aDepartment of Nutrition, University of Oslo, PB 1046 Blindern, 0316 Oslo, NorwaybCentre for Indigenous Peoples’ Nutrition and Environment (CINE), McGill University, Canada

Received 1 August 2005;

revised 21 July 2007;

accepted 20 August 2007.

Available online 24 October 2007.

Abstract

In indigenous communities the nutrition transition characterized by a rapid westernization of diet and lifestyle is associated with rising prevalence of chronic disease. Field work and literature reviews from two different policy environments, Argentina (Jujuy) and Canada (Nunavut), identified factors that add to indigenous peoples’ disease risk. The analytical framework was the emerging human right to adequate food approach to policies and programmes. Indigenous peoples’ chronic disease risk tends to increase as a result of government policies that infringe on indigenous peoples’ livelihoods and territories, undermining their economic system, values and solidarity networks. Policies intended to increase food security, including food aid, may also fuel the nutrition transition. There is a need to explore further the connection between well-intended policies towards indigenous peoples and the development of chronic diseases, and to broaden the understanding of the role that different forms of discrimination play in the westernization of their lifestyles, values and food habits. Food policies that take due account of indigenous peoples’ human rights, including their right to enjoy their culture, may counteract the growth of chronic disease in these communities.

Keywords: Human right; Right to food; Food security; Indigenous peoples; Policy; Malnutrition; Nutrition transition; Discrimination; Marginalization; Special rights; Shame; State; Jujuy; Argentina; Kolla; Inuit; Nunavut; Canada

Article Outline

Introduction The problem The Kolla of Jujuy and the inuit of Nunavut The human rights context Indigenous peoples’ human rights Analytical framework The right to adequate food of the Kolla of Jujuy and corresponding obligations of the State of Argentina Nutritional adequacy (Table 1; column 1) Safe food and environmental sustainability (Table 1; column 2 and 4) Cultural acceptability of food (Table 1; column 3) Physical access to traditional food through access to land (Table 1; column 5) Social and economic access to food (Table 1; column 5) The right to adequate food among the Inuit of Nunavut and corresponding obligations of the State of Canada Nutritional adequacy (Table 1; column 1) Safe food and environmental sustainability (Table 1; column 2) Cultural acceptability of food (Table 1; column 3) Physical access to traditional food through access to land (Table 1; column 5) Social and economic access to food (Table 1; column 5) Human rights obligations and their realization Adherence to international standards, and the importance of an enabling environment Equal rights and special rights Suggested actionAcknowledgementsReferences

Introduction

The problemChanges in diets, patterns of work and leisure have occurred with industrialization, urbanization, economic development, and the globalization of markets. These changes, often referred to as the ’nutrition transition’, are contributing factors in the causality of non-communicable diseases, even in poorer countries. Especially in low and middle-income countries the pace of these changes appears to be accelerating, leading to a situation where communicable diseases and undernutrition exist in parallel with chronic diseases, thus creating a ‘double burden of disease’ ([Popkin, 1997] and [WHO, 2003]).Many studies have shown that the prevalence of chronic diseases is disturbingly high among indigenous3 peoples world-wide ([Knowler et al., 1990], [Nelson et al., 1990], [O’Dea, 1992], [Young and Harris, 1994], [Carter et al., 1996], [Murphy et al., 1997], [Alderete, 1999], [James et al., 2001], [Uauy et al., 2001], [NZHIS, 2004], [Ring and Brown, 2003] and [Montenegro and Stephens, 2006]). Even if some indigenous communities maintain their isolation and others act with little trace of ancestral culture, most have elements of both a traditional and a western (or urban) lifestyle (Montenegro and Stephens, 2006). Most are going through a westernization of lifestyles and diets. A westernization of indigenous diets tends to imply reduced consumption of foods accessed through fishing, hunting, herding, gathering or own production (like fish, meat, fruits, berries, tubers etc.), and increased reliance on a purchased diet consisting of pre-processed foods and drinks, high in refined carbohydrates and saturated fat ([Uauy et al., 2001] and [Kuhnlein et al., 2004]). Reduced consumption of traditional foods and decreasing activity levels prepare the ground for obesity and related chronic diseases.An additional risk factor for chronic disease is poverty. Evidence from Latin America and the Caribbean indicate that obesity is most prevalent among the poor (PAHO, 2000). All over the American continent poverty is particularly widespread and severe among indigenous peoples (Psacharopoulis and Patrinos, 1994). Also in the USA and Canada indigenous peoples tend to be poorer than the non-indigenous population ([PAHO, 2002a] and [PAHO, 2002b]). Poor and market dependent individuals tend to purchase cheap and filling foods. These cheap foods tend to have a low mineral and vitamin content and be high in saturated fat and refined carbohydrates. The resulting diets hold a low nutritional quality, and are associated with high prevalence of obesity and diabetes ([PAHO, 2000] and [WHO, 2003]), and even deterioration in oral health (Arantes et al., 2001).Not only are indigenous peoples vulnerable to chronic disease. Available evidence suggests disparities in mortality, infectious diseases and nutritional status between indigenous and non-indigenous populations on the American continent ([PAHO, 2002a], [PAHO, 2002b], [Damman, 2005] and [Hall and Patrinos, 2005]). In a recent study from countries on the American continent the infant mortality of indigenous children was shown to be 20 – 500% higher than country averages, and stunting, or chronic malnutrition 20 – 360% higher (Damman, 2005). These discrepancies were found both in rich and in poor countries. What we see is a ‘double burden of disease’. The rates of chronic disease are rising in communities that already struggle with higher-than-average levels of undernutrition and infectious disease. The levels of infectious disease tend to fall as access to vaccinations and antibiotics4 and other public health services improve, although seldom to the level enjoyed in the general population.Although genetic background may play a role in the susceptibility to most chronic diseases, the high prevalence of obesity in indigenous communities should be understood in the context of modernization and urbanization (Uauy et al., 2001). This implies that indigenous peoples’ traditional diet and activity level should be regarded as protective with regard to chronic disease risk ([O’Dea, 1992] and [Uauy et al., 2001]).Inequalities in health and nutrition is a public health problem, but can also be viewed as a human right problem, generated by inappropriate policies and political priorities. From both perspectives there is a need to better understand the links between government policies and disease in indigenous communities.The objective of this paper is to discuss ways in which government policies and other factors uncontrolled by the indigenous communities may fuel the nutrition transition, using as organizing framework a matrix developed for the analysis of the human right to adequate food and implications for state obligations. Examples are drawn from historical experiences and the present-day situation of the indigenous Kolla5 in the North-Western region of Jujuy6 in Argentina, and of the Inuit in the high North of Nunavut, Canada. Based on the suggestion that a traditional lifestyle protects against chronic disease, we propose that respect for indigenous peoples’ right to adequate food, within the context of their general human rights and their indigenous specific rights, may curb the development of chronic disease in their communities. The Kolla of Jujuy and the inuit of NunavutJujuy is one of 23 provinces of Argentina. Jujuy has its own constitution, executive, legislative, and judicial branches, and 16 administrative units. Jujuy is divided into four climatic zones, and topographically it stretches from 700 to 6000 meters above sea level. In the higher altitudes of the mountainous and rural Northwest the majority of the population are Kolla descendants. Only about 10% of the more than 600 000 inhabitants of Jujuy are registered as indigenous (INDEC, 2006). This percentage came out of the 2001 census. This census included, for the first time, a question on indigenous identity. The process around the registration was however criticized and openly resisted by indigenous peoples in Argentina, because of the lack of consultation with indigenous organizations on the process and on the wording of the identifier question.7 The 10% estimate is likely to be inaccurate both due to the resistance to the census question in the indigenous population and due to a tendency for many to downplay indigenous ancestry.Canada contains 10 provinces and three territories, of which the newly formed Territory of Nunavut is one. Nunavut is situated in the Arctic Northeast of Canada, covering about 22% of the country (Hicks and White, 2000). The mean temperature in February is minus 27°C, and in July 8°C. The public government serve both Inuit and non-Inuit.8 Because 82% of the population is Inuit, they have considerable political influence. Nunavut is made up of three distinct regions and 25 isolated communities.9 It has a representative assembly, an executive branch, a court and a civil service. The territory’s annual budget is provided almost entirely by the federal government (Conference Board of Canada, undated).10The Kolla and the Inuit share common features, even if their circumstances are different in important ways. The two countries, Argentina and Canada, are relatively wealthy democratic federal States with well established welfare policies, while Jujuy and Nunavut are politically marginal and relatively poor administrative units. Historically, both the Kolla and the Inuit have depended on natural resources for their subsistence and have had minimal influence on national politics. Depending on the focus, the Kolla and the Inuit may be regarded as politically, socially, economically and culturally marginal populations within already marginal administrative areas, or as groups struggling to uphold their separate economic, political, social, legal, religious and cultural institutions and traditions in spite of mainstream pressure towards conformity. The Kolla have for centuries been subject to subordination and heavy pressure towards abandoning cultural expressions like traditional clothing, naming traditions, religion, traditional medicine and religious practices. Such expressions have been suppressed, at times by law. Their collective farming systems, providing food and livelihood security for the sick and vulnerable, were undermined through the expropriation of land, forced labour arrangements and heavy taxation. This started under the Spanish colonizers (since 1593), and continued under the Argentinean State ([Lamas, 2003] and [Ontiveros, 2003]). Today they are immersed in a centralized development strategy with little attention to indigenous culture and rights.The situation of the Kolla in Argentina is rather typical of the relationship between states and indigenous peoples on the American continent in general. Nunavut, on the other hand, represents a new and interesting approach to intercultural coexistence and indigenous self-determination within the framework of a federal state. After decades of negotiations among Canada, the Northwest Territories and the Inuit, the Nunavut Land Claim Agreement provided the Inuit with a high degree of self-determination. The new Territory of Nunavut became a distinct Canadian territory, separated from the Northwest Territories in 1999.The Inuit consider themselves a hunter society. The situation of the Nunavummiut (Inuit inhabitants of Nunavut) is unique in that their contact with mainstream society is fairly recent. Until 1945–1950 they lived as self-contained nomads, having little contact with the Canadian government. In the 1960s they were forced to settle down in communities, as Canadian citizens with rights to public education, health care, and social services (Wenzel, 2000).Nunavut is unique in its efforts to combine traditional and western values in a way that benefit the inhabitants in the best possible way. An advisory council of 11 elders help incorporate Inuit Qaujimajatugangit – Inuit culture and traditional knowledge, or “IQ” – into the territory’s political and governmental decisions (Nunatsiaq News, 2003). This provides for cultural continuity. The principles of participation and accountability are crucial to an inclusive, democratic and culturally and socially sound development in Nunavut. Hearings are carried out with the Nunavummiut to get feedback on policy and service delivery, which helps shape the programmes according to local culture and needs.Both the Inuit and the Kolla are experiencing a nutrition transition, but until now with low rates of chronic disease. This gives hope that the right policy measures might curb the development of these diseases. While many Kolla and Inuit are urban dwellers and to a large extent removed from the traditional way of life and food habits, the focus of this paper is on those Kolla and Inuit who still to a large extent enjoy the health benefits of a traditional diet and lifestyle.In the following we present the organizing framework of this paper, a human rights approach to the assessment of food security. The paper is based on material from the first author’s fieldwork among indigenous Kolla of Jujuy and Inuit in Nunavut in 2002/03. Primary data was collected by her through interviews with politicians, civil servants, health workers, representatives from indigenous organizations, and indigenous and other key informants in the provincial capital of Jujuy, Argentina and in the Territorial Capital of Nunavut in Canada. Interviews were also carried out with key informants in smaller communities within the province and territory.11 Given the scarcity of data on the food situation of the Kolla, a master student conducted a survey on diet and food choice in three communities of Jujuy.12 Secondary data was gathered from local and web-based newspaper archives and libraries, material from public institutions and relevant NGOs, and through literature searches. The human rights context Indigenous peoples’ human rightsIndigenous peoples are often victims of discrimination and national policies and actions that do not sufficiently address and respect their interests, culture and lifestyle. In response to this, human rights norms and standards have been developed that provide states with dual obligations towards them; firstly, to provide the necessary conditions to ensure non-discrimination, and, secondly, to safeguard their special right to live their lives according to their distinct cultural identity as long as this does not infringe on the human rights of others, whether inside or outside the cultural group. Measures to ensure non-discrimination may include temporary affirmative action (’positive discrimination’).13 While affirmative action is temporary and compensatory, aimed at correcting conditions that impair the enjoyment of equal rights, measures to protect cultures do not have time limitations (Sub-Commission, 2000).According to the Vienna Declaration and Program of Action adopted by the World Conference on Human Rights (UN, 1993), all human rights are universal, indivisible, interdependent and interrelated. The content of indigenous peoples’ right to adequate food should therefore not be interpreted narrowly, but within the context of all other human rights, including indigenous peoples’ special rights.Several international and regional human rights treaties state the principle of non-discrimination, including the two International Covenants of 1966 on Economic on Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) and on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) respectively. The principle is also found in the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) of 1979, and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) of 1989, and in regional instruments like the American Convention on Human Rights (ACHR) (Pact of San Jose, Costa Rica) of 1969 with its Additional Protocol in the Area of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (Protocol of San Salvador) of 1988. The Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD) of 1959 opens up for affirmative action. Article 30 of the CRC and article 27 of the ICCPR underpin indigenous peoples’ special right to enjoy their specific culture. This right is further expanded on in the ILO Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention (ILO 169) of 1989, and in the Draft Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.The latter has been developed with input from indigenous peoples, and is therefore very much in line with their views. In June 2006 the then newly established UN Human Rights Council (HRC)14 adopted the Draft Declaration, after twelve years of discussions within the United Nations. Thirty countries voted in favour, while abstained, including Argentina. Two countries voted against, amongst them Canada. The Draft Declaration was thus sent on to the General Assembly for possible adoption at the 2006 session (UN Office, 2006). At the session however, the majority voted to delay a decision on the declaration until September 2007.15At the 2007 session of the UN General Assembly the Declaration was adopted. While Argentina voted for, Canada was among the four countries that voted against.Some human right provisions are of particular importance to indigenous peoples’ right to their traditional foods, including article 27 of the ICCPR. As per 20 July 2007 the ICCPR has been ratified by 160 States, including Argentina and Canada. Article 27 provides that

