PIB Summary- 13th August, 2024 | Current Affairs & Hindu Analysis: Daily, Weekly & Monthly - UPSC PDF Download

International Day of Indigenous People

Context

Recently, International Day of Indigenous Peoples was observed on 9th August to promote advocacy for Indigenous rights.

International Day of Indigenous Peoples

• The day is celebrated every year on August 9th, established by the United Nations General Assembly in December 1994.
• It Commemorates the initial meeting of the UN Working Group on Indigenous Populations in Geneva, 1982.
• 2024 Theme: Focuses on “Protecting the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in Voluntary Isolation and Initial Contact.”

Global Facts about Indigenous Peoples

• Approximately 200 indigenous groups choose to live in voluntary isolation in countries like Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, and India.
• An estimated 476 million indigenous people reside across 90 different countries.
• Indigenous populations constitute less than 6% of the global population but represent at least 15% of the world’s poorest.
• Cultural and Linguistic Diversity: These communities speak a majority of the world’s estimated 7,000 languages and embody 5,000 distinct cultures.

East Timor

Context

Recently, President Horta of Timor-Leste awarded President Droupadi Murmu the Grand-Collar of the Order of Timor-Leste, recognizing her contributions to public service, education, and women’s empowerment.

About East Timor

• Portugal colonised the area in the 18th century, and it remained under their hands until 1975.
• After the Portuguese left, Indonesian troops invaded and conquered East Timor as their 27th province.
• After a long and brutal war for independence, in which at least 100,000 people died, the East Timorese voted for independence in a UN-supervised referendum in 1999, but the violence escalated until peace-keeping forces were permitted to enter.
• In 2002, the United Nations formally recognised the country.
• East Timor has submitted an application to join the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) (ASEAN). It is now classified as an observer.
• The Bayu Undan gas field, East Timor’s major revenue source, is scheduled to dry up by 2023, and the country is now looking to cooperate with corporations like Australia’s Santos to convert it into carbon capture facilities. 

Its geography

• East Timor is made up of the eastern half of Timor Island, with the western half belonging to Indonesia; it has a land area of 15,000 square kilometres (5,792 square miles) – slightly smaller than Israel – with a population of 1.3 million people who are mostly Roman Catholic.