STATE OF THE WORLD's INDIGENOUs PEOpLEs - CINU

More documents

Recommendations

Info

EMBARGOED UNTIL 14 January 2010STATE OF THE WORLD’S INDIGENOUS PEOPLESNot for distributionIn Colombia, at least 15 youth from the Embera, Wounaan, Katio and Chami peoples committed suicidebetween 2003 and 2004. Given the tribes’ population of some 3,000 individuals, “the yearlong spate ofdeaths adds up to a suicide rate of 500 per 100,000 people. The overall suicide rate in Colombia was 4.4per 100,000 in 2003, according to government statistics.” 57 The suicides took place at a time of extremechange, during which settlers depleted the jungles of animals that the indigenous peoples once hunted,forcing the once-nomadic Embera to form permanent communities and turn to farming. Their traditionallives have also been greatly impacted by guerrilla and paramilitary activity. 58The problems faced by adolescents are often further compounded by the lack of resources available toassist them. The Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainablestandard of physical and mental health has reported discrimination in access to and treatment in, healthcare and support services, stating that “[I]ndigenous populations are frequently ignored, with no specialistdevelopment of psychiatric and support services despite acute needs that are manifest in increasingsuicide rates…”. 59The erosion of traditional resources and authority frustrates the ability of traditional governments tomake available the culturally appropriate services most needed by indigenous adolescents. This isextremely significant as suicide rates have been found to be negatively associated with integration oftraditional culture in several Native American peoples and degree of self-government among NativeCanadians. 60 Similarly, although a study of suicide risk among indigenous Sami in Arctic Norway foundan increased risk of suicide for the Sami in comparison with the rural population of Arctic Norway asa whole, it found no increased risk of suicide among reindeer herding Sami males. This finding may bedue to the significance of reindeer herding as a traditional, culturally significant occupation amongthe Sami in Norway. Today, Sami in Norway who are involved in reindeer herding occupy a uniquecultural position and have a strong ethnic identity and high status within the Sami culture. 61 In thisregard, improvements in the enjoyment of human rights by indigenous peoples, including the rights toself-governance, culture and land rights, and improved access to resources and reduction in povertymay be expected to decrease the disproportionately high youth suicide rates faced by some indigenoustribes or communities.At the same time, some mental health problems may be perceived differently in indigenous communities thathave a collective sense of loss of their cultures, territories, or social structures. One study on alcoholism anddepression in an indigenous community in the United States noted that “depression… can be a positive expressionof belonging.… To be sad is to be aware of human interdependence and the gravity of historical, tribal, familialand personal loss. To be depressed, and that includes tearfulness and sleep and appetite disturbances, is todemonstrate maturity and connectedness to the Indian world”. 6257New York Times (2004).58New York Times (2004).59Hunt (2005), para 12.60Silviken, Haldorsen & Kvernmo (2006)61Silviken, Haldorsen & Kvernmo (2006)62Cohen (1999), 14, quoting O’Nell (1993).HEALTH | 171
EMBARGOED UNTIL 14 January 2010STATE OF THE WORLD’S INDIGENOUS PEOPLESNot for distributionApplying culturally adapted strategies to prevent suicideIn 2002, suicide was the second leading cause of death among Maori youth aged 15 to 24. In that sameyear, young Maori males were almost 3 times as likely (43.7 vs. 18.0 per 100,000), and young Maori femalestwice as likely (18.8 vs. 9.1 per 100,000), to die by suicide than non-Maori youth. In addition, for everysuicide, there are around eight times as many hospital admissions for attempted suicides and self-injury.Many factors are attributed to the disproportionate rate of suicide among Maori youth, including povertyand higher exposure to the welfare system, cultural alienation, drug and alcohol abuse, and high rates offamily and community violence.The New Zealand Ministry of Health has developed a comprehensive strategy in conjunction with