Activity for Peace

Self-Determination in Asia-Pacificto be Discussed

at Khmer Krom Conferencein Paris,

13 June 2009

Liberation from the Legacy of Colonization: An Indigenous Voice for Self-Determination in Asia-Pacific is organised by the Khmer Kampuchea-Krom Federation (KKF) in conjunction with the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO), the Hawaii Institute for Human Rights and the Nonviolent Radical Party. The conference will be held on Saturday, 13th June 2009 at the Gymnasium Lamberdière, Espace V, Avenue Jean Fourgeaud 93420, Villepinte in Paris, France and will include a media Q&A session.

The Hague, Netherlands, 2nd June 2009

For decades now, indigenous people have had the desire to address their status and continued maltreatment by settler societies in their own homelands. Oppressive structures were set in place and sanctioned by imperial European colonialists after the disintegration of their empires, and remain the accepted status quo today. Consequently, the indigenous people of Asia-Pacific have been denied not only their right to self-determination but also their basic right to express themselves and preserve their culture.

In order to address this deficiency in the international discourse, the Khmer Kampuchea-Krom Federation is organizing a series of conferences, the first of which is to be held in Paris on the 13th June 2009. The conferences will focus on the discourses of citizens around the world in order to better understand the violations of basic rights of indigenous groups, and in particular create a consensus regarding the historical maltreatment experienced by the Khmer-Krom as well as work towards restoring their fundamental human rights. These conferences will analyze potential proposals for a path towards peaceful self-determination, with inspiration from the fields of nonviolence, economic justice, political emancipation and international human rights law.

This first conference will focus on the effects of post-colonial agreements that disenfranchised indigenous peoples. The interplay between the colonial legacy and human rights will be discussed as well as potential steps towards reconciliation and equality.

For more details contact:

Ms. Maggie Murphy, UNPO (English)
mmurphy@unpo.org
Tel: + 31 (0)70 36 46 504

Mr. Vien Thach (Khmer, French)
vf2k@free.fr
Tel: +33 (0) 143 835 187