In those States in which ethnic, religious or linguistic minorities exist, persons belonging to such minorities shall not be denied the right, in community with the other members of their group, to enjoy their own culture, to profess and practice their own religion, or to use their own language (UN, 1966a).

Traditional food is at the core of indigenous cultures and economies. Practices regarding harvesting, preserving and preparing food reinforce indigenous culture and identity. Indigenous economies are often dual in nature, depending partly on the market and partly on subsistence production and natural resources. This may protect against food insecurity. However, indigenous peoples’ dependence on natural resources also makes them vulnerable, particularly since the land they use and depend upon is often not regarded as their property by others, whether in law or in fact.Each of the international legally binding human rights instruments (covenants or conventions, which in practice is the same thing) have their treaty body or convention committee in charge of the international monitoring of the implementation of the content of these instruments by States Parties, i.e. states that have ratified them. The UN Human Rights Committee (HRC) which monitors the implementation of the ICCPR, has in its General Comment16 No. 23 (GC23) (HRC, 1994) provided an authoritative interpretation of Article 27 of this Covenant. The right to enjoy one’s culture is, especially in the case of indigenous peoples, considered to include a particular way of life associated with the use of land resources. This way of life should be protected against acts of the state and others. Although article 27 is expressed in negative terms, States Parties should, according to the HRC, take positive action including legal measures to protect the culture of minorities. Importantly, the HRC stresses the need for effective participation by members of minority communities in decisions which affect them. Governments may, through open and meaningful dialogue with indigenous peoples, ensure that national policies and the way they are enacted respect, protect and fulfil the rights of indigenous peoples. Analytical frameworkStates are, under international human rights law, the primary responsible for the realization of human rights. This is normally expressed as states having human rights obligations.17 Human rights set constraints on, and give directions to, national laws and policies (Eide, 2005b). They provide standards against which States Parties – as duty-bearers bound by human rights treaties – are accountable to the right-holders in question and to the international community. A human rights based approach to development presupposes the application of certain principles and standards established in international human rights law. These include the principles of non-discrimination, equality, transparency in public affairs, participation, a just legal system and accountability. (UNHCHR, 2006).18 In recent years this approach has received increasing attention within the United Nations, by NGOs and academic groups, and by an increasing number of countries, both donor and recipient. An important leap forward was the recent preparation, by an open intergovernmental working group of FAO Member States, of a set of Voluntary Guidelines to Support the Progressive Realization of the Right to Adequate Food in the Context of National Food Security, subsequently adopted by the FAO Council (FAO, 2004). The objective of these Voluntary Guidelines is to provide practical guidance to states in their implementation of measures that will progressively help realize the right to adequate food. Its Guideline 8 on access to resources and assets stresses that with regard to land and land tenure special consideration should be given to indigenous peoples.The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) (UN, 1966b) is the key human right instrument both on the right to adequate food and the right to health. As per 20 July 2007 it had been ratified by 156 States. Article 11 establishes the right to an adequate standard of living, including food, and the right to be free from hunger. Article 12 establishes the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health. The UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) elaborates further on the meaning of the right to adequate food in its General Comment No. 12 (GC12):

The right to adequate food is realized when every man, woman and child, alone or in community with others, has physical and economic access at all times to adequate food or means for its procurement.

It goes on to define the core content of adequate food as

The availability of food in a quantity and quality sufficient to satisfy the dietary needs of individuals, free from adverse substances, and acceptable within a given culture (and)(T)he accessibility of such food in ways that do not interfere with the enjoyment of other human rights (CESCR, 1999).

