Cablegate: Colombian Concerns On Un Draft Declaration On The

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DE RUEHBO #5709 1771328
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 261328Z JUN 06
FM AMEMBASSY BOGOTA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 6362
INFO RUEHBR/AMEMBASSY BRASILIA 6924
RUEHBU/AMEMBASSY BUENOS AIRES 1923
RUEHCV/AMEMBASSY CARACAS 7875
RUEHLP/AMEMBASSY LA PAZ JUN LIMA 3947
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RUEHMN/AMEMBASSY MONTEVIDEO 2855
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RUEHGL/AMCONSUL GUAYAQUIL 3595
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 1357

UNCLAS BOGOTA 005709

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PHUM CO
SUBJECT: COLOMBIAN CONCERNS ON UN DRAFT DECLARATION ON THE
RIGHTS OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLES

REF: STATE 78740

1. On June 23, Poloff delivered reftel tripartite demarche
to Ambassador Clara Ines Vargas, MFA Director of Human Rights
and International Humanitarian Law, and Patricia Cortes, MFA
Coordinator for the U.S. and Canada. Poloff explained that
the "compromise text" was unacceptable because there was no
consensus on its most important elements and its purported
recognition of "self-determination" and land and resource
claims would violate national sovereignty.
2. Vargas said the GOC was especially concerned about the
text's provisions on rights to resources. Although the GOC
had not yet adopted positions on the text's remaining
provisions, Vargas agreed that demarche points raised
significant issues and promised to study them further. She
said the GOC had not yet issued instructions to its mission
in Geneva regarding the draft declaration, but claimed that
Mexico, Argentina, Uruguay, and Brazil were leaning in favor
of approval.
WOOD

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