Local Governments and Indigenous Peoples - Reflections on the Regional Seminar

This brief presents the outcomes of the Regional Seminar on Local Governments and Indigenous Peoples held in Chiapas, Mexico, on April 15th and 16th 2010, organised by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Mexico, the UNDP Democratic Governance Practice Area of the Regional Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean, the UNDP Regional Service Centre in Panama and UNDP’s Bureau for Development Policies (BDP/DGG). The objective of the seminar was for participants and the UNDP to become familiar with the various initiatives concerning local governments and indigenous peoples, and it provided an opportunity to hear about, share, and systematise lessons learned, progress made, obstacles encountered, and initiatives proposed in the region.

The report records the content, analysis and conclusions of the seminar based on the experiences of local governance and indigenous peoples in seven countries in Latin America (Bolivia, Colombia, Guatemala, Mexico, Nicaragua, Paraguay, and Peru). Each was looked at in their respective political contexts, protagonists, achievements, and challenges. The document helps to identify lessons the UNDP finds useful for promoters and practitioners in the field of local governance and indigenous people and makes recommendations for the UNDP and other practitioners working on these issues. The following topics were discussed and information was shared among participants:

• Governance as an Act of Governing
• Territoriality as a Means of Acquiring Indigenous Autonomy
• Worldview as an Alternative Approach to the Relationship
• Between Society and Nature
• Legal and Structural Framework for Democratic Governance

Seminar participants suggested that often private and public institutions do not think of the autonomous experiences of community self-government as local government. "References to Western-style governments eclipse the experiences of indigenous peoples who have their own rules, institutions, norms, etc. as forms of government." Some suggestions were provided to help practitioners and stakeholders consider democracy in terms of cultural diversity rather than with a "colonising outlook."
Below is a list of some communications-related suggestions that emerged from the seminar:

• Allow a space for dialogue between indigenous and social stakeholders and institutions;
• Strengthen indigenous organisations and institution's capacity to express their proposals more clearly at dialogue roundtables;
• Inform indigenous people about their rights and facilitate the dissemination of information on matters being discussed;
• Facilitate partnerships with indigenous organisations, make preparations about strategic issues, and provide for effective participation with the resources assigned;
• Promote the preparation of a free, prior, and informed consent protocol, adjusted to each country;
• Give priority support to capacity building for men, women, and young people by such means as: informed public consultation and providing participation opportunities;
• Trainings to help build the capacities of indigenous and non-indigenous State institutions;
• Strengthen the indigenous population's capacities to enable them to clarify and systematise their message to the government: concepts of consultation, territory, and land in Western and indigenous terms need to be clarified so that they have equal weight without one being preferred over the other; and
• Facilitate processes, act as bridges, and ensure opportunities for dialogue.

The paper also provides insights on the issue of gender specific to indigenous communities and with regards to the interface between indigenous women and non-indigenous women and men were also addressed.

The report concludes with a long list of agenda items for local governance and indigenous peoples, some specific to countries and regions, and others more general. These address legal and social frameworks to increase indigenous representation. Some are specifically communications related, and most of them include important communication pieces such as organisation, dialogue, and empowerment and training to ensure full and equal participation in decision making.

Click here to download the English version of the document in PDF format.