Climate change affects us more, say indigenous peoples

CHIANG MAI, Thailand, Sept 28, 2015 - The indigenous peoples, whose homes are in the mountains and forests, the coasts and small islands, are the real victims of climate change as a result of the failure of a development model which is contingent on using up natural resources with no consideration for sustainability and social equity.

"Corporate greed and control over resources have rendered our national decision-makers powerless in the face of pressure from industrialised nations," said a statement issued at the conclusion of a Regional Preparatory Meeting for the 21st Session of the UN Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)  Conference of Parties (COP21) from Sept 16-18, 2015 in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

Participants posing for a group photograph at the conclusion of the UN framework convention on climate change in Chiang Mai, Thailand, from Sept 16 to 18, 2015

Among the countries taking part were Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Thailand, Lao, Taiwan, Malaysia, Indonesia, Myanmar, Nepal,  Philippines and Vietnam.

There are at least 260 million indigenous peoples in Asia, making it the most culturally diverse region in the world.

The flooding in Myanmar, the typhoons in the Philippines, the earthquake in Nepal, the drought in Thailand, the haze in Indonesia are some of the catastrophes in the recent past that have resulted to greater food insecurity, destruction of our livelihoods, lands and resources, displacements, serious health problems, increased number of indigenous peoples with disabilities and grave suffering for millions of indigenous peoples in Asia.

The statement said climate change impacts are exacerbating the difficulties already being faced by indigenous communities including discrimination, displacement, political and economic marginalization, lack of social services and unemployment, among others.

"We are aware and we experience an alarming increase in diseases associated with increasing temperatures and vector-borne and water-borne diseases like cholera, malaria and dengue fever; extreme and unprecedented cold spells resulting to health problems (e.g. hypothermia, bronchitis, and pneumonia, especially for the old and young), loss in biodiversity including indigenous species of seeds and plants due to worsening drought and more forest fires.

"These indications of climate change also adversely affect the traditional livelihoods of indigenous peoples such as subsistence agriculture, shifting cultivation, hunting and gathering, and aggravate crop damaging pest infestations (e.g. rats, giant earth worm), and increase food costs due to competition with the demand for biofuels.

"Likewise, we are alarmed and concerned over the increasing cases of human rights violations, displacements and conflicts due to the implementation of so-called climate change solutions being imposed on indigenous peoples without our participation and consent such as the expropriation of ancestral lands and forests for biofuel plantations (sugar cane, palm oil, jatropha, corn and others) as well as for carbon sink, and renewable energy projects (dams, geothermal plants)," said the statement.

It asserted that the indigenous peoples have so far, been able to manage and protect their resources sustainably throughout the generations.

"There is no denying the close connection between nature as the source of our life, culture and livelihoods which we indigenous peoples safeguard for our grandchildren’s future.

"We should not be looked upon as just “vulnerable people” but peoples who have invaluable knowledge, values, systems and practices that can provide solutions to climate change," it added