A/HRC/39/68 by both parties, was to contribute to proposed amendments to the Sámi Parliament Act of 1995. The objective of the engagement was to provide assistance and advice, and to facilitate dialogue leading to the implementation of relevant recommendations made by human rights mechanisms to Finland, including the Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples, the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and the Human Rights Committee, in 2013. 44. During its mission, the Expert Mechanism met with members of the Sámi parliament, Sámi representatives, NGOs, State and legal officials, academics and other stakeholders. Following the mission, the Expert Mechanism transmitted a written advisory note to the parties on the two issues upon which it had focused: the definition of Sami for the purpose of the electoral roll and the obligation of the State to negotiate with the Sami. The advisory note was a public record of the mission and could be found on the Expert Mechanism’s webpage for the eleventh session.3 45. The Second Vice-President of the Sámi parliament, Tuomas Aslak Juuso, added that he viewed the mission as a success. He recommended that future invitations be as specific as possible so as to facilitate dialogue within clear objectives and a convenient timeline. The representative of Finland also reiterated his country’s appreciation and its commitment to a continued dialogue and follow-up. He also proposed that the experts should continue follow-up and engage with the parties in Finland until the full completion of the drafting of the amended Sámi Parliament Act. 46. The Expert Mechanism undertook a technical cooperation mission to Mexico, visiting the capital from 26 February to 2 March 2018 in response to a request from the city’s Secretariat for Rural Development and Equity for Communities. The mission focused on the provisions regarding indigenous peoples set forth in the Constitution of Mexico City, adopted on 31 January 2017 (arts. 57−59), with the purpose of supporting city authorities in the development of laws and policies for the implementation of the rights of indigenous peoples under the constitution. 47. During its mission, the Expert Mechanism held meetings with the federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Mexico City authorities, including the head of government and members of the Cabinet; representatives of originario (native) peoples and barrios and resident indigenous communities; agencies of the United Nations system; the Commission on Human Rights of Mexico City; and civil society representatives. The Expert Mechanism also had the opportunity to visit several indigenous communities within Mexico City and participated in capacity-building events for indigenous representatives and Mexico City civil servants. 48. While the technical advisory note for the mission was still in the process of being drafted, the representative of Mexico expressed her appreciation for, and full cooperation with, the Expert Mechanism, as the Constitution of Mexico City contained commitments to the rights of indigenous peoples. 49. The Expert Mechanism thanked the Sámi parliament of Finland and the government of Mexico City for hosting its first two country engagement missions and also thanked the Government of Finland, the Government of Mexico and all the indigenous organizations and representatives that had engaged with the Expert Mechanism during the two missions. 50. Subsequently, the experts welcomed the significant number of possible country engagement requests that had come from the floor and/or been submitted in writing. The requests addressed a broad range of issues, including the removal of children from families; the impact of climate change on indigenous peoples’ rights; facilitating dialogue and providing technical advice in matters involving international repatriation of cultural heritage and sacred objects; developing a national action plan for the implementation of the Declaration; access to aquatic biological resources and fishing rights; and the consequences of conservation initiatives on indigenous peoples, including forced removal from their traditional lands. The experts noted that it was also within their mandate to seek dialogue 3 See www.ohchr.org/Documents/Issues/IPeoples/EMRIP/Session11/Advisorynote FinlandFinaltoParties.docx. 9