E/CN.4/2005/88 page 8 A. The right of indigenous peoples to education: international legal framework and conceptual development 17. The right to education is recognized in various international instruments, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the two International Covenants on Human Rights, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, the Convention against Discrimination in Education and the ILO Convention concerning Indigenous and Tribal Peoples in Independent Countries (No. 169). 18. Of particular relevance is article 30 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which stipulates that in those States in which persons of indigenous origin, among others, exist, a child belonging to such a community shall not be denied the right, in community with other members of his or her group, to enjoy his or her own culture, to profess or practise his or her own religion, or to use his or her own language. 19. The UNESCO Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity establishes that the defence of cultural diversity is an ethical imperative, inseparable from respect for human dignity. It implies a commitment to human rights and fundamental freedoms, in particular the rights of persons belonging to minorities and those of indigenous peoples. 20. The importance of the right to education for the full enjoyment of other human rights is often cited. The UNESCO-sponsored World Conference on Linguistic Rights, held in Barcelona, Spain, in 1996, adopted the Universal Declaration of Linguistic Rights, which affirms a number of personal rights, including the right to be recognized as a member of a language group, the right to the use of one’s own language both in private and in public, and the right to the use of one’s own name, as well as the collective right of language groups to have their own language and culture taught. These and other rights are crucial to the full enjoyment by indigenous peoples of the right to education. 21. Article 15 of the draft declaration on the rights of indigenous peoples that is being considered by the Working Group of the Commission proposes recognizing that indigenous children have the right to education in their own languages, in a manner appropriate to their cultural methods of teaching and learning. Article 16 of the draft text provides that indigenous peoples have the right to have the dignity and diversity of their cultures, traditions, histories and aspirations appropriately reflected in all forms of education and public information. Both articles are quite timely in terms of protection of the right to education. The Special Rapporteur considers that these are key articles and ought to be adopted without any modification; he likewise appeals for the declaration to be adopted as soon as possible. 22. In recent years many States have adopted legislation on indigenous rights that usually includes the right to education and especially the right of indigenous people to be educated in their own language within a context of recognition of and respect for their culture. However, the information and materials collected indicate that the principles and objectives set out in the aforementioned international instruments and in national legislation are far from being achieved. Indigenous peoples encounter various difficulties in effectively exercising their right to enjoy their own culture in community with other members of their group and maintaining the use of their languages. For this reason many indigenous organizations describe the problem of education as one of the fundamental issues affecting the full exercise of their human rights.