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OGIEK ADDRESS DUTCH PARLIAMENT
Netherlands, 10 December 2004 - In a historic event at the Hague
on 8 December, the Ogiek of Kenya and the San peoples of Botswana
among others adresssed the Dutch Parliament on the rights of
Indigenous Peoples, more specifically on the Dutch foreign policy
on Indigenous Peoples of Africa.
Ogiek representative Hon. Saina Sena asked the Dutch government to
reconsider her financial support to Kenya given the government
laxity in completing the Constitutional Review Process. He further
cited article 9 of the African Caribean Pacific Agreement which
binds the African states and the European countries to respect the
rights of all men in their respective countries. Kenya continues
to violate the fundamental rights and freedoms of the Ogiek people
through systematic destruction of the Mau-forest and constant
eviction of the Ogiek peoples from their ancestral lands.
The other question posed by Mr. Sena was if the Dutch government
now in the process of formulating forest sustainable use is taking
into account the principle of Free and Prior Informed Consent of
Indigenous Peoples on projects undertaken in their forest lands.
He further wanted to know why the Dutch government does not
support the adoption of the Draft Declaration as it is
substantialy changing the text of the document under art 3, 31 and
36 respectively.
Mr. Sena called for the aid suspension for Kenya for its human
rights violations against Indigenous groups and the ongoing
destruction of the Mau-forest. Mr. Morongo from Botswana called
for the protection of the Intellectual Property Rights of
Indigenous Peoples.
In response the Dutch Social Democratic Party (PvdA) and
the Christian Democrats (CDA) said in the affirmative that the
Dutch parlaiment will adress human rights violations against the
Ogiek and San in Geneva March 2005 before the Sub Commission on
Human Rights. The Parlaimentary Committee on Foreign Affairs
promised to ask the Advisory Committee on Human Rights to give a
substanstative response to the allegations.
On 9 December Indigenous Peoples convergered at the Peace Palace
to launch Speaking4Earth, an international campaign for Indigenous
Peoples wordlwide. Mr. Sena explained the situation of the Ogiek,
with pictures of the Dutch fotographer Geert van Kesteren. The
same day one of these pictures appeared on the front page of
NRC-Handelsblad, the best intellectual national newspaper of the
Netherlands. Both the launcing of the campaing and the struggle of
the Ogiek were covered.
The Netherlands Centre for Indigenous Peoples (NCIV) www.nciv.net
has been instrumental and very helpful in the struggle of the
indigenous peoples and the success of this event.
ECOTERRA Intl.
Ogiek in Dutch Newspaper
Play
Video
CHARLES SENA
Charles Saina Sena is an Ogiek and a
lawyer. He founded Ogiek Rural Integral Projects (ORIP), an
official organisation in Kenya that stood for the rights of the
Ogiek, who live in the Mau forest.
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