[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 574 Introduced in House (IH)]

111th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 574

 Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that Peru should 
 immediately cease any hostile activity against its indigenous peoples 
 and instead engage in dialogue to address ongoing political conflict 
           between state authorities and indigenous peoples.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 23, 2009

 Mr. Faleomavaega (for himself, Mr. Meeks of New York, Mr. Honda, Mr. 
 Kildee, Mr. Payne, Mrs. Christensen, and Ms. Bordallo) submitted the 
 following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign 
                                Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that Peru should 
 immediately cease any hostile activity against its indigenous peoples 
 and instead engage in dialogue to address ongoing political conflict 
           between state authorities and indigenous peoples.

Whereas, on February 2, 1994, Peru ratified International Labor Organization 
        Convention 169, which grants indigenous peoples the right to 
        consultation on issues pertaining to them;
Whereas, on September 13, 2007, the Chairman of the U.N. Human Rights Council, 
        Luis Enrique Chavez Basagoita, introduced the text of the Declaration on 
        the Rights of Indigenous Peoples to the U.N. General Assembly;
Whereas that Declaration called upon governments and corporations to seek the 
        ``informed consent'' of those indigenous peoples before engaging in 
        commercial activities on the land of the affected indigenous peoples;
Whereas Chairman Basagoita, in introducing the Declaration on the Rights of 
        Indigenous Peoples at the U.N. General Assembly, noted that indigenous 
        peoples were among the most vulnerable; that the process of developing 
        that Declaration had begun in 1982; that representatives of indigenous 
        peoples had taken part in working on the text, thus giving legitimacy to 
        the text; that many efforts had been made to meet the concerns expressed 
        by various Member States of the U.N. on the draft; that as a result of 
        such efforts, several changes were made to the text which had been duly 
        communicated to U.N. Member States and representatives of indigenous 
        peoples; and that the changes to the text, which had not undermined the 
        protection of indigenous peoples, would help ensure the Declaration's 
        adoption;
Whereas, on September 13, 2007, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the 
        landmark Declaration, bringing to an end nearly 25 years of contentious 
        negotiations over the rights of native people to protect their lands and 
        resources, and to maintain their unique cultures and traditions;
Whereas, on June 28, 2008, the National Congress of Peru enacted Legislative 
        Decree 1090, which significantly diminished the size of Peru's Forestry 
        Heritage protection system;
Whereas, on June 28, 2008, the National Congress of Peru also enacted 
        Legislative Decree 1064, which allowed companies with forestry 
        concessions to change their zoning permits through Peru's central 
        government rather than the relevant local government;
Whereas, on May 9, 2009, Peruvian President Alan Garcia declared a 60-day state 
        of emergency in certain regions of the country, placed those regions 
        under martial law and suspended the constitutional rights of the people 
        in the region;
Whereas, on June 5, 2009, in response to Decrees 1064 and 1090, indigenous 
        peoples in the northern province of Bagua, located in Peru's region of 
        Amazon, protested the anticipated exploitation of their ancestral 
        homelands by the Peruvian government and foreign and domestic firms;
Whereas dozens of people were killed when police officers intervened in the 
        protests;
Whereas, on June 15, 2009, a coalition of 15 organizations delivered a letter to 
        Members of Congress as well as high-level Obama Administration 
        officials, including Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, National 
        Security Advisor General James L. Jones, and U.S. Trade Representative 
        Ronald Kirk, calling for the United States ``to take immediate, concrete 
        and public action'' concerning the ongoing political conflict in Peru 
        between state authorities and indigenous peoples;
Whereas the Constitutional Commission of the Peruvian Congress deemed 
        Legislative Decrees 1090 and 1064 unconstitutional;
Whereas Peru's revocation of Legislative Decrees 1090 and 1064 on June 18, 2009, 
        was a welcome development; and
Whereas the government of Peru as failed to comply with its obligations under 
        both the U.N. Declaration on the Right of Indigenous Peoples and 
        International Labor Organization Convention 169: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Representatives 
that--
            (1) Peru should immediately cease any hostile activity 
        against its indigenous peoples and instead engage in dialogue 
        to address ongoing political conflict between state authorities 
        and indigenous peoples; and
            (2) Peru should comply with the U.N. declaration on the 
        rights of Indigenous Peoples and with ILO Convention 169.
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