A/HRC/57/62 their distinct political, legal, economic, social and cultural institutions (art. 5), including in the administration of justice (arts. 34 and 35). Indigenous systems of autonomy or selfgovernment have a number of implications for broader State governance that have not been fully acknowledged in most countries, where Indigenous autonomy or self-government still operate without legal guarantees. The same is true for Indigenous Peoples’ rights over their lands, territories and natural resources, which are affirmed in articles 26 to 28 and related provisions of the Declaration. While these rights are recognized in many countries, their realization implies legal and administrative transformations, particularly regarding property and natural resources law and administration.11 10. Some scholars who favour implementation of the Declaration stress that it contains several provisions that correspond to existing State obligations under customary international law and that it could itself become customary law. Taking an alternative approach, and seeking to move beyond the binding/non-binding dilemma, scholars have also underscored the need to focus on and assert existing rights rather than dispute the legal nature of the instrument. There is general agreement that the Declaration brings together the whole spectrum of human rights that is already enshrined in various treaties and international jurisprudence relating to Indigenous Peoples.12 III. Analysis of constitutions, laws, legislation, policies, judicial decisions and other mechanisms through which States have taken measures to achieve the ends of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, in accordance with article 38 of the Declaration 11. Legal recognition and judicial action are potential preconditions for operationalizing the rights of Indigenous Peoples under the Declaration at the national and local levels. In 2006, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous people noted that the legislative processes and constitutional reforms introduced in many countries between 1994 and 2004 in recognition of Indigenous Peoples and their rights had not necessarily led to actual changes in the daily lives of Indigenous Peoples. Indeed, an implementation gap continued to exist between legislation and day-to-day reality.13 12. Nevertheless, at the national level, there are examples of Indigenous Peoples’ rights being gradually recognized at both the legislative and judicial levels, opening avenues for their effective implementation. A. Measures taken by States on constitutional reforms to achieve the ends of the Declaration 13. For the past 15 years, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples has influenced the drafting of constitutions and statutes at the national and subnational levels and has contributed to the progressive development of international and domestic laws and policies with regard to Indigenous Peoples. The principles underpinning the Declaration are reflected in the constitutions of Ecuador, Kenya and the Plurinational State of Bolivia, drafted in 2008, 2010 and 2009, respectively. Importantly, in its article 11, the Constitution of Ecuador recognizes that the human rights established in international instruments, including not only treaties, but also the Declaration, are directly applicable and enforceable. 14 Notably, in Norway, the section of the Constitution dedicated to the Sami people was amended in 2023 to explicitly refer to the Sami as an Indigenous People. 15 11 12 13 14 15 4 Ibid., para. 51. Presentation by Victor Toledo at the expert meeting, November 2023. E/CN.4/2006/78, para. 5. A/HRC/EMRIP/2023/3, para. 28. Statement made by Norway during the seventeenth session of the Expert Mechanism, 8–12 July 2024. GE.24-13517