A/HRC/9/9 page 12 35. The Declaration was adopted by General Assembly resolution 61/295 by an overwhelming majority of Member States, with 143 voting in favour, 4 against and 11 abstaining. While the explanatory statements of the four States that voted against adoption of the Declaration (Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and United States of America) showed disagreement with the wording of specific articles or concerns with the process of adoption, they also expressed a general acceptance of the core principles and values advanced by the Declaration. 36. The basic normative justification of the Declaration is stated in the sixth preambular paragraph, which acknowledges that “indigenous peoples have suffered from historic injustices as a result of, inter alia, their colonization and dispossession of their lands, territories and resources, thus preventing them from exercising, in particular, their right to development in accordance with their own needs and interests”. The Declaration’s preamble thus stresses the essentially remedial purpose of the instrument. Far from affirming special rights per se, the Declaration aims at repairing the ongoing consequences of the historical denial of the right to self-determination and other basic human rights affirmed in international instruments of general applicability. 37. The Declaration affirms in its article 3 the right of indigenous peoples to self-determination, in terms that restate the common provisions of article 1 of the two 1966 International Covenants. Reflecting the state of contemporary international law in relation to this principle as well as the demands of indigenous peoples themselves, the affirmation of self-determination in the Declaration is deemed compatible with the principle of territorial integrality and political unity of States.22 38. On this grounding, the Declaration provides a detailed list of rights that constitute “the minimum standards for the survival, dignity and well-being of indigenous peoples of the world” (art. 43). The Declaration reaffirms basic individual rights to equality and non-discrimination, life and personal integrity and freedom, and nationality and access to justice; and it calls for special attention to specific rights and needs of indigenous elders, women, youth, children and persons with disabilities.23 At the same time, the Declaration affirms rights of a collective character in relation to self-government and autonomous political, legal, social and cultural institutions; cultural integrity, including cultural and spiritual objects, languages and other cultural expressions; lands, territories and natural resources; social services and development; treaties, agreements and other constructive arrangements; and cross-border cooperation. 39. Together with affirming the aspects of self-determination related to maintaining spheres of autonomy, the Declaration also reflects the common understanding that indigenous peoples’ self-determination at the same time involves a participatory engagement and interaction with the larger societal structures in the countries in which they live. In this connection, the Declaration 22 Art. 46 (1). 23 Art. 22 (1).