ABSTRACT
This chapter subjects on the sequence of events that led to the inclusion of indigenous peoples' issues into the work of the United Nations (UN), symbolized by the annual sessions of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. The title of the new forum was 'open-ended intersessional working group to consider the annex to Sub-Commission resolution 1993/32', which outsiders rightfully could claim only added to the opacity of the UN's way of doing business. The Working Group on Indigenous Populations (WGIP) held its first session in 1982 and its last in 2005. It aims to explain WGIP role, its achievements and its limitations. The mandate of the Working Group was two-fold: to review developments pertaining to the promotion and protection of the human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous populations and to give special attention to the evolution of standards concerning the rights of indigenous populations.
