Call for papers: Horses, Society and the Law: Past, Present and Future

A symposium will be held at De Montfort University, Leicester, United Kingdom. This symposium explores the relationship of horses, society and the law across many positions, including, for instance, the use of horses in the rehabilitation of juvenile and adult criminal offenders, the role of the horse in national identity, modern popular culture and cultural heritage, in sport, and in leisure and recreation activities, and in the preservation of public access to bridle paths and other green common areas. 
We are inviting paper abstracts of 250-300 words to be submitted for inclusion in our Symposium to be held at De Montfort University.  There will be an edited edition of Contemporary Issues in Law to publish selected papers (subject to the usual peer review process) from the conference. 
Proposal Your proposal should be sent to Dr Sarah Sargent at Sarah.Sargent@buckingham.ac.uk by no later than noon, Tuesday January 31, 2017. Please also direct your abstracts queries to Dr Sarah Sargent. 
A decision regarding all abstracts/papers for the conference will be made no later than Wednesday, February 15, 2017.  

ART AND HERITAGE DISPUTES - CALL FOR PAPERS

From Dr Valentina Valdi, a Marie Curie postdoctoral Fellow of the Faculty of Law at Maastricht Universit, we received an invitation for a conference on ‘Art and Heritage Disputes’ to be held at Maastricht University on 24-27 March 2013. The invitation is to everyone who is interested in participating, either presenting a paper or writing an article OR even both!

Abstract (up to 500 words) for consideration should be submitted by 1st December.

The publication reads as follows: “This Special Issue aims to identify, map and critically assess the number of art and heritage disputes which have arisen in the past decades. The return of cultural artifacts to their legitimate owners, the recovery of underwater cultural heritage, the governance of sites of outstanding and universal value, the protection and promotion of artistic expressions, and the protection of cultural sites in time of war are just some of the issues which have given rise to art and heritage related disputes.”

Themes that are considered include: 1) Cultural rights 2) Tangible cultural heritage 3) Intangible cultural heritage 4) Underwater cultural heritage 5) Art law 6) Dispute settlement mechanisms

For more info contact Dr Valentina Vadi at v.vadi@maastrichtuniversity.nl.

The Return of the Buffalo: A Triumphant Symbol of Survival and Renewal

An article in the New York Times describes the return of buffalo to the prairies of Montana. The buffalo are descended from a small herd that remained hidden in Yellowstone Park and escaped the ravages of buffalo hunters in the late 1800’s.

The article also tells of the uproar that the return of the buffalo has caused. But it is apparently just the herd that the indigenous peoples of the area will manage that is the focus of objection—not other buffalo herds who are not in indigenous hands. The article explains:

“...tribe members say they see an ugly double standard in the fact that there are more than 130 private bison ranches in the state, including one belonging to the mogul Ted Turner housing dozens of controversial Yellowstone bison, and yet only the Fort Peck herd has been visited by protesters.”

The article further explains the significance that this herd will have to the present day indigenous peoples. The buffalo represent a tie to ancestors and the past, as well as having spiritual functions and in a very pragmatic way will contribute to a healthy diet:
““I call them my brothers and sisters because they are a genetic link to the same ones my ancestors hunted,” said Tote Gray Hawk, 54, a Sioux who has brought the Fort Peck bison hay and water each day since their arrival. Their meat, lower in cholesterol than beef, will feed elderly tribe members and their skulls will be used in traditional sun dance ceremonies, he said.”

Buffalo once provided nearly all the necessities of life for the indigenous peoples of the North American prairies—hides for shelter and clothing, food, use in spiritual ceremonies.

The return of the buffalo also has symbolic importance. The return of the buffalo can be seen as a triumph for the indigenous people—a triumph of survival and renewal against the odds for both.

Who is Afraid of Big Bad Soft Law?

The mainstream press has picked up the story of the Menominee student who was banned from a basketball game at her school for speaking the phrase “I love you” in her native language.

Indigenous peoples from Namibia are asking for the international community to assist them with issues that deal with the potential loss of land, lack of recognition of their governmental structures, and other threats to their culture and traditions.

The Navajo Nation has filed a lawsuit alleging trademark infringement for the use of its name by a clothing retailer on items for sale.

