A/HRC/6/15 page 5 6. The Special Rapporteur hereby submits his third report to the Council, which analyses the implications of human rights-based development, an issue of special importance in the light of the adoption by the General Assembly of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples on 13 September 2007. The Declaration already forms part of the international normative framework that is required to assess the human rights situation of indigenous peoples.1 The Council itself, in extending the Special Rapporteur’s mandate, directs him to “promote the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and international instruments relevant to the advancement of the rights of indigenous peoples” (A/HRC/6/L.26, para. 1 (g)). The adoption of the Declaration has provided States, international agencies and donors, and civil-society organizations with a clear-cut frame of reference for the formulation and implementation of development policies on behalf of indigenous peoples. 7. In preparing this report, the Special Rapporteur took into account, inter alia, replies received to the questionnaire distributed in August 2007 from the Governments of Argentina, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Canada, Chile, Denmark, Germany, Guyana, Honduras, Iraq, Japan, Mauritius, the Russian Federation, Serbia, Spain, Sweden and Turkey. He also received replies from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the Secretariat of the Commonwealth of Nations, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and from a total of 35 indigenous organizations and NGOs. The Special Rapporteur wishes to extend sincere thanks for the support he received for the preparation of his report. I. INDIGENOUS PEOPLES AND DEVELOPMENT: THE OTHER IMPLEMENTATION GAP 8. The Special Rapporteur noted in several previous reports that the protection deficit suffered by indigenous peoples covers the whole range of both individual and collective civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights. Redress for many violations may be obtained through the traditional protection machinery provided by judicial systems or extrajudicial bodies such as national human rights institutions. This applies in particular to civil and political rights, although many shortcomings in this area have also been reported in addition to the persistence of various forms of discrimination and racism, of which indigenous women are usually the prime victims.2 1 For example, in October 2007 the Supreme Court of Belize cited the Declaration as an authority in a judgement in favour of the Mayan indigenous communities in Toledo. See Supreme Court of Belize, Claims No. 171 and 172 (Consolidated) (19 October 2007). 2 See, for example, the Special Rapporteur’s report on the administration of justice (E/CN.4/2004/80).