DRAFT STATEMENT BY ANTTI KORKEAKIVI, CHIEF, INDIGENOUS PEOPLES MINORITIES SECTION, OHCHR AND 5TH SESSION OF THE FORUM ON MINORITY ISSUES, 27 NOVEMBER 2012 As the High Commissioner for Human Rights stated in her opening remarks, OHCHR has used the 20th anniversary of the Declaration to promote more attention and action around the principles of the Declaration. Supporting this Forum session and important work of the Independent Expert on Minority Issues is, of course, an important part of this engagement of the Office, but let me highlight some additional examples of activities and initiatives through which we have aimed, during this anniversary year, to advance the principles of the Declaration, and thereby also promote the implementation of Article 27 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and other relevant binding human rights standards. At the outset, I would like to underline that OHCHR never works in isolation and that all our work around the anniversary have involved close cooperation with a range of UN partners, Governments, minority representative and non-governmental organizations. We have also benefitted from active engagement of the Independent Expert on Minority Issues as well as from contributions of by regional organisations, which, as was stressed by the Chair of this session, can play a key role advancing the principles of the Declaration. Many of our key partners are in this room today, and I would like to thank you all for your excellent contributions. The anniversary events have included important activities in Geneva, including a successful Human Rights Council panel in March 2012 with a focus on achievements, best practices and challenges in the implementation of the Declaration. The anniversary has also inspired enlarged engagement and cooperation in the UN system, notably through the launch of the new UN Network on Racial Discrimination and Protection of Minorities, coordinated by OHCHR and mentioned by Secretary General in his video message this morning. But for the Declaration to have an impact, we need to make sure that it is known and invoked not only here in Geneva but also in the regions, countries, and towns where minorities live; and that minorities and majorities alike are familiar with its principles. We have therefore bolstered our outreach and awareness raising efforts, including through our field presences and through a special web section dedicated to the anniversary, which contains promotional and other materials, available in several languages. We would like to encourage you all to visit the web site and put the anniversary material to use in your work, including at the country level. The forthcoming actual adoption date, 18 December, could be used as an occasion to mark the anniversary and highlight the importance of the Declaration at the national level. During this year, we have also aimed to make sure that our anniversary activities go beyond sharing and recalling the principles of the Declaration and highlighting the importance of the commentary on it. We have aimed to couple these messages with contextualized, substantive dialogue on the key minority rights challenges of the day. 1