These attributes of the human right to adequate food closely resemble those proposed for food security ([Eide et al., 1985–1986], [Oshaug et al., 1994] and [Eide, 2005a]). The current authoritative definition on food security was provided by the World Food Summit Plan of Action from 1996: Food security exists when all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life (FAO, 1996). GC12 presents the attributes of the human rights to adequate food as dietary adequacy in terms of nutritional adequacy, food safety and cultural acceptability, and sustainability of acquisition in terms of availability and accessibility.A framework for obligations of states to meet the various economic, social and cultural rights was proposed by Eide (1984) and used in the first study for the UN on the right to food through the Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights19 (Sub-Commission, 1987). It was subsequently used by the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in the formulation of several General Comments, starting with GC12, and subsequently, somewhat modified, in the GC14 on the right to health and GC15 on the right to water ([CESCR, 1999], [CESCR, 2000] and [CESCR, 2002]). The present UN Special Rapporteur20 on the right to food has used the framework in his reports to the UN General Assembly (UN General Assembly, 2005). The framework distinguishes between the obligations to respect, protect or fulfill a human right in question. The latter (fulfill) encompasses both a proactive obligation to facilitate the conditions for the right-holders to be able to enjoy a right through their own means, and/or an obligation to directly provide what is necessary in cases where the rights-holder has absolutely no assets or opportunity to take care of her- or himself.The more precise articulation of this general framework will depend on the problem and location-specific context to be investigated in each specific case, which will then also suggest varying degrees of involvement by the State. In the case of the right to adequate food, the obligation to respect requires States Parties not to take any measures that result in preventing existing access to food. The obligation to protect requires measures by the State to ensure that enterprises or individuals do not deprive individuals of their access to adequate food. The obligation to fulfil, in the meaning to facilitate, means the State must pro-actively engage in activities intended to strengthen people’s access to and utilization of resources and means to ensure their livelihood including food security. Finally, whenever an individual or group is unable, for reasons beyond their control, to enjoy the right to adequate food by the means at their disposal, States have the obligation to fulfill in terms of providing that right directly. However, food aid should be accompanied by measures that facilitate future self-reliance and food security (CESCR, 1999). The framework exposes that the various elements of food insecurity may be caused or exacerbated both by action and/or inaction of States.Combining levels of obligation with the elements of food security gives a ‘right to food matrix’ as depicted in Table 1. The matrix can be used as an organizing framework when identifying state obligations in regard to the right to adequate food within specific contexts. It can thus serve as basis for dialogue, policy formulation and the planning of measures to enhance food security (Oshaug et al., 1994).

The columns and boxes indicate elements under the right to adequate food that should be identified and analysed. In the text that follows, we present issues of importance to this right, and refer back to the columns and the numbers of the boxes to provide the reader with an understanding of how the matrix may be filled in. The matrix will guide the discussion of factors that fuel the nutrition transition in the Inuit and the Kolla.Due to the universality, indivisibility, interdependence and interrelatedness of human rights, the right to adequate food should not be considered alone, but in the context of all human rights. Consequently, when the right to adequate food of indigenous peoples is considered, this right must be informed by indigenous peoples’ human rights as such. These include indigenous peoples’ special rights and their right to culture as expressed i.e. in article 27 of the ICCPR, the ILO Convention 169 and in article 30 of the CRC. What does this imply in practical terms� Nutritional adequacy (column 1) and food safety (column 2) reflect physiological needs that are valid for all human beings, unrelated to culture. Certain groups and individuals lack the ability to meet their needs due to inadequate availability or access to nutritionally adequate and safe food. In such cases temporary and compensatory measures aimed at correcting the conditions that impair their enjoyment of equal rights are called for. The rise in chronic disease among indigenous peoples is likely to result partly from an inadequate diet and partly from inadequate physical activity, which again is likely to result from a failure of states to honour their obligations with regard to indigenous peoples’ special rights. The state has the duty to respect and protect the dual economy of indigenous peoples benefiting from land based food and resource acquisition strategies (HRC, 1994). According to GC12 on the right to adequate food,

…specially disadvantaged groups may need special attention and sometimes priority consideration with respect to accessibility of food. A particular vulnerability is that of many indigenous population groups whose access to their ancestral lands may be threatened.

The sustainable management of natural resources is an important precondition for access to traditional food and food security for indigenous peoples (column 4). Due to space limitations this area has to a large part been left out of the analysis in this paper, to the benefit of the content in column 5. In terms of traditional food, the element of physical access to adequate food in column 5 is inseparable from access to land. The economic access to adequate food is here understood to depend both on availability of jobs and other income-generating activities, while social access to food includes both direct access to food and transfers through social policies and traditional sharing mechanisms.Government policies and actions may work to further indigenous peoples’ right to food, but may also be harmful and outright undermine their rights. The lack of specific policies or practical action may also influence the availability and access to food. Furthermore, policies that are beneficial to some groups may have negative consequences for others. In cases where action (or lack of action) by government results in hunger, this amounts to a violation of human rights.21 Indigenous peoples have often experience to have their interests and livelihoods sacrificed to the benefit of the mainstream society. There are numerous examples of development projects established on indigenous peoples’ territories with disastrous consequences for their livelihoods. These include large dams and hydroelectric power plants, oil drilling, and large scale commercial agricultural enterprises.The contents of column 3; ‘cultural acceptability’, has so far not been explored in detail and warrant further inspection. GC12 states that

Cultural or consumer acceptability [of food] implies the need also to take into account, as far as possible, perceived non-nutrient-based values attached to food and food consumption and informed consumer concerns regarding the nature of accessible food supplies (CESCR, 1999, para. 11).

