IMPHAL, August 8: `Indigenous peoples must survive first before they can fulfill their development aspirations,` the Centre for Organisation Research & Education said today.
A statement of the CORE signed by president of the Elders`™ Council issued on the International Day of the World`™s Indigenous Peoples said this truism is a most critical and relevant issue in Manipur today.
The CORE called upon the governments of Manipur and India to take concrete actions to respect, recognize, protect and promote our collective rights as affirmed by the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, 2007.
It said UN secretary general Ban Ki Moon had stated, `The interests of the indigenous peoples must be part of the new development agenda in order for it to succeed.