CERD/C/102/D/54/2013 out elsewhere, whereas it is possible for reindeer to use alternative grazing grounds. Moreover, the Vapsten Sami village has been consulted, but the legislation allows the Government to grant a mining permit regardless of who owns the land and without the prior consent of the property owner. Thus, according to the State party, no racial discrimination is proven in the present case, given that the petitioners, who are treated on an equal footing with landowners concerned by the project, had been consulted, as any party affected, to the extent required under national law in matters regarding mining concessions. 6.12 The Committee considers that the State party’s reasoning is misguided and that it has not complied with its international obligations to protect the Vapsten Sami reindeer herding community against racial discrimination by adequately or effectively consulting the community in the granting of the concessions. 6.13 The prohibition of racial discrimination underpinned in the Convention requires that States parties guarantee to everyone under their jurisdiction the enjoyment of equal rights de jure and de facto. Pursuant to article 2 (1) (c), each State party must take effective measures to review governmental, national and local policies, and to amend, rescind or nullify any laws or regulations which have the effect of creating or perpetuating racial discrimination, wherever it exists. States must take positive measures to enable the realization of human rights for indigenous peoples, either by removing remaining obstacles or by adopting specific legislative and administrative measures to fulfil their obligations under the Convention. 6.14 In particular, in its general recommendation No. 23 (1997), the Committee has called on the States parties to recognize and respect indigenous distinct culture, history, language and way of life as an enrichment of the State’s cultural identity and to promote its preservation, which has been and still is jeopardized. The Committee recalls that indigenous peoples’ land rights differ from the common understanding of civil law property rights and considers that reindeer herding is not an “outdoor recreational exercise” as qualified in the Chief Mining Inspector’s decision,20 but a central element of the petitioners’ cultural identity and traditional livelihood. 6.15 Indeed, the recognition of the Sami communities’ land rights and their collective reindeer husbandry right, based on immemorial usage, entails the obligation to respect and protect these rights in practice. The need to safeguard their cultures and livelihoods is among the reasons why States parties should adopt concrete measures to ensure their effective consultation and participation in decision-making. The Committee recalls that, in its general recommendation No. 32 (2009), it clarified that the notion of inadmissible “separate rights” must be distinguished from rights accepted and recognized by the international community to secure the existence and identity of groups such as minorities, indigenous peoples and other categories of person whose rights are similarly accepted and recognized within the framework of universal human rights (para. 26). Rights to lands traditionally occupied by indigenous peoples are permanent rights, recognized as such in human rights instruments, including those adopted in the context of the United Nations and its specialized agencies.21 6.16 The Committee has frequently reaffirmed the understanding that lack of appropriate consultation with indigenous peoples may constitute a form of racial discrimination and could fall under the scope of the Convention. The Committee adheres to the human rights-based approach of free, prior and informed consent as a norm stemming from the prohibition of racial discrimination, which is the main underlying cause of most discrimination suffered by indigenous peoples.22 6.17 The Committee notes that it is incumbent upon States parties to provide evidence that they fulfil this obligation, either directly, by organizing and operating consultations in good faith and with a view to reaching consensus, or indirectly, by providing sufficient guarantees of effective participation of indigenous communities and by ensuring that due weight is 20 21 22 Words used in the Chief Mining Inspector’s decision granting the exploitation concession for Rönnbäcken K No. 3, State party’s observations on the merits, 16 October 2017, appendix 2. The Committee recalls that, in accordance with its general recommendation No. 32 (2009), the distinction between special measures and permanent rights implies that those entitled to permanent rights may also enjoy the benefits of special measures (para. 15). A/HRC/39/62, paras. 9–10. 13