E/CN.4/2006/78/Add.2 page 19 White nation in Africa”, and as such complain of human rights violations “on every terrain of nationhood”, and demand the right of self-determination. The Special Rapporteur considers that the Boerevolk is a formerly politically dominant ethnic and cultural minority who descend from the earliest colonial settlers, and as citizens of South Africa they enjoy the same human rights and fundamental freedoms as every other person in the country, including the right to equality and non-discrimination. The South African State provides ample opportunity for every citizen to lodge complaints against alleged human rights violations and offers the possibility for remedial action. In the opinion of the Special Rapporteur, the claim that the Boerevolk should be considered an “indigenous nation” does not meet the criteria of “indigenity” as these have been set out in international legal standards and discourse at the present time. V. RECOMMENDATIONS 80. On the basis of the foregoing considerations the Special Rapporteur makes the following recommendations: A. Recommendations to the Government Legislation 81. Indigenous communities should be recognized as such constitutionally in parity with the speakers of the 11 officially recognized languages. This refers specifically to the various Khoi and San groups, the Nama and also the Griqua who are not named as such in the Constitution. 82. National framework legislation, as recommended in the Status Quo Reports, should be promptly enacted with the full participation of indigenous communities. 83. Actions should be undertaken towards the removal from all legitimate claimants to indigenous identity of the stigma attached to having been classified as “Coloured” during the apartheid regime, and that the National Khoi-San Council receive statutory recognition. That the various Khoi-San leadership lineages be included in the National and Provincial Houses of Traditional Leaders, wherever relevant and after due and objective evaluation of their respective claims. 84. A national register of officially recognized indigenous communities should be maintained, allowing the recommendation of the report of the SAHRC of 2000 and the Cabinet memorandum of 2004. 85. The Government and the Parliament should take all the necessary steps, in consultation with indigenous peoples in the country, to ensure a prompt ratification of ILO Convention No. 169 concerning Indigenous and Tribal Peoples in Independent Countries (1989). Land rights 86. Needs-assessment research in indigenous communities should be undertaken by the competent government authorities that might define the magnitude of the problem and suggest practical remedial measures.

Select target paragraph3