A/HRC/30/41/Add.1
75 per cent and 60 per cent, respectively, thus far exceeding the national average.
Among indigenous children under the age of 5, the rate of extreme poverty is 63 per
cent (compared to the national average of 26 per cent), and the chronic malnutrition
rate is 41.7 per cent (compared to 17.5 per cent). 19 Representatives of indigenous
groups mentioned the lack of food security and of access to drinking water (especially
in the Chaco region) as serious and recurrent problems.
50. The poverty and extreme poverty afflicting most of the indigenous communities
of Paraguay are closely tied to their lack of access to and control over the ir lands,
territories and natural resources or to their outright loss of these assets. As a result,
they have witnessed the disappearance of their livelihoods and ways of life without
being granted, in exchange, access to the country’s mainstream economic system.
Thus, indigenous peoples lack viable economic options even when they have title to
their lands.
51. Given their special relationship with and reliance on their lands, territories and
natural resources, indigenous peoples are among those segments of the population that
are most affected by unsustainable forms of production and environmental destruction.
In addition to information concerning the loss of forests and other ecosystems and the
decline of traditional knowledge and its associated economic s ystems, the Special
Rapporteur received information on the impact of the use of pesticides, especially on
large soybean plantations, which is interfering with indigenous peoples ’ enjoyment of
their right to health and other rights.
52. Noteworthy among the many problems observed by the Special Rapporteur
during her visit is the prevalence of discriminatory views about the ability of
indigenous peoples to develop their own economic alternatives on the basis of both
traditional and modern-day activities, such as those related to conservation,
environmental services or climate change mitigation and adaptation (in particular the
implementation of the REDD+ Programme). In this connection, the Special
Rapporteur was informed about a number of valuable initiatives being undertaken by
indigenous organizations with the aim of drafting public policy proposals. These
initiatives have not as yet been duly taken into account. 20
53. Another serious consequence of the alarming socioeconomic situation of
indigenous peoples is an increase in the practice of renting or leasing community lands
to third parties. This practice, which is found among 36.9 per cent of the indigenous
communities, is unlawful but, above all, is evidence of these communities ’ high level
of socioeconomic vulnerability.
54. Poverty and the lack of security of land tenure have, in recent years, propelled
increasing numbers of indigenous migrants towards urban areas. The Special
Rapporteur was able to visit the Ayoreo settlement at the Pilgrim House in Filade lfia,
where she heard repeated complaints about the worrisome situation of indigenous
persons who have been displaced to urban centres. She was told that, in Asunción,
fences have been erected in public parks to prevent indigenous migrants from setting
up camps in them. She heard reports of the forced relocation, without the necessary
safeguards, of indigenous people from cities to other locations. She received reports
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20
GE.15-13734
Country report: Diagnóstico y propuestas para el desarrollo de una política pública de seguridad
alimentaria y nutricional de los pueblos indígenas en Paraguay. Ministerio de Agricultura y
Ganadería (Diagnosis and proposals for the development of a public policy on food and nutritional
security for the indigenous peoples of Paraguay). Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock. National
Institute of Indigenous Affairs (INDI). Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) (2014).
Public policy proposals concerning indigenous peoples. United Nations Development Programme
(UNDP). Federación por la Autodeterminación de los Pueblos Indígenas (FAPI). Pro Comunidades
Indígenas (PCI). Submitted to the Government in 2009.
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