United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

Declaration 61/295 of the Assembly of the United Nations Organization, approved on 13 September 2007. This Declaration contains a brief introduction and 26 articles relating to the standardization of indigenous peoples and rights such as human rights, freedom, self-determination, citizenship, life and the maintenance of cultural and religious identities.

Article 12.1 states: “Indigenous peoples have the right to manifest, practice, develop and teach their traditions, customs and spiritual and religious ceremonies, to maintain and protect their cultural and religious sites and access them privately, in use and control their objects of worship and to obtain the repatriation of their human remains.

Article 25 reads: “Indigenous peoples have the right to maintain and strengthen their distinctive spiritual relationship with their traditionally owned or otherwise occupied and used lands, territories, waters and coastal seas and other resources and to uphold their responsibilities to future generations in this regard”.