Pitfalls and Pipelines - Philippine Indigenous Peoples Links

278 Pitfalls and Pipelines: Indigenous Peoples and Extractive Industries
above, the ILO was also creating standards with respect to
indigenous peoples. After first developing standards designed
to free indigenous peoples from slavery-like conditions, in
1957 the ILO adopted Convention 107 on Indigenous and
Tribal Populations, 20 which recognized for the first time in
international law that indigenous peoples’ land rights derive
from custom and are independent of any act of the state which
they may, in any case, precede. 21
The 1957 Convention had an assimilationist intent
and was aimed at securing indigenous peoples’ rights as an
interim protective measure while the plan was to gradually
incorporate them into the national mainstream. By the 1980s,
it was recognized that this approach was no longer appropriate,
considering the developments in international human
rights laws and the need recognize the aspirations indigenous
peoples had to exercise control over their own development.
Therefore in 1989, the ILO adopted a revised Convention on
Indigenous and Tribal Peoples (no 169). 22
ILO Convention 169 is the only international treaty,
which is specifically dedicated to indigenous peoples, covering
areas such as non-discrimination, special safeguard measures,
and the right to decide development priorities. It contains an
explicit reference to indigenous peoples’ FPIC in the context
of relocation. It also recognizes indigenous peoples’ right to
“decide their own priorities for the process of development”
and requires that states consult with them through their representative
institution, “with the objective of achieving agreement
or consent to the proposed measures.” 23 Although its
wording is weaker than the 2007 UN Declaration on the Rights
of Indigenous Peoples with regard to FPIC in general, 24 it is a
legally binding international instrument open to ratification,
which means that those countries who have signed it need to
ensure they implement its provisions in their own domestic
legislation. To date 20 countries have ratified it, which are
mostly in Latin America. 25
Although the focus of the ILO is on labor issues, there
are other conventions that could be used to a community’s
advantage. For instance, the ILO published a guide on
how Convention 111 on Discrimination (Employment or