And now:Ish <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: >From BIGMTLIST [EMAIL PROTECTED] Date: Mon, 12 Apr 1999 22:22:57 -0700 From: Corecom <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Organization: International Indian Treaty Subject: FinaI IITC oral intervention, CHR Agenda Item 11, for distribution Commission on Human Rights, Fifty-fifth Session Oral Intervention, International Indian Treaty Council Agenda Item 11, Civil and Political Rights Item 11(a) Torture and detention; and 11(e) Religious Intolerance Madame Chairwoman, the International Indian Treaty Council will address item 11(a) of this agenda with the case of Leonard Peltier, unjustly convicted with perjured governmental testimony, fabricated and false evidence. This Commission, the Sub-Commission, European Parliament and numerous International Non-Governmental Organizations have long been concerned about this political prisoner of the United States, in prison for defending his Peoples. We understand that Mme. Danielle Mitterand, of France Liberte, plans travel to the United States to visit Mr. Peltier and Mumia Abu Jamal, another internationally-recognized political prisoner. My delegation extends its appreciation and support to Mme. Mitterand on this important and urgently awaited visit, and calls upon the United States to extend its full cooperation. The International Indian Treaty Council has had a communication pending before the Working Group on Arbitrary Detentions on the case of Leonard Peltier for several years, and we urge the Working Group on Arbitrary detentions to also arrange to visit Leonard Peltier in Leavenworth Prison, Kansas, in the fulfillment of its mandate. Madam Chairwoman, we also address item 11(e), Religious Intolerance, and the denial of religious freedom rights for Indigenous Peoples in the United States, in particular the urgent human rights situation at Big Mountain, Arizona. The International Indian Treaty Council recognizes the report of the Special Rapporteur on Religious Intolerance Mr. Abdelfattah Amor on his visit to the United States last year, E/CN.4/1999/58/Add.1, currently before the Commission. We thank Mr. Amor for his efforts to delineate the extent of the denials of religious freedom for Indigenous Peoples in the US which were presented to him throughout this visit. These include the appropriation, desecration and denial of free access to sacred lands and ceremonial sites, forced removal and relocation, denial of religious freedom for Indigenous prisoners, removal of Indigenous children from their communities, impacts of the US/Mexico border and immigration laws, inadequate laws and legal protections, and a biased federal court system that consistently fails to recognize the religious perspectives of Indigenous Peoples. We are, however, profoundly concerned regarding Mr. Amor's comments in paragraph 5, about the official obstacles, hindrances, attempts to take control, undermine and even "put off" his mission to the United States, which he encountered for the first time during this visit. We request that the Commission respond to this very disturbing information with a thorough investigation as to the source and implications of these attempts to undermine the work of the Special Rapporteur in this instance. Mme. Chairwoman, Mr. Kee Watchman, Navajo Dine' Elder, will conclude this intervention: Thank you Madam Chairwoman. I am the spokesperson for the traditional Dine' (Navajo) of Cactus Valley/Red Willow Springs Sovereign communities at Big Mountain, Arizona. I am also a plaintiff in the case of Jenny Manybeads v. The United States of America, et.al., pending in the US court since 1988 which concerns our forced relocation under a law the US Congress passed without our consent, resulting in violations of our traditional Dine' Indigenous religion. We presented testimony about these violations to Mr. Amor when he visited our community. The Special Rapporteur verified in his report that United States law and its court system including the Supreme Court remains blind to our international human right to practice our religion. It gives more importance to the economic interests of big business than to the religious freedom of Indigenous Peoples. Today, the coal mining at Black Mesa continues to desecrate our sacred places, including burial sites. We are experiencing impoundments of our livestock animals, which are sacred to us and the basis for our survival and subsistence. People are being arrested trying to prevent the harassment of our elders who only want to continue their sacred way of life. Madam Chairperson and distinguished leaders, the Dine' demand our right to practice our traditional religion as we have since time immemorial, as we were instructed by the Creator, and to protect our sacred places from desecration. We call attention of this Commission to the Special Rapporteur's comments in paragraph 83, calling "for the observance of international law on freedom of religion and its manifestations" by the United States at Big Mountain. The United States must be made to comply with its international human rights obligations. In conclusion, we request that the UN Human Rights Commission to appoint a Special Rapporteur on Indigenous Human Rights in order to closely monitor the critical situations we are facing. Thank you Madam Chairperson, distinguished delegations and all my relations. ******************************************** You are on the BIGMTLIST, a moderated mailing list of Big Mountain relocation resistance information (not discussion or debate). To unsubscribe, email [EMAIL PROTECTED] with "unsubscribe" in the subject header. For non-list members receiving this post as a forwarded message, you may subscribe by emailing [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word "subscribe" in the subject header. For Big Mountain and other activist internet resources, visit "The Activist Page" at http://www.theofficenet.com/~redorman/welcome.html Also, for great internet tools please visit: http://www.msw.com.au/cgi-bin/msw/entry?id=1271 ******************************************** &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& Tsonkwadiyonrat (We are ONE Spirit) Unenh onhwa' Awayaton http://www.tdi.net/ishgooda/ &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
