Inter-American Commission on Human Rights Releases Report on Indigenous Women (October 27, 2017) [1]
On October 27, 2017, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) published a report on the human rights of indigenous women in the Americas [3]. The IACHR has consistently received information regarding numerous human rights violations of indigenous women in the Americas and this report aims to “constitute an important step forward in dealing with the specific priority situation of indigenous women with the goal of promoting that States and the international community undertake further research and analysis of these topics.” The report documents the ways indigenous women have historically faced prejudice based on the multiple facets of their identities and highlights how “political, social, and economic marginalization of indigenous women contributes to a continuous situation of structural discrimination and makes them particularly susceptible to a variety of acts of violence prohibited by the Inter-American Convention on the Prevention, Eradication and Punishment of Violence against Women.” It contains six chapters that address IACHR activities pertaining to indigenous women’s rights; guiding legal principles for states to consider; the different dimensions of violence against indigenous women; access to justice and the obstacles indigenous women face; challenges to their basic economic, social, and cultural rights; as well as conclusions and recommendations.