Consumer acceptability is particularly important in a market economy setting. The ‘perceived non-nutrient-based values’ linked to cultural acceptability takes on particular importance in the indigenous context. Traditional food habits express and reinforce cultural identity, which is without doubt an important ‘non-nutrient-based value’ of food. Indigenous peoples’ food cultures are therefore an integral part of their right to adequate food, to be respected and protected by the state. The state not only has an obligation to respect and fulfil this right, but also an obligation to take positive steps to facilitate and promote traditional food cultures (column 3).Such an understanding of ‘cultural acceptability’ is in line with the interpretation given by Oshaug et al. (1994) and with that of GC 23 of the Human Rights Committee regarding the state obligation to protect the particular way of life associated with the use of land resources (HRC, 1994).In the following sections, the performance of the federal and territorial/provincial government in Argentina and Canada with regard to the right to adequate food is reviewed, with the matrix in Table 1 as the organizing framework. The right to adequate food of the Kolla of Jujuy and corresponding obligations of the State of ArgentinaArgentina has ratified a wide range of human rights treaties relevant to the issues in question, including the ICESCR, the ICCPR, the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD), the CRC, the American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man, the American Convention on Human Rights, and the ILO 169. In its constitutional reform of 1994, Argentina granted constitutional standing to treaties that Argentina had ratified (Argentina, 1994)22,23. The right to adequate food, being an integral part of the ICESCR, could therefore be considered as protected by the Constitution (Victoria and Zemán, 2005). A later court case, however, suggests that this assumption is still disputed with regard to economic, social and cultural rights (Abregú, 2004).The revised constitution reaffirms the human rights obligations of Argentina to respect and protect indigenous populations’ right to land and recognize indigenous specific rights, including collective land rights, ownership to previously held land, and indigenous peoples’ right to participate in decisions that affect them24 (Argentina, 1994). This is in accordance with the content of the ILO Convention 169. Obviously, the government of Jujuy is bound by the human rights obligations that Argentina has taken on. The Constitution of Jujuy (Art. 50) does however only recognize that ‘provincial ... laws should protect indigenous peoples through legislation that integrate them into social and economic development’ (Jujuy, 1986). Nutritional adequacy (Table 1; column 1)Argentinean household surveys do not provide statistics broken down by ethnicity (PAHO, 2002a). The Kolla are generally assumed to be food insecure and have substantially higher infant mortality rates than the rest of the country. Data disaggregated by geographic region supports this assumption. In 2001 the infant mortality rate in the province of Jujuy was 20.4/1000 live births, with large variations among administrative units. In Rinconada, the Northern and mainly indigenous administrative unit, the infant mortality rate was 70.2/1000 (MBS, 2002). Malnutrition increased since 2001 and affects, according to the most recent statistics, more than 4 million children. The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural rights (CESCR, 1991) and other human rights treaty bodies ask countries to provide disaggregated data to reveal the situation in vulnerable groups. The Committee on the Rights of the Child, in its concluding observations to Argentina’s 2002 CRC report, remarks that it has received information that the nutrition and health problems are worse in the Northern provinces and among indigenous children. The Committee regrets the lack of disaggregated data and hence the lack of assessments of the scope of the problem (CRC, 2002).Argentina demonstrates failing political will to inform itself on inequalities in food security and health, even if certain ethnic groups are known to be particularly vulnerable. This amounts to a failure to respect and protect the right to adequate food and nutritional health of the Kolla (under box 1.1, 1.2 in Table 1).According to available data, obesity in children is on the rise in the province capital of Jujuy (San Salvador de Jujuy). In some age and sex groups overweight increased from about 5% to 20% between 1985 and 2000. Obesity rates went from about 5% to almost 10% (Bejarano et al., 2005). While obesity is found among women in the northern indigenous areas, obesity is almost non-existent among rural indigenous children and youth. On the other hand, chronic malnutrition (stunting)25 is common both in the northern indigenous communities and in the capital. The levels of chronic malnutrition in children rose from 1985 to 2000 and reached almost 20% in some age groups (Moreno Romero et al., 2005). Both in urban and rural areas obesity often occurs in tandem with micronutrient deficiencies. No empirical material was found on smoking and physical activity (risk factors for several chronic diseases). The ongoing migration from the North to the Capital (INDEC, 2001) may indicate reduced activity levels, as it is likely that a traditional and active lifestyle is exchanged with a sedentary lifestyle.The relative importance of traditional food in the Kolla diet is poorly explored. In a study focusing on poor Kolla households in urban and rural areas (Henjum, 2004), it was found that urban indigenous households depended on marketed food and food aid. In the Northern area of Jujuy about half the families interviewed ate llama, sheep and goat meat. Some also used agricultural products like potatoes, quinoa (chenopodium quinoa), legumes and other crops resistant to the cold and fit to the short growth seasons and high altitudes. The intake of these nutritious food items was low, however. The Kolla families typically ate a carbohydrate-rich diet based on white bread, pasta, rice and maize flour. The children ate some fruits, vegetables, and meat, and got milk from food aid programmes. Their diet tended to be deficient in important minerals and vitamins like iron, calcium, vitamin A and C. The fat content was low. It should be noted that while the rural Kolla boiled both potatoes and meat, the Kolla in the capital had adapted the urban habit of making french-fries and eating fried meat (Henjum, 2004). The transition towards urbanization and ‘modernization’ thus seems to involve a shift towards using more oil in food preparation. For the time being, traditions and a restrained economy seem to hinder rural Kolla from adapting a high fat diet. Urbanization and increased incomes may change this picture.The Government of Argentina transfers large amounts of money to the provinces to alleviate the economic crisis. This crisis became particularly acute with the devaluation of the peso in December 2001. According to the Secretary of Social Development in Jujuy, as much as 30% of the households in Jujuy receive government food aid. Large Bolsones Esperanza (‘Boxes of hope’) containing non-perishable food items (like pasta, rice, wheat flour, oil, sugar, tea, and at times jam and soy beans), are handed out every second month. Through the program Por un Niño Fuerte (’For a strong child’) 18,000 children 5–18 years old receive school meals (breakfast and lunch) in Jujuy. To diminish the levels of child malnutrition the government also sponsors meals 20 days per month for 23,500 children 0–15 years old through community kitchens (comedores infantiles). In addition 160 Copas de Leche (‘Cup-of-milk’) serve thousands of children 0–4 years old from socio-economically vulnerable families hot chocolate, a rice drink or similar for breakfast or lunch. Vulnerable families or family units are also offered seeds so that they may start up kitchen gardens (Programa Prohuertas) (MBS, 2006).Food aid may counteract starvation, but may also fuel the nutrition transition (Uauy et al., 2001). Children who are stunted tend also to be underweight (low weight for age). Underweight children are eligible to receive food aid. However, due to their short stature their weight for age may be under the cut-off-point that makes them eligible for food aid even if they are not thin. When the nutritional quality of the food aid is poor, beneficiaries of food aid may have more food, but of an overall poor nutritional quality. They may thus adapt dietary habits leading to obesity and chronic disease while at the same time suffering from dietary deficiencies.Among the Kolla of Jujuy many have received food aid for years. A Kolla health worker warned that food aid undermined the traditional Kolla diet. The lean and almost cholesterol-free llama meat, and the micronutrient-dense quinoa seeds, beans and potatoes are abandoned by many, to the benefit of a carbohydrate-rich and micronutrient-poor ‘modern’ but cheap diet where pasta, rice, and white bread are main sources of energy. The political party in opposition (Frente Civica Jujeño) argues that the government food aid is an important reason for the nutrition deficiencies and overweight observed among the poor. It has proposed two laws (Law no. 5343 “PLASONUP” and law no. 5185 “on purchases in Jujuy”) to ensure that food aid contribute to a nutritionally adequate diet, is purchased locally and adapted to local diets, and that social networks are strengthened (Galfre, 2002).In conclusion, even though the federal and provincial government make an effort to curb hunger and starvation (box 1.3 in Table 1), they at the same time fail to respect and protect the healthier traditional Kolla diet (box 3.1 and 3.2). The situation may improve if the laws proposed by the political party in opposition are implemented (under facilitate in Table 1, box 1.3). Safe food and environmental sustainability (Table 1; column 2 and 4)Safe food and environmental sustainability are often linked in the context of food security. In Jujuy a particular case of water contamination became known to the public in 2002. The Jujuy government seems to have granted concessions to a mining company to extract gold at the Orosmayo River, without prior consultation or notification of the downstream Kolla communities of Liviara and Orosmayo. Cyanide and other poisonous waste is claimed to have killed more than 1100 sheep, goats and llamas, and caused disease in children (Pizzolon, 2005). The official notification of the mining concessions were available in San Salvador de Jujuy, but were not made known to the communities that would be affected. Unfortunately, the names given to the mines, like Rufino, Rosa and José, did not indicate their location. This made it difficult for community members to find out if their interests would be harmed. Due to the isolation of the communities, members would need to travel for several days to the Capital to inquire. Water tests paid for by the mining company all came out negative and a government sponsored test was lost, but other tests showed high mercury, lead and cyanide content (Pizzolon, 2005). The government of Jujuy refused to intervene, in spite of demonstrations in the Capital by inhabitants from the two communities and expressions of support from the Church and others. The main argument seemed to be that the mining was a source of tax revenue and development, and thus would have to continue ([ADPH, 2005] and [Pizzolon, 2005]). The Orosmayo community presented a lawsuit that was turned down in July 2003, because no law existed to protect the constitutional rights of the indigenous community. Specialists in constitutional rights do however uphold that in technical terms, these rights are operational (Pizzolon, 2005). Interestingly, when a new mining company took over and wanted to compensate the affected communities economically, the government denied the right of the communities to negotiate with the company over the future of their collectively owned land (Pizzolon, 2005). Allowing the mining activities to start up and thereafter refusing to intervene and protect the communities is a failure to respect and protect the rights of community members to safe food and a clean environment (box 2.1, 2.2, 4.1 and 4.2 in Table 1). The government of Jujuy also fail to respect and protect the right to health and the property of the indigenous inhabitants. By disregarding indigenous land rights the government of Jujuy disregards its obligations both under the ICCPR, article 27, the ILO Convention 169, and the Argentinean Constitution. It also disregard key human rights principles like transparency, participation and accountability. Cultural acceptability of food (Table 1; column 3)One would assume that a traditional Kolla diet, consisting to a large part of corn, meat, legumes, potatoes, quinoa grains and fruits, would be the culturally most acceptable to the Kolla. However, even if Kolla tend to consider traditional foods to be tastier and healthier than marketed foods (Henjum, 2004), ‘Kolla foods’ have low status and are considered ‘poor people’s food’. These attitudes are found both among non-Kolla and Kolla themselves. The low status of Kolla foods should be understood in the context of society’s negative attitudes towards Kolla culture in general. The federal and provincial governments do little to acknowledge and respect the significance of food culture as part of a wider cultural identity, or to counteract discrimination and other external influences which may erode positive aspects of the existing food culture (In box 3.1 and 3.2 of Table 1). Among children and teenagers, eating Kolla food is associated with shame. Avoiding Kolla food seemed to be a way of avoiding stigma and portraying oneself as modern. This implies that racism, and the consequent struggle of children to uphold their dignity by denying their culture, may be an important reason for the deculturation26 process taking place. Discussions with indigenous and non-indigenous informants reveal that discriminatory attitudes are deeply rooted. However, discrimination is a non-issue in Jujuy where open racism and discrimination do not appear to be sanctioned legally, politically or socially.27 Physical access to traditional food through access to land (Table 1; column 5)The Kolla of Argentina entered the 20th century dispossessed of their best land due to colonization.28 In recent decades several initiatives have been initiated to ensure their ownership over land. In 1949, President Peron transferred large amounts of federal land to the provinces, for the provinces to hand it over to indigenous communities. The government of Jujuy did not execute these foreseen land transfers. In 1996, President Menem announced that 2,000,000 hectares of State land would be returned to the indigenous population in three Argentinean provinces, among them Jujuy (CELS, 2002). The Inter-American Development Bank provided 1,500 million US dollars for the purpose of land demarcation. So far little has happened (IWGIA, 2001). According to politicians interviewed, the money was partly lost in the 2001 devaluation, some has been used for other purposes, and about 10% is available for the foreseen purpose.The federal institution for land transfers, INAI (Instituto Nacional de Asuntos Indigenas), is accused of failing to ensure land demarcation, and to avoid seeking indigenous participation ([IWGIA, 2001] and [ILO, 2005]). The land handed out is said to be the driest and least fertile, and may therefore not ensure food security in the Kolla households. In Jujuy one office distributes land to indigenous individuals, another to indigenous communities. Three indigenous communities in Jujuy have so far received land titles (IWGIA, 2001).Voluntary organizations, including human rights organizations, continuously document cases where indigenous land rights are violated. Powerful landowners, businessmen, industries and others acquire indigenous land, sometimes leading to the eviction of indigenous families (CELS, 2004). The Inter-American Commission of Human Rights (IACHR) is currently treating one case of assumed illegal takeover of indigenous land29 and another case of mass arrest, police violence and torture of members of an indigenous community in Argentina ([IWGIA, 2005] and [IWGIA, 2006]). A likely reason for the resistance to unequivocally respect and protect indigenous peoples’ rights, including their right to adequate food, are the alliances and loyalty between members