CLOSING REMARKS It is a pleasure to close this IP Conference on the Right to development. Through the years of my stay at the CHR I had the opportunity of meeting IPs and hearing about their historical struggles their contributions to mother earth, their sustainable ways of learning their calls for recognition and respect on their identities and rights as IPs. In the same day I also had the opportunity of meeting government workers and learning about their works towards their promotion and protection of IPs’ right. It is fortunate indeed that government servants (through us) and IPs come together at this conference to discuss and evaluate the current situations of IPs. Did we achieve the objectives of this 2-day conference? I am just on reality check. Let’s review the four (4) objectives: 1. Identify the challenges to the full realization of the rights to development of IPs. Did we able to identify these challenges? 2. Discussing the structures and processes of each agency of government that could serve as mechanisms to protect and promote the four bundles of IP rights, i.e., to ancestral domains and lands; to self-governance and empowerment; to social justice and human rights; and to cultural integrity. Nagawa po ba natin ito? 3. Identifying priority areas of cooperation among concerned government agencies and IP Mandatory Representatives (IPMRs) with CHR, using the framework of the right to development. Nagawa rin po ba ito? Lastly… 4. Gathering insights on the structures, processes and outcomes that would lead to the formalization of an IP Rights Observatory lodged with the CHR. Nagawa rin po ba natin? Our verdict is YES! We achieved the objectives of this conference. Let’s congratulate ourselves. However our efforts in this conference will go only so far they need to be coupled with true commitment to follow up on recommendations. “We need an action – a principled action. One which signifies that our result to advance the rights of IPs is not a matter of empty words Dr. Renante A. Basas but a real one.” – as quoted by, Prince Zeid bin Ra'ad Zeid al-Hussein, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. 102