Chairs
Serges Kamga sergesalaindk@gmail.com
Jeremie Gilibert jeremie.gilbert@uel.ac.uk

From time immemorial Indigenous people have been victims of discrimination, exclusion, land dispossession and expropriation without compensation among other violations. Even the adoption of constitutions in various parts of the world including well-established democracies did very little or nothing to improve the plight of Indigenous people. Yet, the constitution is the supreme law of the land that should protects everyone’s and group’s rights. Unfortunately, Indigenous peoples’ rights seem to be at the margin of constitutions and as result their rights are often sidelined or ignored.

Constitutional recognition of Indigenous peoples’ rights is a powerful tool for ensuring legal protection, promoting cultural preservation, and advancing self- determination for Indigenous communities. Embedding Indigenous rights in constitutions provides enhanced protection and a strong legal foundation for these rights, but also allows for the establishment of reconciliation, restitution and reparation.

Against this background, this workshop seeks to focus on the protection of Indigenous peoples’ rights in constitutions. To this end, this workshop asks the following questions: What has been done? What should be done? And perhaps more concerning, why is it not being done for the adequate protection of Indigenous peoples in constitutions?

The goal of this workshop is to assess whether current constitutions adequately protect Indigenous peoples’ rights. This question is critical in many countries where indigeneity is contested and not recognised by some states, or is contradiction with international law recognition.

Specific questions to be explored:

• How do constitutions specifically protect Indigenous peoples’ rights?
• Are Indigenous peoples involved and leading constitutional changes?
• How do constitutions address the issue of rights to land and natural resources? How do constitutions ensure the informed consent and broader participation of Indigenous peoples?
• How do constitutional provisions influence legislative and executive policies regarding Indigenous peoples?
• How do constitutional protections for Indigenous peoples compare across different countries?
• How do constitutional protections for Indigenous peoples affect Indigenous economic, social and cultural rights?
• What are some successful examples of Indigenous political representation in countries with strong constitutional protections?
• How does international law influence the constitutional rights of Indigenous Peoples?

The workshop will provide a comparative analysis of the protection of Indigenous peoples’ rights, focusing on what works, what does not work and why and what are the prospects and challenges?

It will examine some best practices in the promotion and protection of the rights of indigenous peoples in constitutions.

It will also look at the extent to which constitution making and amendment can consider the explicit “constitutionalisation” of Indigenous peoples’ rights.

It will explore whether constitutional reforms can provide a pathway for a better protection of Indigenous peoples’ rights.

In summary, this workshop will drive the conversation on the recognition of Indigenous peoples in constitutions in various settings, and what should be done to secure or improve such developments.