A/HRC/30/53 Commission highlighted that article 17 of the Charter was dual dimensional in both its individual and collective nature, protecting, on the one hand, individuals’ participation in the cultural life of their community and, on the other hand, obliging the State to promote and protect the traditional values recognized by a community.13 It added that article 17 required governments to take measures aimed at the conservation, development and diffusion of culture, such as promoting awareness and enjoyment of the cultural heritage of national ethnic groups and minorities and of indigenous sectors of the population. 14 IV. Participation of indigenous peoples in cultural heritage policies 34. Effective participation in decision-making processes relating to cultural heritage is crucial for indigenous peoples, who are often the victims of both cultural and natural heritage protection policies that fail to take their rights and perspectives into consideration. 35. The rights to effective participation, consultation and consent are strongly expressed in several articles of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Article 32 requires States to consult and cooperate in good faith with the indigenous peoples concerned through their own representative institutions in order to obtain their free and informed consent prior to the approval of any project affecting their lands or territories and other resources, particularly in connection with the development, utilization or exploitation of mineral, water or other resources. This provision relates to any decisions that would affect the lands and territories of indigenous peoples, including the classification of their lands as cultural or natural heritage sites. 36. Free, prior and informed consent is a key element of human rights jurisprudence. The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights calls on States to “respect the principle of free, prior and informed consent of indigenous peoples in all matters covered by their specific rights”,15 and has also put great emphasis on such consent in the context of their cultural heritage (E/C.12/TZA/CO/1-3, para. 29). The Human Rights Committee, in several concluding observations, has highlighted that it is essential for States to ensure the participation of indigenous peoples in decision-making processes that would affect their cultural rights, stressing the need to seek their consent on all matters affecting them (CCPR/C/PAN/CO/3, para. 21; CCPR/C/KEN/CO/3, para. 24). 37. The Special Rapporteur in the field of cultural rights has underlined that the participation of individuals and communities in cultural heritage matters is crucial and that. the power differentials that exist between, as well as within, communities must be taken into consideration, as they impact the ability of individuals and groups to effectively contribute to the identification, development and interpretation of what should be considered as a common “culture” or shared cultural heritage. She considered that it was also important to fully respect the freedom of individuals to participate or not in one or several communities, to develop their multiple identities, to access their cultural heritage as well as that of others, and to contribute to the creation of culture, including through the contestation of dominant norms and values within the communities they belong to as well as those of other communities (A/HRC/17/38 and Corr.1, para. 10). In this respect, particular attention should be paid to the position of women within indigenous 13 14 15 10 African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, Centre for Minority Rights Development and Minority Rights Group International on behalf of Endorois Welfare Council v. Kenya, 276/2003 (2010), para. 241. Ibid., para. 246. See the Committee’s general comment No. 21 (2009), para. 37.