GRI 411: Rights of Indigenous Peoples 2016
EFFECTIVE DATE: 1 JULY 2018
Introduction
GRI 411: Rights of Indigenous Peoples 2016 contains disclosures for organizations to report information about their impacts related to the rights of indigenous peoples, and how they manage these impacts. The Standard is structured as follows:
- Section 1 contains a requirement, which provides information about how the organization manages its impacts related to the rights of indigenous peoples.
- Section 2 contains one disclosure, which provides information about the organization’s impacts related to the rights of indigenous peoples.
- The Glossary contains defined terms with a specific meaning when used in the GRI Standards. The terms are underlined in the text of the GRI Standards and linked to the definitions.
- The Biblogrpahy lists authoritative intergovernmental instruments and additional references used in developing this Standard.
Background on the topic
This Standard addresses the rights of indigenous peoples. While there is no universal definition of indigenous peoples, they are generally identified as:
- Tribal peoples in independent countries whose social, cultural and economic conditions distinguish them from other sections of the national community, and whose status is regulated wholly or partially by their own customs or traditions or by special laws or regulations;
- Peoples in independent countries who are regarded as indigenous on account of their descent from the populations which inhabited the country, or a geographical region to which the country belongs, at the time of conquest or colonization or the establishment of present state boundaries and who, irrespective of their legal status, retain some or all of their own social, economic, cultural and political institutions.
Many indigenous peoples have suffered from historic injustices and therefore are considered a vulnerable group. Such a group could experience negative impacts as a result of the organization’s activities more severely than the general population.
In addition to their collective rights, each person belonging to indigenous peoples shares universal human rights. These concepts are covered in key instruments of the International Labour Organization and the United Nations: see the Bibliography.
1. Topic management disclosures
An organization reporting in accordance with the GRI Standards is required to report how it manages each of its material topics.
An organization that has determined the rights of indigenous peoples to be a material topic is required to report how it manages the topic using Disclosure 3-3 in GRI 3: Material Topics 2021 (see clause 1.1 in this section).
This section is therefore designed to supplement – and not replace – Disclosure 3-3 in GRI 3.
REQUIREMENTS
-
1.1 The reporting organization shall report how it manages the rights of indigenous peoples using Disclosure 3-3 in GRI 3: Material Topics 2021.
GUIDANCE
The United Nations (UN) Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the International Labour Organization Convention 169 ‘Indigenous and Tribal Peoples’ address the rights of indigenous peoples. Indigenous peoples have both collective and individual rights, as set out in these instruments.
The collective rights of indigenous peoples include, for example, the right to retain their own customs and institutions, and the right to self-determination. According to the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the right to self-determination enables indigenous peoples to ‘freely determine their political status and freely pursue their economic, social and cultural development’ and have the right to ‘autonomy or self-government in matters relating to their internal and local affairs, as well as ways and means for financing their autonomous functions.’
Indigenous peoples also have the right to occupy and use their lands or territories, including those who hold or use land pursuant to informal or customary rights. Indigenous peoples cannot be relocated without free, prior, and informed consent. They also have the right to redress in cases where their lands or resources have been occupied or damaged without their free, prior, and informed consent.
Due diligence is expected of an organization in order to avoid infringing on the rights of indigenous peoples through its activities. An organization is also expected to respect the rights of indigenous peoples to free, prior, and informed consent in certain matters affecting them. This is the case when, for example, an organization intends to start operations on land that is inhabited or owned by indigenous peoples.
2. Topic disclosures
Disclosure 411-1 Incidents of violations involving rights of indigenous peoples
REQUIREMENTS
The reporting organization shall report the following information:
- a. Total number of identified incidents of violations involving the rights of indigenous peoples during the reporting period.
- i. Incident reviewed by the organization;
- ii. Remediation plans being implemented;
- iii. Remediation plans that have been implemented, with results reviewed through routine internal management review processes;
- iv. Incident no longer subject to action.
RECOMMENDATIONS
- 2.1 When compiling the information specified in Disclosure 411-1, the reporting organization should include incidents involving the rights of indigenous peoples among:
- 2.1.1 workers performing the organization’s activities;
- 2.1.2 communities likely to be affected by existing or planned activities of the organization.
GUIDANCE
Guidance for Disclosure 411-1
In the context of this disclosure, an ‘incident’ refers to a legal action or complaint registered with
the reporting organization or competent authorities through a formal process, or an instance of
non-compliance identified by the organization through established procedures. Established
procedures to identify instances of non-compliance can include management system audits,
formal monitoring programs, or grievance mechanisms.
Background
The number of recorded incidents involving the rights of indigenous peoples provides information about the implementation of an organization’s policies relating to indigenous peoples. This information helps to indicate the state of relations with stakeholder communities. This is particularly important in regions where indigenous peoples reside, or have interests near operations of the organization.
Bibliography
This section lists authoritative intergovernmental instruments and additional references used in developing this Standard.
Authoritative instruments
- International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention 169, ‘Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention’, 1989.
- United Nations (UN) Convention, ‘International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights’, 1966.
- United Nations (UN) Convention, ‘International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights’, 1966.
- United Nations (UN) Declaration, ‘Declaration on the Right to Development’, 1986.
- United Nations (UN) Declaration, ‘United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples’, 2007.
- United Nations (UN) Declaration, ‘Universal Declaration of Human Rights’, 1948.
Additional references
- International Finance Corporation (IFC), ‘Performance Standards on Environmental and Social Sustainability’, 2012.