A/HRC/12/34/Add.2 page 9 24. Still, it is evident that indigenous peoples lack adequate participation in all decisions that affect their lives and communities, and that they do not adequately control their territories, in many cases, even when lands are demarcated and registered. As discussed below (paras. 44-49) indigenous peoples persistently suffer invasions and resource extraction on their lands by outsiders. Also, Government management of natural resources on indigenous lands and programmes of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), according to several reports, often inhibit indigenous peoples from a wide range of development options involving the use of the resources within their lands. The Special Rapporteur also has observed a lack of effective mechanisms for consultations with indigenous peoples on development projects such as mining and hydroelectric dams that, despite being outside of demarcated indigenous lands, have direct impacts on these peoples (see below, paragraphs 55-58). 25. As discussed below (paras. 60-61, 64, 67), the State has made significant strides in providing culturally adapted social services and education to many indigenous communities, and in including indigenous individuals in the management of these services. On the basis of the multiple accounts he heard from both indigenous and Government representatives, however, the Special Rapporteur can only surmise that more is needed to fully integrate into these services the goal of ultimately empowering indigenous peoples to take control of their own affairs in all spheres of life. A lack of empowerment of indigenous peoples in the design, management and delivery of services, and in the decisions affecting their territories and resources, through their own institutions, in partnership with the State and other actors, contributes to a persistent relationship of dependency and inhibits the realization of the right to self-determination. D. Indigenous issues within the current political environment 26. The current challenges to the full realization of self-determination by indigenous peoples in Brazil are inextricably linked to historical patterns of discrimination along racial, cultural, linguistic and ethnic lines that have their roots in Portuguese colonization, which lasted from 1500 to 1822. Despite the introduction of State policies to reverse the historical oppression against indigenous peoples, one sees continued but yet more subtle manifestations of the historical disrespect for the interests of indigenous peoples and disregard for their welfare and human rights. 27. Over the last couple of decades, the growth and fortification of autonomous indigenous organizations have contributed to indigenous peoples’ survival, enabling them to become greater protagonists of their own struggles at the local, regional, national and international levels. While this, along with certain favourable State policies and constitutional protections, have generated greater advances for indigenous peoples and increased visibility for them, these advances have attracted controversy and an often antagonistic political environment. 28. In Brazil, the news media seem to have a key role in shaping, as well as in reflecting, this political environment. During his visit, the Special Rapporteur witnessed a polemical news media climate that exhibited a misunderstanding about, and even hostility towards, indigenous issues. With a few notable exceptions, while the Special Rapporteur was in Brazil the demands being made by indigenous peoples and the gains they have made in the recognition of their rights were treated with suspicion or worse. There seemed to be minimal representation of indigenous peoples or their organizations in the news media, with little opportunity for indigenous peoples