They demand that the state should be restructured
into a federal system that recognizes and ensures
ethnic and caste equality, linguistic and cultural
rights and historical territories of the indigenous
peoples with rights to self-determination.
Lack of Adequate Resources and Effective
Mechanisms: The UN and other international
agencies that promote these conventions do
not have special funds nor do they have any
effective mechanism to supervise and monitor
the implementation of these conventions. ILO
can only provide technical support, but it does
not have its own resources. ILO depends upon
other donor agencies for financial resources.
Dependency naturally limits efficiency and
effectiveness.
Lack of Political Will: Generating and
transforming political will into action for the
bureaucracy is another visible challenge for
effective implementation of ILO Convention No.
169. As the political will is not in place, the weak
bureaucracy is reluctant to duly implement the
international commitment the government has
ratified.
Lack of Mechanism: No mechanism is in place
that specifically deals with the implementation
of ILO No. 169. The National Foundation for
the Development of Indigenous Nationalities
(NFDIN), a semi-governmental organization that
deals with development affairs of indigenous
peoples has not been given the mandate to look
after the implementation of the Convention and
Rights of IPs.
Role of Mainstream Media: More than 90% of
the mainstream media is dominated by the socalled Hindu high caste groups which often put
indigenous peoples’ issues in shadow and declare
that “indigenous rights” are discriminatory and
«No mechanism is in place
that specifically deals with the
implementation of ILO No. 169.
disintegrative for “the national unity.”
Non-Support from the mainstream ‘Civil
Society’: In theory, civil society is supposed to
be pro-human rights, but in Nepal, civil society
is controlled by the ruling social groups who also
actively denounce indigenous rights in many
ways.
Several NGOs and advocacy groups have also
emerged in recent years. The Nepal Federation
of Indigenous Nationalities (NEFIN), an umbrella
organization of organizations representing the
59 indigenous nationalities, works towards the
upliftment and empowerment of indigenous
communities.
Similarly, different multilateral and bilateral
organizations, INGOs, and NGOs are working
in indigenous peoples’ territories in the areas
of conservation, sustainable development
and sustainable livelihoods of people without
respecting indigenous issues. There are no existing
activities to address indigenous issues such as
the Terai Arc Land (TAL) program of the World
Wildlife Fund (WWF) Nepal, and the biodiversity
translocation program of the International Centre
for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD).
Also, researchers and development workers
are collecting indigenous information related
with natural resources, biodiversity, traditional
knowledge, skills, technologies, traditional life
style, archaeological research without any legal
frame (i.e., free prior and informed consent,
Lok Niti
79
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