with the added stigma of the customary practice of “untouchability.” Majority of them (90%) live in rural areas: Tharparkar and Umerkot in Sindh and Bahawalpur and Rahim Yar Khan in Punjab (Shah, 2007). There is very little information that brings together the experience of indigenous communities in Pakistan and their interaction with the state. The Kalash have been subject to the most amount of anthropological study, having evoked the curiosity of European scholarly work with their claim to Greek ancestry. There is very little information available on the beliefs and lifestyle of the fishing tribes of the Indus Valley, as very few NGOs and CSOs work with them. Legal framework related to indigenous peoples’ land rights International law Pakistan is a signatory to the following international conventions, agreements and declarations: • ILO Convention on Indigenous and Tribal Populations (Convention No. 107) in 1960. This convention places on the government the responsibility of providing tribal and semi-tribal populations with the tools for development. • Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). Its primary purpose was to ensure the “fair and equitable sharing of the benefits” that accrue from using genetic resources (CBD, 2014). • United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP). Although the document is not binding as an international treaty, it reflects the spirit of the minimum standard which countries should adhere to when it comes to their indigenous communities. It consists of the International “There is very little information that brings together the experience of indigenous communities in Pakistan and their interaction with the state.” Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights ratified by Pakistan in November, 2008 and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights ratified in 2010. The latter gives every individual freedom of religion, speech, assembly, as well as the right to life, due process, fair trial and electoral rights. The former is a guarantee to such rights as education, health care, labor rights and the right to an adequate standard of living. • Agenda 21 and the Rio Declaration of 1992 also recognize that indigenous peoples should be given more freedom to manage their land and resources as well as be involved in the decision making process of development projects. • Article 1 of the International Convention on Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD) of 1966 states that “...any distinction, exclusion, restriction or preference based on race, colour, descent, or national or ethnic origin which has the purpose or effect of nullifying or impairing the recognition, enjoyment or exercise, on an equal footing, of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social, cultural or any other field of public life.” • UN Declaration on the Rights of Persons belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities of 1992  which protects ethnic, cultural, religious or linguistic Lok Niti 87