{"id":8261,"date":"2025-11-17T17:51:23","date_gmt":"2025-11-17T16:51:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/apnql.com\/a-large-delegation-of-first-nations-representatives-visits-the-un-to-call-for-the-implementation-of-the-declaration-on-the-rights-of-indigenous-peoples-in-quebec\/"},"modified":"2026-01-07T17:08:54","modified_gmt":"2026-01-07T16:08:54","slug":"a-large-delegation-of-first-nations-representatives-visits-the-un-to-call-for-the-implementation-of-the-declaration-on-the-rights-of-indigenous-peoples-in-quebec","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/apnql.com\/en\/a-large-delegation-of-first-nations-representatives-visits-the-un-to-call-for-the-implementation-of-the-declaration-on-the-rights-of-indigenous-peoples-in-quebec\/","title":{"rendered":"A large delegation of First Nations representatives visits the UN to call for the implementation of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in Quebec"},"content":{"rendered":"

April 14, 2025<\/strong> \u2014 A large delegation of First Nations leaders, elected officials, and advisors from Quebec and Labrador will travel to New York next week to call for international respect and full implementation of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) in Quebec.<\/p>\n

This will be the largest participation of First Nations elected officials from Quebec in over 20 years at the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII), held at the UN headquarters in New York. This strong presence on the international stage demonstrates the collective desire to raise awareness of the issues faced and the battles fought by First Nations, in a global context where Indigenous rights, climate justice, and reconciliation are sometimes relegated to the background. <\/p>\n

Under the coordination of the Assembly of First Nations Quebec-Labrador (AFNQL), the delegation includes representatives from the communities of the Innu Nation (Ekuanitshit, Essipit, Mashteuiatsh, Matimekush-Lac John, Pakua Shipi, Pessamit, Nutashkuan, Unamen Shipu, and Uashat mak Mani-utenam), the Anishnabe First Nations of Lac-Simon and Kebaowek, and the Atikamekw First Nation of Wemotaci.<\/p>\n

Together, the delegation will deliver strong messages on land and water protection, environmental justice, language revitalization, Indigenous peoples’ sovereignty, and, more broadly, the need for meaningful implementation of the UNDRIP.<\/p>\n

“Our Nations are uniting to amplify our collective voice in order to address the current challenges related to the implementation of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples by the governments of Quebec and Canada. Although each nation in our delegation faces specific issues, our underlying goal and main concern is to highlight the often complicated relationships with states and the systemic challenges to enforcing the principles of the UN Declaration,” said AFNQL Chief Francis Verreault-Paul.<\/p>\n

A side event to highlight the case of Quebec<\/strong>
\nIn addition to its interventions during the Permanent Forum sessions, the delegation will hold a side event on Monday, April 21, 2025, from 3:00 p.m. to 4:15 p.m., entitled \u201cChallenges and issues in implementing the UNDRIP: the case of Quebec.\u201d The event will address several major issues, including the legal recognition of Indigenous rights, the nuclear waste disposal project in Chalk River, and the proposed reform of the forestry regime and its consequences in terms of territorial dispossession. This space will provide a forum for First Nations leaders to highlight the case of Quebec, where despite the adoption of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act by the Canadian Parliament in 2021, First Nations continue to face systemic barriers to the recognition and exercise of their rights. <\/p>\n

The members of the delegation are:<\/p>\n