A/HRC/24/41
48.
States should therefore adopt regulatory measures for companies domiciled in their
respective jurisdictions that are aimed at preventing and, in appropriate circumstances,
sanctioning and remedying violations of the rights of indigenous peoples abroad for which
those companies are responsible or in which they are complicit. The Special Rapporteur
observes that some States have adopted regulatory measures with extraterritorial reach in
this vein to address human rights concerns within certain contexts, but with limited
applicability for the specific concerns of indigenous peoples. Regulation of the
extraterritorial activities of companies to promote their compliance with international
standards concerning the rights of indigenous peoples will help establish a transnational
corporate culture of respect for those rights and greater possibilities of healthy relationships
between extractive companies and indigenous peoples.
C.
Participation by indigenous peoples and respect for their rights in
strategic State planning for resource extraction and development
49.
States typically regard mineral, oil and gas, and other natural resources to be
strategic assets and, accordingly, in regulating the industries many engage in long- and
short-term planning for the development of the resources, including resources within or
near indigenous territories. Such strategic State planning influences the definition of laws,
shapes regulatory controls, and determines the policies pertinent to resource extraction. It
also establishes the basis for the decisions about the development and implementation of
resource extraction projects. With these characteristics, strategic planning for resource
development can have profound, even if not so immediate, effects on indigenous peoples
and the enjoyment of their rights. The Special Rapporteur is concerned that, of the many
cases of State resource development planning he has studied, he has found but a few
notable instances in which indigenous peoples have been included and their specific rights
addressed in the planning process.
50.
Instead, by and large, the Special Rapporteur has found patterns of State planning
for resource extraction that can be seen, in a number of ways, to set in motion decisions that
prejudice indigenous peoples’ ability to set their own priorities for the development of their
lands and territories. Some planning regimes adhere to competitive bidding or other
permitting schemes that allow for the distribution of licenses for resource exploration or
other extractive activities in advance of any consultations with affected indigenous peoples.
Furthermore, State planning typically reinforces existing industry practices in a way that is
not conducive to alternative models, advocated in the present report, under which
indigenous peoples have the opportunity to exercise greater control over resource extraction
activities within their territories.
51.
Patterns of State planning that marginalize indigenous peoples and their rights must
be reversed, so that indigenous peoples may participate in strategic planning processes
through appropriate representative arrangements, as has been done at least to some extent
by a number of States or their political subdivisions. Indigenous participation in strategic
planning for resource extraction will undoubtedly lend itself to greater possibilities of
agreement with indigenous peoples on specific projects.
D.
Due diligence by extractive companies to respect indigenous peoples’
rights
52.
Although States are ultimately responsible for ensuring respect for human rights,
including the rights of indigenous peoples, today a number of regulatory and self-regulatory
frameworks governing corporate responsibility reflect widespread understanding of the
roles business enterprises may play in both the infringement and fulfilment of human rights
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