A/HRC/45/34/Add.1 order to protect themselves from forced eviction, as was the case in the expanding logging town of Pokola. 2. Forest code and community forestry 79. A new forest code, which has been in the drafting process since 2012, would set out the rights of local communities and indigenous peoples to forest management. Civil society has criticized the draft, however, for omitting to reflect the special rights of indigenous peoples recognized in Law No. 5-2011. For example, as of March 2019, the draft did not expressly include indigenous peoples’ right to free, prior and informed consent regarding decisions affecting their traditional lands.23 80. The draft forest code would also provide a legal framework for the burgeoning practice of community forestry, which allows local communities and indigenous peoples to collectively manage forest resources and secure some rights over the resources in their allocated community forest. While the community forestry concept may help mitigate the stalemate regarding collective land titling for indigenous peoples, such measures must remain temporary for indigenous peoples, pending recognition of their full and collective right to their forests based on traditional use and occupation, in accordance with national law and international standards. Collective ownership of land and resources is crucial to improve the sustainability of their livelihood.24 81. The draft national action plan for 2020–2023 does not propose any steps to recognize or protect the rights of indigenous peoples to their lands and resources. 25 There is also a need to harmonize laws on land, forests and protected areas to ensure that they are consistent with Law No. 5-2011. 82. Mining activities are also reportedly having an impact on indigenous peoples’ access to traditional lands in northern Congo; further research is needed to assess the degree of encroachment on indigenous traditional lands by conservation and private actors. F. Access to justice 83. The previous Special Rapporteur recommended that the legal system of the Congo be strengthened to accommodate indigenous autonomy and acknowledge indigenous peoples’ traditional dispute mechanisms as legitimate forms of justice. 84. Law No. 5-2011 recognizes the right of indigenous peoples to administer their own affairs and to use their customary laws to resolve internal disputes. The Government recognizes that most conflicts between indigenous peoples are resolved within the community with the involvement of a traditional chief or the community president. In accordance with articles 34 and 39 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the Government should promote and develop indigenous institutional structures such as juridical systems and distinctive customs, spirituality, traditions, procedures and practices. 85. The Special Rapporteur has observed that many indigenous peoples currently feel they have nowhere to turn to for effective remedy and reparation when their rights are violated. This is particularly true for indigenous women who have been raped by Bantu men or abandoned after giving birth to children by Bantu men. Indigenous communities have reported that the authorities tend to ignore their complaints, leaving the communities to seek to resolve violations of their rights by themselves. 86. Regarding national parks and conservation measures, while indigenous peoples are frequently arrested by “eco-guards” on charges of poaching, they are reportedly rarely compensated when wildlife destroy their crops. 23 24 25 This draft is the most recent available draft shared with civil society. See http://pubs.iied.org/17724IIED. It only calls for indigenous peoples to be included in the census and for a mapping of indigenous peoples in the country. 15