These are examples from just the past week of issues that are being raised about the threats to indigenous peoples’ culture and language. Doubtless there are more examples that occurred in the last week that have not grabbed the attention of the press. Doubtless these stories are just part of a continuum of events that continues where the rights of indigenous peoples are not respected. What is different now than even in the recent past is the ability for groups to seek redress for rights violations, sometimes in domestic courts, sometimes by appealing to international community sympathy, sometimes by bringing more formal statements to the indigenous structures of the United Nations.

Which brings me to the question of who is afraid of big bad soft law? There is no agreement as to what the international legal status of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples is, or should be. Sometimes it is couched as a remedial agreement that does nothing more than restate existing rights and obligations which are found in other international human rights instruments. Sometimes it is presented as containing binding norms of international customary law, binding upon even those states who voted against the approval of the Declaration.

Those four states have now all reversed their initial opposition to the approval of the Declaration. These states—Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States—present an interesting quartet of states. At some point it would be an interesting research project to plumb in depth the factors that ultimately contributed to their initial rejection of approval of the Declaration. All four states were colonised by Britain and have common law systems. Can any parallels be drawn other than that? Each of these four states have dealt with indigenous peoples in very different ways. In the present day US and Canada, series of wars were fought between the English and the French over territory, and with indigenous groups sometimes caught up on the side of one or the other. New Zealand famously has the Treaty of Waitangi, Australia the site of the now discredited doctrine of terra nullius.

The four “No” states receive a lot of comment and attention. Relatively little is written in contrast about the eleven states who abstained from voting on the approval of the Declaration. And the ILO Convention 169 is international law that is binding upon the 20 states that have ratified it.

It would be interesting to compare the 20 states that have ratified the ILO Convention 169 to the four states that opposed the Declaration—a project that I will try to address in future blog posts—and to understand more of what factors led four states to initially oppose the Declaration and other states to ratify binding international law on indigenous peoples.

Dartmoor Commoners and Moor knowledge: Turkey plucking and moor

I am a Dartmoor Commoner. Simply this means that I have a right to graze cows, sheep and ponies on two Commons on Dartmoor. I share those rights with other Commoners but the land is owned by an individual or company. I see this as a form of ‘communal ownership’ unusual outside indigenous communities. I asked a fellow Commoner about Christmas traditions and he suggested turkey plucking.

Traditionally at least for a few hundred years a bird has been at the centre of the Christmas dinner. Today most people buy a turkey, goose or chicken killed and prepared in a factory and ready to put in the oven. However small farms and small holders in places like Dartmoor will be preparing birds relying on the knowledge passed down to them. Once a bird is killed it has to be plucked. Feathers must be plucked out carefully and gently to prevent the tearing of the skin. Feathers stray and it is best to pluck straight into a bag. Most pluckers will place the bird on their knees and pluck using a downward action. In my own family my husband has taught our sons and one in particular is better at it than the others. On Dartmoor farm labourers will be called from a neighbouring farm to help in the plucking which takes time and happens two weeks before Christmas.

Interestingly whilst discussing turkey plucking with my neighbour he talked about his ancestry and said that he could trace his family back to before the ‘Conqueror’ came in 1066. The evidence being a rhyme told to him by another Commoner. ‘The Cruises, Crockers and the Copplestones when the Conqueror came they were all at home.’ Oral traditions are often used by indigenous peoples to connect themselves to their land. He asked why he was not counted as a member of an indigenous peoples. My answer was complicated and one which will be discussed in this blog in the future.

Written by Fiona Batt.

Welcome to our first set of posts focusing on cultural heritage

To celebrate the Christmas festivities we are preparing a set of post regarding our traditional culture and its links with what is going to be an exciting blog full of socio/legal news regarding indigenous peoples.

For a start, you may think that Christmas has nothing to do with Indigenous Peoples – Christianity was not known until the Colonization, and you are correct. However there are many traditional issues that are celebrated this time of year which are part of our cultural heritage. In this line, UNESCO’s refers to Intangible Cultural Heritage as to be “practices and expressions transmitted from generation to generation such as oral traditions, performing arts, social practices, rituals, festive events, knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe or traditional craftsmanship." Therefore, we have seen the recognition of food, songs, dances and the like as being part of the cultural heritage of Humanity.

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