A/HRC/45/35 (f) remains; Talking to their people and finding out local histories related to the human (g) Finding out the best and most respectful way to hand them over to their people; (h) Caring for ceremonies and mourning and providing appropriate places; (i) family.49 Repatriating the ancestors to their country and people and, if possible, to the 66. This approach has fostered meaningful relationships with indigenous peoples and a series of exchanges, most recently with the Nyamba Buru Yawurru people in Broome, Australia. Similarly, other museums refer to human remains as “ancestors” and consult with indigenous peoples about appropriate treatment of the ancestors in their care. Museum staff also refer to specific remains using personal pronouns such as he, she and they, instead of the objectifying “it”.50 67. The Royal British Columbia Museum in Victoria, Canada. has established a strong relationship with the First Nations of the Pacific Northwest of Canada. This has translated into repatriations from the Museum to indigenous communities, and support for the international repatriation of ceremonial objects and human remains to their rightful places. The Museum collaborated with the Haida Gwaii Museum on the Indigenous Repatriation Handbook, which provides policy and technical guidance on repatriation and shares the specific experiences of the two Museums.51 68. The National Museum of Australia follows a “corporate philosophy of repatriation” regarding Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander ancestral human remains; Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander secret/sacred, sensitive and private material; Non-Australian indigenous human remains; and indigenous cultural rights and engagement.52 The Museum’s Indigenous cultural rights and engagement policy lays the groundwork for a respectful partnership between indigenous peoples and the Museum, addressing issues such as consultation, consent, respect of cultural and customary laws, and access to the collections. 69. Museums established and managed by indigenous peoples themselves also play a leadership role in repatriation processes. Examples include the Sámi Museum Siida in Inari, Finland, several Sámi museums and cultural centres in Norway, and the Ajtte Sámi Museum in Jokkmokk, Sweden. 53 These museums have been instrumental in the return and safekeeping of both ancestors and ceremonial objects to Sápmi, the Sámi homeland. Similarly, the Haida Gwaii Museum in Canada has facilitated the return of ancestors and ceremonial objects, both from within Canada and internationally.54 70. Indigenous peoples have a central role to play in identifying the location of their items in museums around the world and conveying their significance. Sakha (Yakutia) Republic in the Russian Federation has created a catalogue of the material and spiritual culture of the peoples of Yakutia held in museums around the world. The project is aimed at describing the collections of material culture objects, including ceremonial objects that the indigenous peoples of Yakutia have located in various museums around the world. 55 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 14 Presentation by Birgit Scheps-Bretschneider at the expert seminar. See https://anthrosource.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/muan.12201. See https://royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/sites/default/files/ indigenous_repatriation_handbook_rbcm_2019.pdf. Submission from the National Museum of Australia. See also www.nma.gov.au/about/ corporate/plans-policies/policies. Submissions from the Sámi Museums in Norway and the Sámi Parliament in Sweden. Jisgang Nika Collison, Sdaahl K’awaas Lucy Bell and Lou-ann Neel, Indigenous Repatriation Handbook (prepared by the Royal BC Museum and the Haida Gwaii Museum at Kay Llnagaay) (Victoria, Canada, Royal British Columbia Museum, 2019). Submission from the Russian Federation.