Amnesty International has warned about potential threats to indigenous peoples’ rights in the progress measurement towards the Global Biodiversity Framework. The organization has emphasized the importance for states to engage in consultations with indigenous communities and secure their “free, prior, and informed consent“, in accordance with the Universal Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
Chris Chapman, Amnesty International’s Advisor on Indigenous Rights, voiced concern that the proposed monitoring framework fails to sufficiently protect indigenous rights and does not recognize their crucial and unique part in preserving biodiversity. He warned this could facilitate ‘fortress conservation’ methods that could lead to the forceful eviction of original inhabitants, often indigenous peoples, from protected areas.
The Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF), a roadmap for a world that coexists peacefully with nature, was unanimously adopted by 196 nations during the UN Biodiversity Conference in December 2022. The framework includes four 2050 goals and 23 2030 targets aimed at slowing down and reversing biodiversity loss, aligning with the Sustainable Development Goals and earlier Strategic Plans under the Convention on Biological Diversity.
Although the GBF acknowledges that the land belonging to indigenous peoples and local communities should be classified separately within conservation areas, the monitoring process does not. Amnesty International has noted that talks on the proposed monitoring framework, scheduled next week in Nairobi, Kenya, should consider this amendment.
Amnesty International has been clear in advocating for prioritizing the rights of indigenous peoples in biodiversity monitoring initiatives. Their point of view is backed by a research which found that indigenous communities are effective stewards of the environment. Thus, various indigenous groups have proposed four traditional knowledge metrics to evaluate community well-being, efforts by states in safeguarding land rights, and indigenous participation in decision-making processes.