of the government and the economic elite. There is resistance among decision makers and powerful groups to allow indigenous peoples’ land rights and access to land, in particular if the land may be valuable. This obstructs processes to provide indigenous communities with physical access to food through access to land (under box 5.1, 5.2 and 5.3 in Table 1). Social and economic access to food (Table 1; column 5)Before the money economy became firmly established in the Argentinean North, bartering of food products provided conditions for a varied diet for indigenous peoples and communities living in different climatic zones and thus having access to different produce ([Alderete, 1992] and [Lamas, 2003]). The Kolla culture is based on collective arrangements. Collective ownership of land and la minga – community work where everyone get together to plant, harvest and do other community work, are traditions that have improved the resilience of the vulnerable towards food insecurity and starvation. Traces of the ‘sharing culture’ still exist among the Kolla, but it seems to have lost much of its practical importance. In Henjum’s study (2004) it was observed that herders supply community kitchens with meat. During festivals in traditional regions the inhabitants walk from door to door and are invited to eat wherever they enter. However, the poor households in Henjum’s study did not seem to rely on sharing and solidarity networks for their daily diet.The economic crisis and the devaluation of the Argentinean peso in December 2001 had dire consequences for all Argentineans. Food prices rose dramatically, wages did not follow suit, companies went bankrupt, jobs were lost and large parts of the middle class fell into poverty. More than 40% of households are beneficiaries under the unemployment scheme “Plan Jefas y Jefes de Hogar” in Jujuy. The highest coverage is in the rural areas (Ministerio de Trabajo Argentina, 2004). According to national poverty lines 49% of households in Jujuy are poor and 19% are destitute (INDEC, 2006). An Argentinean household earning less than 380 pesos a month falls under the ‘extreme poverty line’ and is labelled ’destitute’. The poverty line (based on the estimated cost of covering all monthly basic needs, including food), was at 797 pesos in 2004 (INDEC, 2006).The Kolla are commonly known to be poor, but are in general not singled out for special programmes. They are known to have few years of schooling30 (INDEC, 2001), to be discriminated in the work market, and to receive very low salaries. The Kolla are often employed in seasonal agricultural labour or as housemaids, receiving about 200 pesos per month; 50 pesos more than the unemployed (Ministerio de Trabajo Argentina, 2004). When the work place is far from the Kolla communities, commuting to and from work becomes relatively costly and very time consuming. Many households are female headed. If the mother takes on work as a housemaid to get an income, she may be forced to leave her children alone all day until late night, with possible negative effects on their nutritional status, health and school performance. Her ability to keep and care for domestic animals will also be reduced.In times of transitory economic and social problems the government has the obligation to protect socially and nutritionally vulnerable groups, and facilitate an equitable access to resources through appropriate policies, plans and programmes (efforts to protect fits in box 5.2, and to facilitate in 5.3 in Table 1). Even if current programmes hinder outright starvation and cover large parts of the population, they are not likely to bring the Kolla out of poverty, as salaries and the unemployment benefit are too low to allow for more than bare survival. The income opportunities are poorly adapted to Kolla livelihoods, which tend to be based in husbandry and agriculture. They may also undermine their ability to cope by using several sources of income and diverse food acquisition strategies. A culturally sensitive approach would take into account Argentina’s human rights obligations under article 11 of the ICESCR, article 27 of the ICCPR and the ILO 169. The Kolla should be allowed enough land and resources to make a living in a dignified way, and should be consulted on how to adapt services and programmes to their needs.As already noted, large parts of the population in Jujuy receive food aid. The federal and provincial governments are in charge of its distribution, but the actual delivery is partly ‘outsourced’ to NGOs, labour unions etc. The federal government has a long history of providing aid and social services, and shows political will to spend large amounts of money on these programmes. However, criticism is raised by various parties. Some fear that families become disrupted when children receive a large part of their meals in community kitchens and Copas de Leche outside their home. Schoolteachers are frustrated because the funds for school meals are too low (some subsidise the allowances from their own meagre salaries) and because teaching time is spent buying ingredients, cooking and serving meals. Food assistance programmes are also claimed to be plagued with corruption. Stories abound about NGOs and others making aid delivery a source of illicit income by falsifying receipts of expenditures and giving false information on the numbers of beneficiaries they serve. Many believe that the government aid is a personal favour to supporters of the political party in power; a ‘favour’ that the beneficiaries are expected to return at election time. It is therefore speculated that politicians prefer to uphold these ties of dependency rather than providing the poor with sufficient land, job opportunities and decent salaries.The situation is unfortunate. Rather than facilitating self-reliance, the federal and local governments are likely to further disempower poor recipients. The dependence on aid undermines their already limited political space, making them less likely to support political parties more in line with their political interests. The right to adequate food among the Inuit of Nunavut and corresponding obligations of the State of CanadaAgain, we shall consider state performance – now by Canada – regarding right to food, guided by the matrix in Table 1. Canada ratified the ICESCR in 1976, and is therefore bound by the obligation to realise the right to adequate food. The right to food is however not referred to in the Canadian Constitution, and the justiciability of economic and social rights is still seriously questioned in Canada. From a human rights perspective the governing constitutional document is the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The Charter has a clear bias towards civil and political rights. The right to life and to non-discrimination has in some instances been interpreted by the Federal Government and by the Supreme Court as indirectly protecting some economic and social rights (Jackman, 1999). However, in the landmark Supreme Court case Gosselin v. Quebec from 2002, on deficiencies in welfare entitlements, a majority of the Court refused to read a protection for economic and social rights into the Charter (CESCR, 2005).During an economic recession in Canada in the early 1980s, community groups established charitable food assistance programmes, including ‘Food Banks’ to improve the food security of the poorest. The national economy has since improved, but the number of Canadians affected by food insecurity is increasing. The volunteer sector is gradually taking on more responsibility for the food insecure, while the government seems to withdraw. The social safety net is going through a gradual deterioration, and the eligibility criteria are becoming more stringent (Riches, 2002). In line with this, addressing food poverty is increasingly understood as a moral obligation of individuals rather than a political or human rights issue (Riches, 2002). This indicates a lack of political will to adhere to international obligations with regard to economic and social human rights, including the right to adequate food.Indigenous, or ‘aboriginal’ peoples, do however enjoy special protection in Canada. Canada ratified the ICCPR in 1976, the CERD in 1970 and the CRC in 1992. While the ILO Convention 169 is not ratified, Section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982 (Rights of the Aboriginal Peoples of Canada) provides constitutionally protected rights to Canada’s aboriginal peoples. The section is under the Constitution of Canada, and follows, as part two, after the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. It creates a framework governing the relationship between the State and the aboriginal peoples through which rights claims to traditional aboriginal entitlements can be resolved. There is no closed list of protected rights. However, Section 35 has been used to protect traditional fishing and hunting rights, as well as right to land and right to enforcement of treaties. There remains a major debate over whether the right to aboriginal self-governance is included within Section 35. Thus far the Supreme Court of Canada has made no ruling on the matter.31The Nunavut Land Claim Agreement is, as a land claims agreement, protected by the Constitution. Nutritional adequacy (Table 1; column 1)The Inuit are known to be more food insecure and have an infant mortality rate 2.2 times higher than other Canadians (MacMillan et al., 1996). In Nunavut in 1996 the life expectancy at birth for males was 68.3 years, as compared with 75.4 in Canada. For women the gap was even larger; 71.3 for Nunavut, 81.2 for Canada (Conference Board of Canada, undated). The life expectancy in Nunavut is therefore comparable with counties like El Salvador, where the life expectancy in the total population is 69.4 years (PAHO, 2002b). The rates of coronary heart disease and diabetes32 are also lower in Nunavut than in the general population,33 but the rate of obesity is more than twice the Canadian average. The chronic diseases related to the nutrition transition are thus likely to unfold in the near future. Thirty-five percent of Inuit women aged 41–60, and 22% of women aged 20-40 were found to be obese (BMI3430). The corresponding prevalence in the Canadian population was 13% and 9% ([INAC, 2002] and [Kuhnlein et al., 2000]). The Canadian National Population Health Survey from 1994 to 1995 reported that 81% of women in Nunavut were physically inactive, and that 59% of the population smoked. Suicide rates were five times the Canadian rate and heavy drinking was three times more frequent than in the Canadian population (Conference Board of Canada, undated).‘Country foods’35 such as caribou, seal, whale, birds, fish, eggs, plants, and berries are important in the Inuit diet. Kuhnlein et al. (2000) found that in several surveyed Inuit communities 8-42% of the energy consumed came from traditional foods, depending on area and season. However, the consumption of store-bought food is increasing, especially among the younger segments of the population ([INAC, 2002] and [Kuhnlein et al., 2000]). Inuit eating country food had higher intakes of vitamin A and E, iron and zinc, consumed less saturated fat, and had a leaner diet than those relying on store-bought food. While increasing levels of low quality store-bought food and low levels of physical activity are associated with obesity and the nutrition transition, the use of country foods comes with a wide range of extra advantages. Hunting, fishing, gathering and processing activities contribute to health and fitness, improved household economies and food security, and the reinforcement and transfer of skills and values based in the Inuit culture to the next generation (Kuhnlein et al., 2000).Traditional foods seldom pass through the market and are therefore invisible in conventional economic analysis. Still the replacement-cost value of country food harvested in Nunavut is estimated at a minimum of $30 million. This is at least equal to the cost of food imports from Southern Canada (Hicks and White, 2000). Harvesting also provides valuable by-products, particularly for the arts and crafts industry. According to the 2001 Aboriginal Peoples Survey, 70% of Inuit adults in Nunavut between the ages of 15 and 54 frequently or occasionally engage in harvesting of country food, and 73% of the households claim that “about half” or “more than half” of the meat or fish eaten was country food (Statistics Canada, 2001). Safe food and environmental sustainability (Table 1; column 2)In the late 1980’s it was discovered that trans-boundary contaminants like heavy metals and persistent organic pollutants (POP) had found their way into important sources of country food in the Canadian Arctic, possibly threatening the health and food security of the Inuit (Van Oostdam et al., 2005). Since then, the levels of contaminants have been thoroughly assessed. Advice is given with due consideration of the wider cultural and economic significance of such foods ([Kuhnlein et al., 2000], [NCP, 2007] and [Van Oostdam et al., 2005]). The official health message from the Northern Contaminant Program (NCP) under Indian and Northern Affairs Canada is that while contaminants sometimes are present in fish and wildlife at levels that cause concern for human health, the health risks from contaminants are currently outweighed by the benefits of continuing to harvest, prepare and consume traditional/country foods (NCP, 2007). Even if upholding the use of country foods brings a wide range of advantages, caution should still be shown with regard to the frequency of consumption of the most contaminated food items, including some animal parts. This risk-benefit analysis considers the risk of intake against the risk of not harvesting and consuming traditional food to the health and wellbeing of the Inuit ([Kuhnlein et al., 2000] and [NCP, 2007]). Careful monitoring, combined with a broad-based analysis, shows openness to understanding the importance of harvesting in Inuit livelihoods. This approach is in accordance with government obligations under the right to adequate food (under box 2.3 and 3.3 in Table 1).The Canadian Government, the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami36 (ITK, 2006) and the Inuit Circumpolar Conference37 (ICC, 2007), which represent Inuit in the Circumpolar areas, have become strong international actors in addressing contamination in the Arctic. ICC has been present as a member of the Canadian Delegation with regard to the 2001 Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) (UNEP, undated), aiming to reduce and, where possible, eliminate such emissions. ICC continues to play an active role in implementing and monitoring its effectiveness. The ICC is also a vocal advocate for taking action against global warming. The effects of climate change on the Inuit way of life may be severe. Interestingly, ICC in 2005 submitted a ‘Petition to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights seeking relief from violations resulting from global warming caused by acts and omissions of the United States’ (ICC, 2005). It claims that climate change and the US inertia threatens the Inuit hunting way of life, and therefore is a breech of Inuit human rights. The petition provides an important opportunity for the Inter-American human rights system to provide recommendations on this poorly explored and complex, but crucial issue. Cultural acceptability of food (Table 1; column 3)In indigenous communities in the Canadian Arctic, traditional food is less frequently consumed in areas with higher access to marketed foods (Nakano et al., 2005). As in Jujuy, one finds an inter-generational difference in consumption of country food. In Nunavut the consumption of sweet carbonated drinks and other ‘junk foods’ appears to increase, especially among the young ([INAC, 2006] and [Kuhnlein et al., 2000]). Furthermore, among Inuit and other indigenous peoples in the Canadian North, young adults consume less traditional food than those in older age categories (Kuhnlein et al., 2004). Inuit parents and grandparents are concerned that the younger generation tends to prefer pizzas, spaghetti, hamburgers, and fast-foods to meat and fish from ‘the land’. The changes in tastes and values are seen as a result of schooling and the media (Myers et al., 2005), where western images and ideals of ‘the good life’, including food commercials, implicitly and explicitly send messages to Inuit children and youth on how to act and what to eat to succeed in a ‘modern’ youth culture. The often aggressive commercial marketing of unhealthy food products