April 20, 2010 -- Amb. Susan Rice announced that the United States will review of its position on the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
During the announcement, Amb. Rice, the US ambassador to the United Nations, stated, "President Obama recognizes that the 'indigenous peoples of North America-the First Americans-have woven rich and diverse threads into the tapestry of our Nation's heritage.' What is true in the Americas is true around the world."
Hopefully this means the United States will eventually join the world community and adopt the UN Declaration.
Listen to Robert T. Coulter's statement about the announcement
New Zealand endorses the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
April 19, 2010 -- New Zealand announced their endorsement of the UN Declaration during the opening session of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues.
"We are pleased to express our support for the Declaration as both an affirmation of fundamental rights and an expression of new and widely supported aspirations."
--Pita Sharples, New Zealand's Minister of Maori Affairs
New Zealand was one of only four countries, along with the United States, Canada, and Australia, that voted against the Declaration when it was adopted by the UN General Assembly in September 2007. Australia was the first of the four countries to reverse its stance on the Declaration, doing so in April 2009.