A/HRC/30/53 Annex Expert Mechanism advice No. 8 (2015): Promotion and protection of the rights of indigenous peoples with respect to their cultural heritage A. General 1. The cultural heritage of indigenous peoples is a holistic and inter-generational concept based on common material and spiritual values and includes distinctive manifestations in language, spirituality, membership, the arts, literature, traditional knowledge, customs, rituals, ceremonies, methods of production, festive events, music, sports and traditional games, behaviour, habits, tools, shelter, clothing, economic activities, morals, value systems, cosmovision, laws and activities such as hunting, fishing, trapping and gathering. 2. The cultural heritage of indigenous peoples is comprised of all objects, sites, plants and animal species, customs and practices, expressions, beliefs and knowledge, the nature or use of which has been transmitted from generation to generation, and which are regarded as pertaining to a particular people or its territory. 3. The cultural heritage of indigenous peoples includes tangible and intangible manifestations of their ways of life, achievements and creativity, and should be considered an expression of their self-determination and of their spiritual and physical relationships with their lands, territories and resources. 4. The right of access to and enjoyment of cultural heritage forms part of international human rights law and represents an important aspect of the rights of indigenous peoples, including the right to take part in cultural life, the right to enjoy their own culture and the right to self-determination. The right of indigenous peoples to self-determination implies their right to maintain, control, protect and develop their own cultural heritage. 5. The safeguard and development of the cultures of indigenous peoples require the protection of their lands, territories and resources. Cultural rights entail rights to land and natural resources, and imply an obligation to protect the cultural heritage of indigenous peoples through the recognition of their rights to own, control and manage their ancestral territories. 6. Heritage policies, programmes and activities affecting indigenous peoples should be based on full recognition of the inseparability of natural and cultural heritage, and the deepseated interconnectedness of intangible cultural heritage and tangible cultural and natural heritage. 7. For indigenous peoples, cultural and natural values are inseparably interwoven and should be managed and protected in a holistic manner. It is imperative that all the instruments that derive from such regimes and relate to the cultural heritage of indigenous peoples are interpreted in the light of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of 20