seems to pose a pervasive threat to Inuit nutritional health. Some remark that the media and everyday social interaction breed a sense of shame in the young for their Inuit culture.38 This feeling of shame may be an important factor in cultural change among both Inuit and Kolla youth. Physical access to traditional food through access to land (Table 1; column 5)In contrast to the indigenous peoples in southern Canada the Inuit were left in relative peace until the 1950s. The settlement policy of the 1960s changed the lives and activities of the Inuit. While settled life became easier and more comfortable, it also brought with it serious social and substance abuse problems (Jull, 2000). Public services in areas of health, education, welfare, culture, and community affairs were provided by Canada and the Northwest Territories government services (Jull, 2001). Jobs came with the introduction of government institutions, but influential positions were primarily given to Southerners who rarely spoke Inuktitut (Hicks and White, 2000).All Northern land remained in Federal Crown ownership, and ‘Northern policy’ through INAC (Indian and Northern Affairs Canada) dealt primarily with resource exploitation, but also with military and sovereignty issues. Resource exploitation was carried out with little regard to the habitats for the caribou, sea mammals and other species which remained the main livelihood and food of the Inuit (Jull, 2000). Furthermore, in the near vicinity of the communities, food resources were overexploited. Dogsleds39 and traditional boats/kayaks were not sufficient to travel the increasing distances to the hunting areas and were gradually exchanged for snowmobiles and motor boats, which seriously increased capital needs. Due to income from the fur and sealskin trade this was not considered a problem until 1982, when the trade collapsed due to the European Community boycott of seal skins. The boycott and the negative attitudes towards seal hunting, where hunters were portrayed as brutal slaughterers by the animal right’s movements, also seems to have lead to a decline in the respect for hunters and the reduction in hunting among the youth.40Monetization of the economic relations with high capital input for snowmobiles and consumer goods, coupled with reduced income from hunting and the lack of available jobs, undermined Inuit food security and self-sufficiency (Wenzel, 2000). In the late 1980s the situation worsened, and the Northwest Territories, in collaboration with Inuit organizations, developed a system of economic support for Inuit hunters. This was organized by the Hunters and Trappers Organizations ([INAC, 2002] and [Wenzel, 2000]).Due to easier access to wage labour, hunting tended to become more individualised. Employed Inuit buy better hunting equipment than the professional hunters. Professional hunters complain that it is hard to continue hunting due to financial restraints, and also that land-skills and norms linked to appropriate hunting and harvesting are not always respected (Myers et al., 2005). Since employed Inuit mostly hunt during weekends, they tend to specialize in caribou hunting, as this is less time-consuming than seal hunting. It has been a concern that since Inuit children must go to school, their opportunities to learn hunting and survival skills are reduced. The solution has been to actively preserve Inuit knowledge through ‘land skill camps’ and to involve Inuit elders in the teaching, adapting the curriculum to the Inuit culture and reality41 (Rigby et al., 2000).Under Canadian rule the Inuit became sidelined in decision making regarding their future and their land. However, in the 1970s started more than two decades of negotiation between the Inuit negotiating body, the Tunngavik Federation of Nunavut (TFN), the Government of Northwest Territories (NWT) and the Federal Government of Canada. Since April 1, 1999, the Government of Nunavut gradually assumed responsibilities formerly held by the Government of the Northwest Territories. The transfer will be complete by 2009. Besides having equal rights, the Nunavummiut are also entitled to measures of affirmative action and special rights based in their culture under the NLCA. Nunavut will be bilingual (English and Inuktitut), and the Inuit will gradually take on a larger proportion of the Nunavut government positions. Traditional IQ is to be incorporated into the working of all departments (Canadian Department of Justice, 2004). Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. (NTI) represents the Nunavummiut and functions as a corrective element to the new government. NTI is responsible for the management of all Inuit-owned lands in Nunavut and acts as the advocate of Inuit interests in Nunavut. The organization also provides a number of programmes to Inuit, including support to Inuit development corporations and community economic development organizations, the Elders pension plan, and the harvester support program (NTI, 2007).Through the NLCA and the formation of Nunavut, Canada and the Northwest Territories allowed a large degree of self-determination to the majority Inuit population. Canada has shown political will to respect and recognize Inuit culture, values and opinions, and the Inuit wish to control their own future. The NLCA allows the Inuit a large degree of flexibility in the way government services are designed and gives an opportunity to the Inuit representatives to protect, support and strengthen the dual economy in the North (box 5.1, 5.2 and 5.3 in Table 1). Extensive consultations and hearings with the Nunavut population and communities provide the Nunavut government and the Inuit organizations with a sound basis for democratic policymaking. This will include decisions necessary for food security and nutritional health in the population. However, due to the vast distances in the North travel costs are high. This system of governance is to a certain extent limited by the amount of funding provided by the Federal Government. Social and economic access to food (Table 1; column 5)Sharing is an integral part of Inuit culture, and has probably been the key to their survival in the hostile climate of the high Arctic. While some hunters bring home impressive amounts of food, there are households that do not have a hunter. Harvested food such as meat and fish has always been shared through principles of ‘solidarity-affection’ (ungayak) to friends, guests, and others who need or want meat, and through ‘respect-obedience’ (nalaqtuk) within extended families (Wenzel, 2000). Today when the market is more important to Inuit food security, Inuit who are unable to buy all their food may still find themselves protected from hunger. As many as 96% of Inuit households are found to share country food (Canada, 2001) From before the existence of Nunavut, community freezers have been set up in communities. Hunters place excess meat there for others to access. In many communities the system functions well and is still in existence today.Inuit tend to long for country food when absent from Nunavut. In Montreal Inuit volunteers prepare Inuit country food for Montreal based Inuit once a month. The country food is donated by hunters in Nunavik (Northern Quebec) and Nunavut, and sent to Montreal through Inuit-controlled airlines (Air Inuit and First Air) on a non-revenue basis (Lowi, 2001).According to tradition, food should be shared, not sold, and many still view selling country food as ’unethical‘. Presently this is controversial, but since the conditions around the Inuit economy are changing, the Inuit appear to adapt (Minogue, 2005). Country food stores have been established in many Inuit communities. In the Nunavut capital of Iqaluit frozen country food has been available for the past 25 years. The owner, a non-Inuit, buys directly from hunters, or from Hunter and Trappers’ Organizations. He processes and packages it, meeting federal safety standards. Hunters also advertise country food for sale on the radio.It seems that in Inuit extended families hunting has become one of several specializations. Hunters provide meat and fish, while government and other employees contribute part of their income. Reciprocal arrangements are developed balancing off harvest costs/needs with job expectations and income (Myers et al., 2005).Adapting to ‘modernity’ does however pose new challenges. A study of food security in Nunavik suggests that redistribution of wealth may be less in larger communities, where salaried workers may reinvest their money in marketed production equipment and vehicles. This may represent a hindrance to solidarity and sharing (Chabot, 2004). This also seems to be the case in Nunavut. Many young Inuit leave their closely knit families in the small communities and go to Iqaluit to study or to find work. Due to inexperience in handling their own economy and the demands and opportunities of urban life, some end up in trouble. Iqaluit is said to be the only place in Nunavut where one finds homeless people. Soup kitchens and a food bank have appeared in Iqaluit, organized by Southerners living there. The 280 beneficiaries (in 2004) are the most disadvantaged in Iqaluit, suffering from unemployment, lack of housing, disease and addiction problems (Canadian Food Banks, 2004).From a right to food perspective the government should formulate and execute suitable policies that provide for an equitable distribution of resources and a viable access to food for the most vulnerable (policies to ‘facilitate’ this belongs under box 5.3 in Table 1). Canada lacks a coherent and coordinated approach towards food security (Riches et al., 2004). Social assistance benefits are well below the poverty lines, and about 10% of the Canadian population is considered poor (ibid). In Nunavut as much as 39% of the population is defined as having low income, compared to the Canadian average of 11% (Tanuseputro et al., 2003). In 18 Inuit communities in different regions of the Canadian North, 17–78% of the households claimed that they could not afford to cover their food needs through purchase only (Kuhnlein et al., 2000). According to a study from two Inuit communities over 80% had run out of money for food last month (INAC, 2002).Not only do the Inuit tend to be poorer than the Canadian average. It adds to the problem that food prices are much higher in the North due to transportation costs. Due to their isolation, the communities are only accessible by boat (if located by the sea) or by plane. A family of four in isolated communities in Nunavut would spend $250 to $300 a week to buy foods for a basic nutritious diet, compared to $140 to $160 in Southern Canada (INAC, 2006). Food items with long shelf-life are transported by boat rather than plane and are therefore cheaper than perishable food. Foods with long shelf-life are often convenient, tasty, and attractively packaged, but tend to be the less nutritious. Soft drinks, sweets and other food items that taste good but are of low nutritional quality are liberally marketed in Co-ops all over Nunavut. The easy access is likely to increase their consumption. Thus, Inuit with cash constraints, untrained to evaluate western food items according to energy density and nutrient content and various effects on physical health (obesity, nutrient deficiencies, dental caries), while wishing to please their children, are likely to make unhealthy choices.Policy measures have been taken to make a healthy diet more affordable in Nunavut. The ‘Food Mail Program’ by the federal government (through INAC) subsidise air transport costs on selected perishable foods rich in nutrients, including fruits, vegetables and milk (INAC, 2002). By making such food items more accessible, the federal government facilitates a healthier diet, especially among those relying on store-bought food (box 1.3 and 5.3 in Table 1). Marketed food of high nutritional quality should also be affordable. Policies that improve their affordability are likely to lead to increased demand for such foods. In addition, policies should support traditional food acquisition ([Kuhnlein et al., 2004] and [Nakano et al., 2005]). Policies that discourage the use of unhealthy food may have positive effects. Expanding the economic support to hunters and harvesters will help improve the household economy and increase the nutritional quality of the diet. The Nunavut Government has stated that the traditional sector will be an important part of the future Nunavut economy (Myers, 2000). Currently, the Nunavut Government is considering strategies to improve accessibility to country foods by increasing the distribution of different country foods between communities (Conference Board of Canada, undated). Commercial ventures are now funded that are related to or based in the Inuit culture, such as country food stores, seal-skin tanning, tourist camps, hunting, and Inuit arts and carvings (Myers, 2000).In 1999 Nunavut had an unemployment rate of 21%, or 36% when including those who did not actively seek employment because they knew jobs are not available ([NBS, 1999] and [Conference Board of Canada, xxxx]). Government positions constituted almost half of the Territory’s total employment. However, Canadian statistics categorize Inuit hunters as ‘unemployed’ (Myers et al., 2005), which reveals an inadequate understanding of the Inuit reality and economy. According to the NLCA, Inuit should fill the majority of positions in the Government of Nunavut. However, to date the educational level of most Inuit is not sufficiently advanced to make them qualified for higher government positions (Nunatsiaq News, 2006), and Southern Canadians still fill many key posts. Human rights obligations and their realization Adherence to international standards, and the importance of an enabling environmentBoth Argentina and Canada have ratified the ICESCR and have thus taken on an obligation to realize progressively the right to an adequate standard of living, including adequate food for all. However, court cases in both countries reveal that the obligations of the State with regard to economic and social rights are still disputed.Argentina has ratified the ILO 169, and made indigenous peoples’ special rights part of the Constitution, while Canada has not done so. However, the Canadian Constitution Act provides constitutionally protected rights to Canada’s aboriginal peoples, and the Nunavut Land Claim Agreement testifies to a political will to relate to indigenous peoples claim for self-determination. In practical terms, there is little doubt that indigenous peoples’ special rights are better respected and protected in Canada than in Argentina, even if in Canada the focus tends to be on what would be ’the right thing to do‘, rather than on economic, social, and cultural rights and indigenous peoples’ special rights. It is worrying that Canada was part of the minute minority that voted against the adoption of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples both in 2006 and in 2007. Furthermore, a human rights approach to food is neither referred to nor well known by political actors in Canada. The right to food is however taken up by some NGOs, including the Canadian Food Banks, when arguing for greater involvement of the state towards Canada’s food insecure. As observed by Riches (2002) the government seems to withdraw from its obligation to realise the right to adequate food, and leave the responsibility to the voluntary sector. The voluntary sector does however not have the resources needed to provide food for all who are unable to feed themselves (Canadian Food Banks, 2004).Argentina (both federal Argentina and the government of Jujuy) has started the process of providing land to indigenous communities, but the loyalty to powerful groups hampers the progress. However, the human rights discourse is alive and well in Argentina, which invigorates the public debate. The indigenous organizations are still weak and seem unable to put any sizable pressure on the government, in contrast to the Inuit of Canada and the rest of the circumpolar region. The recent appeal to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights in regard to global warming is a prominent example of how an indigenous group, through political skills and a framework of political support and enabling conditions, may gain visibility and hopefully influence decisions made internationally and nationally.The dual economies of the Kolla and the Inuit have provided them with a certain safeguard against food insecurity and starvation, and may also protect them against chronic disease. So far neither the Inuit nor the Kolla