for human rights in Cuba, but they have said not a single word on the criminal embargo by the United States. This collective punishment is killing our women, children and old people, and is flagrantly violating the human rights of the Cuban people. The Republic of Czechia is complying with the precise requests of the US State Department and is entirely silent on this. They are paying total lip service to Washington, and they are not respecting human rights. Cuba doesn't interfere with any country, and it doesn't give lessons to anyone. But we're not going to remain silent in the face of hypocrisy. Thank you very much, Vice-President.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Cyprus. You have three minutes.

Thank you, Vice-President. The Republic of Cyprus exercises its right to reply in response to yet another attempt by Turkey to divert this Council's attention from the human rights consequences of its own actions in Cyprus. It is deeply troubling to hear Turkey lecture from this forum on human rights while maintaining a military presence and effective control over the northern part of the territory of the Republic of Cyprus. Cyprus categorically rejects any attempt to present the situation as legitimate or to distort the applicable rules of international law. The facts remain clear. Turkey invaded Cyprus in 1974 and has since occupied 36.3% of its territory while maintaining substantial military presence in the northern part of the island. The Security Council has repeatedly addressed the consequences of attempted cessations, including through resolutions 541 and 550. The European Court of Human Rights has likewise established Turkey's responsibility for violations arising from its effective control in the northern part of Cyprus. The human consequences of this situation cannot be erased. Thousands of Cypriots were displaced from their homes. Their property rights remain unresolved. Families of missing persons continue to seek answers and closure. The Republic of Cyprus continues to call for full cooperation with the Committee on Missing Persons and for access to information necessary to determine the fate of those who remain unaccounted for. The rights of enclaved Greek Cypriots and Maronites have also been affected, including in relation to education, religion, and freedom of expression. At the same time, demographic changes in the occupied area have fundamentally altered the character of communities that existed before 1974. Cyprus has repeatedly raised these concerns regarding settlement policies and their implications under international law. Madam Vice-President, the narrative of the so-called isolation of the Turkish Cypriots cannot be used to obscure the broad reality of the Cyprus problem. The division of the island is not an abstract political disagreement. It has concrete and continuing consequences for the rights of people on both sides. The Republic of Cyprus does not accept that a permanent division is the answer, nor can a two-state arrangement provide a substitute for a settlement based on a bizonal, bicommunal federation with political equality in accordance with relevant UN Security Council resolutions. Cyprus will continue to defend the rights of all its citizens and to seek a comprehensive settlement that reunifies the island and allows both Greek and Turkish Cypriots to live together in security, dignity and equality. What is required is not further rhetoric, but respect for international law and genuine cooperation towards ending the division of Cyprus. I thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Pakistan. You have three minutes.

Madam Vice President, Pakistan is exercising its right of reply in response to the Indian delegation's baseless remarks. Jammu and Kashmir is not, was not, and never will be an integral part of India. The only integral consideration here is India's brazen disregard for international law and suppression of the right to self-determination of the people of Jammu and Kashmir. Unable to answer for its record of human rights violations, India seeks to hide behind tired tropes of terrorism and hollow promises of development. We reject both India's attempted deflection as well as its absurd allegations. In countering the scourge of terrorism, Pakistan has rendered enormous sacrifices. The international community acknowledges our contributions. India, meanwhile, tries to masquerade as the victim, yet boasts publicly about using terrorism as an instrument of policy. This Council would recall its serving military officer confessed to orchestrating his government's support for terrorist groups in Pakistan's province of Balochistan. Earlier this year, an Indian national pled guilty in a U.S. court to a murder for hire plot at the behest of Indian intelligence. In October 2024, less than two years ago, Indian diplomats were expelled from a country in North America for being implicated in homicide, intimidation, and coercion on their host soil. India has no standing whatsoever to hector this Council on terrorism. On Azad Jammu and Kashmir, India's attempted equivalence is categorically false. Azad Jammu and Kashmir has its own constitution, legislature, judiciary and political life. There is no resemblance to Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir, where over 900,000 troops and draconian laws have sought to extinguish all human rights and every avenue for accountability or remedy for eight decades. Madam Vice-President, the Hindutva ideology that animates India's conduct operates identically at home and in the territory that it occupies. India's ruling dispensation celebrates the demolitions of mosques, the lynching of Muslims, and the bulldozing of minority homes amidst rhetoric of domination. UN special procedures have documented this climate of hatred and exclusion. And in illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir is not the only example of the results of this state-sanctioned hatred. In Manipur, for instance, for more than two years, tribal communities have been subjected to systematic violence. The government's complicity is documented, as is the absence of meaningful accountability. Such pursuit of dominance is also the engine of the Indian occupation of parts of Jammu and Kashmir. The suppression of the inalienable rights promised to its people by relevant UN Security Council resolutions and their ongoing cultural erasure through secular colonialism and demographic reengineering. The self-proclaimed world's largest democracy has become a cautionary tale about the weaponization of majoritarian exclusion. India will not stop trying to silence the people of illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir. The question is whether this council would let it. Thank you.

Thank you. Next, I give the floor to Lithuania. You have three minutes.

Thank you, Madam Vice-President.

I am exercising this right of reply in response to the statement made by the delegation of Belarus. We would like to remind that.

Authorities of Belarus regularly impose forced expulsion as a mandatory condition for some political prisoners' release.

A practice which violates international human rights law.

Just last week, 25 released political prisoners were deported to Lithuania, some of them without passports, while others have reported that their passports were cancelled following their expulsion from Belarus. We continue to be concerned about the fate of at least 884 political prisoners.

Still unjustly detained under appalling conditions in isolation from families and lawyers, subjected to ill treatment and torture with.