theMinistry of Maori Development and the Ministry of Youth Affairs that departs from the cultures and worldviews of Maori communities. The plan includes the goals of strengthening collective identity, increasing therole of Maori youth in the development of their communities, supporting cultural development, increasingaccess to mainstream services, and conducting further research into the underlying causes of suicideamong Maori youth. Within these goals, the plan recommends a variety of strategies, including promotionof the Maori concept of health and well-being, focusing on community support systems and collectivepractices, reviving cultural practices to reinforce the cultural identity of Maori youth, connecting youthto elders, and fostering greater dialogue around the forces that affect Maori communities, such asunemployment, racism, abuse and breakdown of traditional social and cultural institutions.Sources: Canterbury Suicide Project (2007) and Lawson-Te Aho (1998).Multi-sectoral plans such as the one developed by the New Zealand Ministry of Health involve a number of actorsin diverse settings and therefore require a real commitment of resources and full recognition of the capacity ofindigenous peoples to lead efforts to improve the health of their communities. For governments to undertakesuch efforts, there must be full willingness to identify and address the underlying causes of mental health issuesin indigenous peoples, and to transform structures inherited from colonization that perpetuate violations of thecollective rights of indigenous communities.Violence against indigenous womenOne health problem that indigenous women are disproportionately afected by is violence, ranging from domesticviolence to rapes perpetrated because of militarization and armed conflict, to economic violence through policiesof neoliberalism, to violence against women through their forced displacement from their ancestral lands. 63 It isinextricably linked to violations of the collective rights of indigenous peoples and colonization, because indigenouswomen play a central role as bearers of collective traditional knowledge and as stewards of the collectiveancestral lands, waters and other natural resources. In this sense, “indigenous traditions and indigenous womenthemselves identify women with the Earth and therefore perceive degradation of the Earth as a form of violenceagainst women. This conviction is more than a metaphorical allusion to Mother Earth. It is rooted in indigenouscultural and economic practices in which women both embody and protect the health and well-being of theecosystems in which they live.” 6463For an in-depth discussion of violence against indigenous women, see International Indigenous Women’s Forum/Foro Internacionalde Mujeres Indígenas (2006).64International Indigenous Women’s Forum/Foro Internacional de Mujeres Indígenas (2006),16.172 | CHAPTER V
Page 1 and 2:
EMBARGOED UNTIL 14 January 2010Not
Page 3 and 4:
EMBARGOED UNTIL 14 January 2010STAT
Page 5 and 6:
Page 7 and 8:
Page 9 and 10:
Page 11 and 12:
Page 13 and 14:
Page 15 and 16:
Page 17 and 18:
Page 19 and 20:
Page 21 and 22:
Page 23 and 24:
Page 25 and 26:
Page 27 and 28:
Page 29 and 30:
Page 31 and 32:
Page 33 and 34:
Page 35 and 36:
Page 37 and 38:
Page 39 and 40:
Bolivia Ecuador Guatemala Mexico Pe
Page 41 and 42:
Page 43 and 44:
Page 45 and 46:
Page 47 and 48:
Page 49 and 50:
Page 51 and 52:
Page 53 and 54:
Page 55 and 56:
Page 57 and 58:
Page 59 and 60:
Page 61 and 62:
Page 63 and 64:
Page 65 and 66:
Page 67 and 68:
Page 69 and 70:
Page 71 and 72:
Page 73 and 74:
Page 75 and 76:
Page 77 and 78:
Page 79 and 80:
Page 81 and 82:
Page 83 and 84:
Page 85 and 86:
Page 87 and 88:
Page 89 and 90:
Page 91:
Page 94 and 95:
Page 96 and 97:
Page 98 and 99:
Page 100 and 101:
Page 102 and 103:
Page 104 and 105:
Page 106 and 107:
Page 108 and 109:
Page 110 and 111:
Page 112 and 113:
Page 114 and 115:
Page 116 and 117:
Page 118 and 119:
Page 120 and 121:
Page 122 and 123:
Page 124 and 125:
Page 126 and 127:
Page 128 and 129:
Page 130 and 131:
Page 132 and 133: EMBARGOED UNTIL 14 January 2010STAT
Page 232 and 233:
Page 234 and 235:
Page 236 and 237:
Page 238 and 239:
Page 240 and 241:
Page 242 and 243:
Page 244 and 245:
Page 246 and 247:
Page 248 and 249:
Page 250:
show all

STATE OF THE WORLD's INDIGENOUs PEOpLEs - CINU

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?