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according to its standards, 33 but encouraging new legislation has since been adopted.
In October 2007, the Senate of Bolivia sanctioned a bill transposing the Declaration
within the Bolivian legal system, 34 making it a law directly applicable by all
national courts. Law number 5 of 25 February 2011 on the protection and promotion
of the rights of indigenous populations in the Congo constitutes a good practice in
this regard within the African region. 35
31. Certain countries have developed sectoral laws on specific indigenous peoples ’
rights, such as in the fields of language, health and education, or established
processes for participation or land rights recognition. The elaboration of legislation
to operationalize the State duty to consult indigenous peoples is an ongoing process
in Latin America. Peru adopted a law to this effect 36 and discussions on potential
new legal instruments are taking place, for instance, in Colombia, Costa Rica,
Guatemala and Honduras. Legislation addressing indigenous peoples in particular
circumstances, such as isolated indigenous peoples and indigenous peoples in recent
contact has also been developed in Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru. 37 General sectoral
laws in some countries consider specific measures related to indigenous peoples. 38
Dialogue processes for the development of new legislation are taking place in
several countries, including transnational instruments as the Nordic Sami
Convention. 39
32. Furthermore, Nepal (2007), Spain (2007), Chile (2008), the Central African
Republic (2010) and Nicaragua (2010) have ratified the Indigenous and Tribal
Peoples Convention, 1989 (No. 169) of the International Labour Organization (ILO)
during the past decade.
33. The recognition of the pre-existing rights of indigenous peoples in the legal
system of a country is generally a constructive step, particularly when it responds to
the demands of indigenous peoples and is conducted in cooperation with them and
with their full and effective participation. The mandate holder has consistently
recalled that such recognition should be accompanied by a necessary review of all
domestic legislation to ensure coherence with international human rights standards
on the rights of indigenous peoples, particularly the Declaration. In some countries
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33
34
35
36
37
38
39
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See, for example, Philippines, Indigenous Peoples Rights Act of 1997 (Republic Act No. 8371);
Nepal, National Foundation for the Development of Indigenous Nationalities Act of 2002
(NFDIN Act); and India, Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition
of Forest Rights) Act of 2006.
Law No. 3760, of 7 November 2007, which introduced the 46 articles of the United Nations
Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples into the legislation of Bolivia.
See A/HRC/18/35/Add.5 (mission report of the Special Rapporteur on the Republic of the
Congo, 2011).
Law No. 29785 on the right to prior consultation of indigenous peoples, recognized in
Convention No. 169 of the International Labour Organization (ILO), and Supreme Decr ee
No. 001-2012-MC.
Political Constitution of Ecuador, 2008, article 57; Constitution of the Plurinational State of
Bolivia, 2009, articles 30 and 31; Law reforming the Penal Code of Ecuador, including the
crimes of genocide and ethnocide, 9 March 2009 (articles 138, 216 and 353 bis); Law No. 28736
for the protection of indigenous peoples in isolation and recent contact in Peru, 2006, and
Supreme Decree No. 008-2007 (regulation); Law for the protection of highly vulnerable
indigenous nations and peoples in Bolivia (2013). See also the presentation by the Special
Rapporteur, “Pueblos indígenas en aislamiento en el marco de los estándares internacionales de
derechos humanos”, 22 November 2016, available from http://unsr.vtaulicorpuz.org/site/images/
docs/special/2016-11-22-unsr-intervencion-ecuador-pueblos-en-aislamiento.pdf.
Communication of the Special Rapporteur on the Cambodian Land Law (2001) regarding
communal land rights (see A/HRC/12/34/Add.1, 2009); communication of the Special
Rapporteur on the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of
Forest Rights) Act of 2006 of India (IND 9/2013).
See A/HRC/33/42/Add.3 (mission report of the Special Rapporteur on the Sápmi region, 2016).
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