Intervention of the General Board of Church and Society of The United Methodist Church

Submitted to the 55th Session of the UN Commission on Human Ri hts! Geneva! S"it#erland $%ril &'! &''' Item &5( Indi enous Issues Read by Rev) Nathaniel *rte#a! United Methodist Church and +eonard Benally! Bi Mountain Community Dear Madam Chair, I am speaking on behalf of the General Board of Church and Society of The United Methodist Church !t its "#$$ General Conference, The United Methodist Church mandated the Church to %take the necessary measures to undo and correct the in&ustices and the misunderstandings of the last '(( years % This call helped our Church to learn %the shameful stealing of the )ati*e+s land and other goods and the cruel destruction of their culture, arts, religion, the en*ironment, and other li*ing things on ,hich their li*es depended % -"##. Book of /esolutions, The United Methodist Church, p 0".1 Unfortunately, this characteri2ation of the colonial enterprise continues to this day and age in the life of the Dineh Mr) +eonard Benally continues my statement and then I "ill conclude( Madam Chair, I ,ish to bring to your attention an urgent crisis facing the traditional Dineh, the )a*a&o people li*ing in ,hat is kno,n as 3opi 4artitioned 5and -3451 in the Black Mesa region of !ri2ona in the US 6n numerous occasions the forced relocation of the Dineh has been reported to this Commission 7e ,ish to address here today se*eral ne, de*elopments demonstrating the US role in conducting gross and systematic *iolations of la,s enshrined in US, international, and customary la,s dealing ,ith Indigenous peoples In "##., US Congress passed a la, re8uiring our final e*iction by 9ebruary ", :((( Some of our people ,ere offered leases that allo,ed us to remain as tenants upon our o,n ancestral lands ,ith no ci*il rights and ,ithout a means of sur*i*al Those ,ho refused to sign, and the thousands of us that the go*ernment does not count, face forced e*iction in the ne;t "( months <*iction notices came together ,ith the confiscation of our li*estock, the main source of our li*elihood

Madam Chair, resistance to impoundments is met se*erely /ena Babbitt 5ane, ,ho lost li*estock in a confiscation on Monday, 9ebruary :: of this year, on pre*ious occasions had her hand broken and beat up by Bureau of Indian !ffairs -BI!1 la, enforcement officers ,hen she tried to stop an impoundment Many relocation resisters continue to be beaten and=or arrested 4ast confrontations ha*e been about minor issues such as access to gra2ing areas The current campaign is for the permanent elimination of our herds and the ultimate remo*al of our people 9or the last four years, the US has been training local police in ,eapons and tactics ,hich ,ill be used in the e*iction campaign o*er the year This has raised the le*el of tension and Desperation among our people It is time the United States focused attention to its o,n marginali2ed peoples li*ing in conditions not unlike many Third 7orld countries 9or o*er three decades, the US has forbidden us to make any repairs on our homes, e*en to repair broken ,indo,s Some of us ha*e been forced to take shelter in bunkers dug into the earth 7ater sources are fenced, capped off and dismantled, denying us access to ,ater 9ire,ood is confiscated in ,inter and la, enforcement officials harass and threaten us ,ith e*iction and &ail sentences There are many of us ,ho are targeted for attacks ,ho are o*er the age of .', some e*en #( 7e li*e in terror, not kno,ing our fate the ne;t morning Madam Chair, children and ,omen, especially the elderly, are most *ulnerable The education of our children are interrupted The situation has not afforded our children a conduci*e en*ironment both to learn and to li*e a culture of peace and e;perience a regime of human rights The Dineh are a matriarchal society, one of the fe, remaining in the ,orld 6ur sur*i*al and e;istence lie in our Dineh ,omen and children 6*er the past :' years, some "0,((( Dineh ,ere forcibly relocated in ,hat the former director of the )a*a&o 3opi Indian /elocation Commission, 5eon Berger called, %a tragedy of genocide and in&ustice that ,ill be a blot on the conscience of this -US1 country for many generations % The current and sole site identified for our relocation is the )e, 5ands, an area near Chambers !ri2ona, too arid to support our li*estock This land is contaminated by radioacti*e ,aste, the largest spill in US history The thousands mo*ed into cities, for ,hich Dineh lacked sur*i*al skills, are thrust into a circle of homelessness, illegal drug use, alcoholism, and suicide Madam Chair, ,e are participating in Madam <rica Irene Daes 5and /ights Study 4lease note that the federal go*ernment is the legal holder of land titles to the reser*ations This arrangement has ne*er been to our benefit It relegates us as %tenants at the ,ill of the go*ernment% <*en ,ith continuous use and habitation, 7estern legal constructs ha*e not con*eyed any right for us to remain in our lands for one more day, if the US federal go*ernment so chooses 7e must remain on these lands to pursue our traditional religion and ,ay of life The planned e*ictions is a death sentence and the li*estock confiscations are a star*ation tactic Madam Chair, I conclude ,ith the urgent plea that you please con*ey to US and U) authorities these urgent concerns of the Dineh 6n our part, ,e ,ill inform the peoples of the ,orld, from all of Creator+s four directions, about their plight

In the same *ein, ,e ,ish to reiterate our support for your appointment of a Special /apporteur on Indigenous 4eoples 7e also call for the Commission+s continued support of the 5and /ights Study !s ,e approach the mid>point of the Decade of the 7orld+s Indigenous 4eoples, ,e urge you to look afresh at the Decade Mid,ay allo,s us to build on successes and impro*e on ,eaknesses The Decade+s remaining half must augur ,ell for the cause of Indigenous 4eoples The establishment of a 4ermanent 9orum of Indigenous 4eoples and the adoption of a final Draft Declaration of the /ights of Indigenous 4eoples is long o*erdue Thank you Madam Chair and distinguished delegates for this pri*ileged address to you
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The General Board of Church and Society of The United Methodist Church ??? United )ations 4la2a )e, @ork, )e, @ork "(("? US! TelA B:": .$: C.CC 9a;A B:": .$: 'C'0 7ebA ,,, umc>gbcs org The General Board of Church and Society -GBCS1 is the international public policy and social ad*ocacy agency of The United Methodist Church It is an international )G6 in consultati*e status -roster1 ,ith <C6S6C This statement is released on the appro*al of The /e* Dr Thom 7hite 7olf 9assett, General Secretary of GBCS 6nly the General Conference of The United Methodist Church speaks for the entire denomination