are severely affected by nutrition related chronic diseases. However, their gradual adaptation of a western diet, a more sedentary lifestyle, and their poverty predispose them to obesity and chronic disease. Action should be taken to curb the increasing disease risk. The Kolla may, paradoxically, be protected from chronic disease for the time being because they experience scarcity. Harvesting is still important to the Inuit food security and identity, which improves the quality of the diet. However, obesity is rising in Nunavut, and the activity levels are going down.A lesson learnt from juxtaposing the Kolla and the Inuit is that the nutrition transition and the subsequent rise in chronic disease may reflect failure of the state to respect and protect indigenous peoples’ rights. Dietary changes and inactivity are often the direct result of government policies that infringe on, or fail to protect, indigenous peoples’ territories and livelihoods, which undermine their self-sufficiency and dignity. The dual indigenous economy dwindles, which increases their dependency on the mainstream economy and marketed foods and goods. Discriminatory attitudes in the mainstream population towards expressions of indigenous culture, including food, may also lead to unwillingness among young people to uphold harvesting and food traditions. Positive state action like food aid and improved access to marketed food is likely to increase the access to food energy (calories), but without protecting against a nutritionally poor diet associated with chronic disease. Equal rights and special rightsThe relationship between indigenous peoples and states are double-edged. The state may provide opportunities and services that improve the living standard of indigenous households. However, as previously discussed, mainstream society has tended to flourish at the expense of indigenous peoples’ livelihoods and resources, leading to indigenous poverty, dependency and culture loss. The lack of respect for and protection of indigenous livelihoods is an important reason why indigenous peoples score low on socioeconomic indicators. The observed inequalities warrant government measures of non-discrimination, equality and ‘positive discrimination’. If no measures are taken, this indicates lack of political will to address inequalities, and is in reality an acceptance of existing unjust conditions. Appropriate action by governments would include assessments and analysis of inequalities, be it in regard to poverty, food insecurity, ill-health, high mortality or other socioeconomic indicators, followed by specific policies and action. In Argentina and Canada, socio-economic indicators reveal huge differences between indigenous and non-indigenous. While this seems to be a matter of concern in Canada, Argentina is so far not investigating into ethnic differences.Measures of equal rights and non-discrimination are important tools in ensuring indigenous peoples’ right to an adequate standard of living, including the right to adequate food. However, these rights should be realized within the context of indigenous peoples’ special rights and their right to enjoy their culture. Policies to strengthen national economic growth and cultural unity nationally have historically and also today led to policies that undermine traditional economies and ethnic and indigenous identities. This has been termed ‘ethnocide’ (Stavenhagen, 1990). Whether such policies and processes are intended or unintended, they constitute breaches on indigenous peoples’ rights. All over the world obligatory schooling imposed religious beliefs and language policies denying the use of indigenous languages have obviously undermined indigenous cultures. The intention of the Canadian settlement policy in the Arctic was to improve the living standard among the Inuit. However, the policy was never discussed with the Inuit, and led to societal changes that undermined their livelihoods and self-reliance. As we have seen, social assistance and food aid may be of help to the poorest, but may simultaneously undermine their consumption of traditional foods, and prepare the ground for chronic diseases. Western values like individualism and capitalism may undermine local values like solidarity and sharing and thereby reduce the food and livelihood security of the most vulnerable and increase social and economic inequalities. Policies that respect, protect and facilitate both equal rights and indigenous peoples’ special rights are important ends in themselves, but are also means to other ends. Such policies are likely to lead to improved nutritional status and health, and thereby also reduced health expenditures. They may also improve indigenous self-reliance strengthen their livelihood and food security, and thereby improve their human wellbeing. Suggested actionThis paper suggests that indigenous peoples’ special rights and the right to adequate food, understood within the context of all international human rights, provide a useful framework for laws and policies intended to curb the nutrition transition in indigenous communities. It is also useful in analysing state performance and holding duty-bearers accountable. With regards to economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to adequate food, states undertake “to take steps to the maximum of their available resources, with a view to achieving progressively the full realization of the recognized rights” (see article 2.1 of the ICESCR). Argentina and Canada are States Parties to the ICESCR. They are therefore bound by the obligation to realize the right to adequate food. Human rights provide rather stringent criteria that may be used to hold governments and duty-bearers accountable. The opportunities that this provides have so far been underutilized by, among others, the media, academics, policy makers, public health professionals, and lawyers.States have obligations to implement measures to achieve human rights. They should ratify all relevant international human rights instruments, acknowledge their human rights obligations in national constitutions, laws and policies, and submit periodic reports on their performance to the relevant UN human rights treaty bodies, or committees. These reports provide a basis for meaningful and constructive dialogue between the committees and the states over their performance and their potential for improvement. The dialogue is expected to generate a useful learning process towards governance based in a human rights culture. Useful guidance on how to implement the right to adequate food in the national context is provided, as mentioned, by the General Comment no. 12 on the right to adequate food (CESCR, 1999) and the Voluntary Guidelines on the right to food (FAO, 2004). Thus the tools to help implement the human rights obligations are available.Federal and regional government staff in Argentina and in Canada should be familiar with their obligations. All human rights are, as noted, universal, indivisible, interdependent and interrelated. The right to adequate food should therefore not be considered alone, but in the context of all human rights, including the special rights of indigenous peoples. The cultural rights of indigenous peoples have tended to be ignored, and government policies have often undermined rather than facilitated traditional production systems and indigenous self-sufficiency. A human right-based approach to indigenous peoples’ right to adequate food calls for laws and food security related policies coherent with the right to food and other related human rights, including the special rights of indigenous peoples. Unintended negative consequences of laws and policies may be avoided through processes in which indigenous peoples participate in the design and evaluation of national or regional laws and policies. Because needs and aspirations may vary among indigenous peoples and communities, they could be requested to propose and develop policies particularly adapted to their own circumstances.When the right to adequate food is seen in light of indigenous peoples’ special rights, it emerges that governments should respect, protect and explicitly promote indigenous peoples’ traditional diets and lifestyles, within the context of their right to culture and on the basis of self-determination or participation. Policies and programmes should aim to improve household economies (and thus the economic access to and availability of marketed food of good quality), and also facilitate local initiatives and efforts to maintain and improve the availability and access to traditional foods.It is the inescapable role of governments to control and regulate the actors responsible for the emissions of contaminants. Contamination of food, land and water sources may seriously affect food security by making traditional food unsafe to eat. Better international regulatory frameworks are needed, and those that exist may have to be strengthened. Canada has taken a lead role in strengthening such international frameworks, and has invited Inuit representatives to take part in the international negotiations. This deserves international respect. Policies should also, when needed, restrict the access and availability of unhealthy food. With regard to national policy, the challenge is to strike the right balance between encouraging healthy diets and discourage unhealthy ones, basing the advice in updated scientific evidence, while appreciating the importance of traditional/country food in the Inuit context. This warrants ongoing consultations between researchers, the Inuit and policy makers followed by culturally appropriate policies, campaigns and public health measures. Despite policies, campaigns and public health advice the ultimate decisions with regard to the use of traditional/country food rest with the individual, as these food items tend not to be acquired through the market and legislated therein. The state and the international community may decide to limit the advertising or marketing of unhealthy food towards children, or limiting the time of day when such marketing is allowed; however most traditional food is not advertised, nor does it usually appear in food stores. Even if most Kolla and Inuit may not currently worry about a future rise in chronic disease, their conviction that their traditional diet is healthier than the store-bought diet will help encourage traditional diets and food acquisition methods.The more a policy or programme is adapted to the local circumstances and the priorities of a community, the more likely they are to be supported and succeed within that community. The negative experiences from the Argentinean census in 2001 illustrate the need to involve indigenous organisations in the planning of measures that will affect them. An inclusive and participatory process would have ensured that the identifier questions of the census were acceptable to the indigenous inhabitants, and might have helped build support rather than suspicion in the indigenous population. In Argentina pressure is needed on the Federal Government and on the Province of Jujuy to induce a culture of compliance with international human rights and the Argentinean Constitution. Of particular importance is the need to involve the Kolla and other indigenous peoples in policy discussions, and let their concerns be heard, understood and respected.Argentina and Jujuy have legal frameworks that are conducive to the promotion and protection of indigenous peoples’ rights, but it remains to be seen to what extent this will lead to acceptable results among inhabitants in indigenous communities. By providing large amounts of poor quality food aid to poor people in the North, the Argentinean government may avoid deaths from starvation, but they are also likely to undermine the healthier traditional diet, fuel the already ongoing nutrition transition, and create dependency on the political party in power. Argentina and Jujuy will have to show political will to continue to adapt their laws and policies to the indigenous rights and realities, in collaboration with indigenous partners. If the government makes a better effort to respect, protect and faciliate indigenous cultures and livelihoods, while ensuring that social security and minimum salaries allow an acceptable purchasing power and an adequate standard of living, they could break the dependence on food aid and liberate large amounts of money for initiatives that may improve peoples’ self-reliance and culturally sensitive economic growth in the region.Nunavut is in a good position to pursue a policy respecting indigenous peoples’ rights. This is due to the NLCA and the high degree of influence already enjoyed by the Inuit, within the territorial government. In Nunavut the government has been in existence for only eight years, and it remains to be seen if it will live up to the expectations. The challenges are many. Contamination and global warming may negatively influence the local food security. The continuous increase in living standard and household expenditures call for more sources of income. Social problems abound, and the strong push for ‘westernization’ is a likely reason for societal stress. Nunavut is at a decisive point in its history. The Nunavummiut have wise leadership that have shown both flexibility and strength. The participatory government structure and the strong commitment to ensure a viable Inuit culture in a changing world bear promise for the future. The solutions have to come from within the community. The Nunavummiut and the Nunavut Government now seem well positioned to explore what the right to adequate food would and should mean in their context.There is no doubt that traditional food acquisition and sharing should be supported and encouraged, both among the Inuit and the Kolla. However, good sources of income must also be ensured. These may be based in the traditional or the mainstream economy.To ensure that a development process is non-discriminatory and provides the conditions needed to achieve equality in the enjoyment of rights, data disaggregated with regard to ethnicity, gender, region and other significant characteristics should be collected and analysed at regular intervals. Identifying the characteristics of the nutritionally vulnerable will provide the basis for analyses of the underlying reasons for unjust differences. While such data exists in Canada, Argentina is still not providing disaggregated health and nutrition data, in spite of recurrent encouragement from UN treaty bodies. Doing so would be an important step towards bringing the existing socioeconomic differences to the attention of policy-makers. Information on unjust inequalities is also a useful lobbying tool.Governments are under the obligation to apply laws and policies that counteract discriminatory, racist or simply uninformed attitudes in the mainstream society, and to ensure that the special rights of cultural minorities are ensured both in law and in fact. In addition there is a need to explore further the connection between well-intended policies towards indigenous peoples and chronic disease, and to broaden the understanding of the role that different forms of discrimination play in the westernization of indigenous peoples’ lifestyles, values and food habits.It is interesting to observe that an advanced national policy towards indigenous peoples, and a high degree of self-government, like in Nunavut, are not sufficient to curb the negative effects of westernization. There is a need to further explore ways in which indigenous peoples may reap the benefits associated with being national citizens, including the benefits of a western health care and education system adapted to the Inuit reality and culture. At the same time they should be able to enjoy their right to uphold food habits that reinforce their identity and culture, and apply land use strategies according to their own best interests.The process of clarifying the content of indigenous peoples’ right to adequate food has just started. International and national standards exist that detail and contextualize the responsibility of the State and other actors. The matrix in Table 1 may be useful in exploring what it means to respect, protect and facilitate indigenous peoples’ right to food within their distinct identity and culture. The future is likely to bring clarifying discussions, additional instruments and standards, and more detailed interpretations of already existing human rights norms. This work cannot take place outside the context of meaningful dialogues between indigenous rights-holders and government duty- bearers.