No access to essential health services.

We also express our concern about new arrests and re-arrests and restrictions on the rights and.

Freedoms of those who have been released inside Belarus.

We consequently reiterate our calls for the immediate and unconditional release.

Of all remaining political prisoners in Belarus for their effective rehabilitation.

And urge the authorities to bring the end to repression.

I thank you.

Thank you. I understand that Democratic People's Republic of Korea has requested a second right of reply. You have two minutes.

Thank you, Madam Vice President. I will be brief in exercising my second right of reply. Japan does not have moral grounds to discuss human rights in the international arena. It cannot evade its historical responsibility for the grave crimes committed against humanity. These historical injustices continue to warrant sincere reflection and accountability. Rather than making provocative accusations against other countries, the Japanese delegation would be better advised to approach these issues with humility, engage in honest self-repentance, and demonstrate genuine remorse for the suffering inflicted by its past actions. I thank you.

Thank you. Also, I understand that Turkey wishes to have a second right of reply. You have the floor and you have two minutes.

Thank you, Madam Vice-President. We would like to exercise our second right of reply. It is indeed true that there is still an occupation in Cyprus, which is the occupation of the government of the now-defunct Republic of Cyprus by the Greek Cypriots. The 1960 partnership Republic of Cyprus, which was established between the two political equals, namely Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots, has only lasted for three years. In 1963, the Greek Cypriot side resorted to violence and the Turkish Cypriots were expelled from all organs of the government and even from their homes by force of arms. As a result of this ethnic cleansing campaign directed at Turkish Cypriot people with the ultimate aim of eliminating all the Turkish Cypriots, UN peacekeeping force was deployed in the island in 1964. When they made a final attempt in 1974 through a coup d'etat with the ultimate aim of enosis by eliminating all the Turkish Cypriot people, Turkey as a guarantor power intervened on the island to save the lives of the Turkish Cypriot people. Therefore, it is quite absurd to describe the subsequent presence of the Turkish troops in the island as occupation. Lastly, I would like to recall that none of the UN Security Council resolutions on Cyprus have ever referred to the legitimate intervention of Turkey and the presence of Turkish troops to deter further Greek Cypriot atrocities on the island as occupation. I thank you.

Thank you. I recognize Japan, who has also requested a second right of reply. You have two minutes, madam.

Thank you, Madam Vice Chair. President, my delegation would like to exercise the second right of reply in response to the statement made by China and North Korea. Regarding matter related to history, we will not respond to each of them in detail at this time. For over 80 years since the end of World War II, Japan has consistently upheld democracy and human rights. Japan has consistently pursued the path of a peaceful nation since the end of the war, making contribution to global peace and prosperity and effort to improve human rights. Japan intend to continue contributing peace as a responsible member of the international community. Regarding people from Okinawa, Okinawa prefecture has its own unique and the rich culture and tradition just like other region in Japan. The government of Japan, however, is not of the view that the people born in Okinawa are indigenous people or are part of an indigenous ethnic group, nor is such a view widely recognized in Japan. On the right of immigrant, the right of immigrant are guaranteed as same as the Japanese national according to the domestic law. Regarding discrimination against women, Japan has been advancing elimination the discrimination against women. With regard to the abduction issue, Japan continues to strongly urge North Korea to resolve the abduction issue immediately. Finally, let me reiterate that the claim and the figure regarding Japan are groundless and based on factual error. I thank you, Madam Vice President.

Thank you. I would call upon all speakers to uphold UN standards when referring to countries. I understand that also Cyprus wishes to have a second right of reply. You have two minutes, madam.

I am exercising the second right of reply to the statement made by Turkey. Rather than acknowledging its responsibility in the continuing human rights violations in Cyprus and engaging constructively towards ending them, Turkey keeps retorting to a selective interpretation of history to divert attention from the fact that it violates the UN Charter and international law. No amount of disinformation can change certain realities, such as a persistent violation of international law, including the UN Charter and international human rights law. The international community is well aware as to the identity of the occupation power in Cyprus and the responsibilities that emanate from there. The respective judgments by the European Court of Human Rights, which, despite being a Council of Europe member, Turkey refuses to implement, are unequivocal. Turkey was found to have effective control over the areas it occupies in Cyprus. The so-called isolation of the Turkish Cypriot community is due to a single factor, the continuing Turkish occupation, and no amount of protest in this forum can change the fact that Turkey is violating international law, which affects all Cypriots. I thank you.

Thank you. I also recognize China, who wishes to exercise their second right of reply. You have two minutes, sir.

Madam Vice President, China exercises the right to reply regarding to the statement by the delegation of Japan. We exercise our right again. This year is the 80th anniversary of the opening of Tokyo trials. It has raised great concern to know Japanese textbooks continue to downplay characterization of its aggression. Right-wing forces even use AI to filter and screen records of the Tokyo trials in attempt to whitewash war crimes and entrench erroneous, wrongful historical perception. This is not only serious regression in understanding of history, but also an organized, politically motivated, pervasive, perversive move. We admonish Japan to do some deep soul-searching, properly address historical issues. Thank you, Madam Vice President.

Thank you. Is there any other delegation wishing to exercise a right of reply? I see none. Excellencies, distinguished participants, with that, we have concluded the consideration of agenda item 4. Distinguished participants, this brings us to the end of this meeting. We will reconvene in the afternoon at 3:00 p.m. to hold the interactive dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on the rights of Indigenous Peoples, to be followed by the interactive dialogue on the Secretary-General's report on cooperation with the United Nations. I hereby close the 23rd meeting of the 63rd session of the Human Rights Council.