The article we are going to talk about today focuses on current events in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and more specifically on the situation of the indigenous peoples of the country. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) recently organized a conference-debate in Kinshasa, as part of the International Day of Indigenous Peoples, to discuss human rights and the participation of indigenous peoples in the process. ongoing election.
This conference lasted five hours and brought together different actors, including representatives of NGOs such as the Consortium for the Strengthening of Elections and the Political Process (CEPPS), Hope for All (EPT), Women and Local Communities for Sustainable Development (FACID) and the Interfaith Rainforest Initiative (IRI). The first panel of the conference drew up an inventory of the rights of indigenous peoples in the DRC, with the participation of representatives of these populations.
One of the main issues raised during this conference is the lack of recognition and respect for the rights of indigenous peoples in the DRC. According to Lydie Kapinga, specialist in education and electoral information, the law which promotes the rights of indigenous people is not fully respected in the country. She encouraged indigenous people to mobilize to assert their rights and their participation in the country’s institutions, particularly with regard to the representation of customary chiefs.
Dorothée Lisenga, representative of indigenous populations, expressed her concern about the lack of specific measures to support the participation of indigenous people in the electoral process. She highlighted the lack of a chapter dedicated to indigenous peoples in the electoral law and called for the creation of a permanent office for the International Day of Indigenous Peoples and an inter-ministerial commission to develop legalization measures for the protection and promotion of natives.
Conference participants also called on political parties to provide honest support to indigenous candidates and underlined the importance for indigenous people themselves to become aware of their issues and their responsibilities in the electoral process.
The celebration of the International Day of Indigenous Peoples is a decision of the United Nations General Assembly, taken in 1994. It marks the day of the first meeting of the Working Group on Indigenous Populations of the Sub-Commission on the Promotion and of the protection of human rights in 1982. Today, this day is a permanent date in the calendar of the United Nations.
In conclusion, this conference-debate on human rights and the participation of indigenous peoples in the electoral process in the DRC highlights the challenges faced by these populations.. It is essential to respect and promote the rights of indigenous peoples, to give them a voice and representation within the institutions of the country. Their active participation in the electoral process is a major challenge for building a more inclusive and egalitarian society in the DRC