News Release
May 1, 2019

UBCIC & Wet’suwet’en to the UN:
Our Rights Cannot Be Compromised

(Lenape Territory/NYC, NY – May 1, 2019) Indigenous peoples gathered from around the globe at the United Nations headquarters in New York City for the 18th Session of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) to discuss issues pertaining to the recognition of their internationally recognized human rights, particularly their rights to languages, traditional knowledge and self-determination.

UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues
Eighteenth Session
Friday, April 26, 2019
Agenda Item 10: 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development

Speaker: Haana Edenshaw

Joint Statement of Coalition for the Human Rights of Indigenous Peoples

Endorsed by Amnesty International; Assembly of First Nations; Assemblée des Premières Nations du Québec et Labrador; BC Assembly of First Nations; Council of the Haida Nation; Canadian Friends Service Committee (Quakers); First Nations Summit; Grand Council of the Crees (Eeyou Istchee) / Cree Nation Government; Indigenous World Association; KAIROS: Canadian Ecumenical Justice Initiatives; Dr. Sheryl Lightfoot, Canada Research Chair of Global Indigenous Rights and Politics; Dr. Wilton Littlechild; Allied Tribes of Lax Kw'alaams; Friends of Wild Salmon; Skeena Watershed Conservation Coalition; Tŝilhqot'in National Government; Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs.

Kul jaad aangaa, kilslaay aanga, Xaada laa isis,

Haana hinnu dii kyaang. Tsiits gitanee sduu dii isgagaan. Xaayda gwaay sduu dii isgagan. Dalang 'waadluwaan ahl kil 'laagang.

Respected women, respected men, good people, My name is Haana Edenshaw, from the Tsiits gitanee clan from Haida Gwaii. I thank all of you for listening.