Acknowledgements

We are sincerely grateful for inputs received to this paper from Professor Asbjørn Eide, senior fellow at the Norwegian Centre for Human Rights (NCHR), University of Oslo, Prof. Baord Anders Andreassen at the NCHR; Doctoral Candidate in Law, Sophie Thériault at Université Laval, Québec; and Technical Advisor Stephanie Meakin at the ICC Canada (Inuit Circumpolar Conference) head office.

Corresponding author. Tel.: +47 22851376; fax: +47 22851341; Cell: +47 907 25441.
1Tel.: +47 22851375; fax: +47 22851531.
2Tel.: +1 514 398 7671; fax: +1 514 398 1020.

3‘Indigenous’ is in this context used to mean the descendants of the peoples inhabiting the American continent at the time of arrival of the European settlers.
4Other factors influencing the prevalence of infectious disease are crowdedness and sanitary conditions. Mortality rates relate to the nutrition and health status at the outbreak of disease. These factors may both improve and deteriorate during westernization.
5The Kolla belong to the same people and previously spoke the same language as the Aymara in Bolivia.
6Jujuy is one of the provinces of Argentina, while San Salvador de Jujuy is the Capital of this province. In the following, the term ‘Jujuy’ is used to mean Jujuy Province. Jujuy is situated in the Northwest of Argentina, bordering to Chile and Bolivia. The province covers 53.219 Km2. It includes subtropical areas, fertile valleys and mountainous regions which form part of the Andes.
7The common protest was formulated in the ‘Denuncia de los Pueblos Indigenas, Contra la Discriminación del INDEC’.
8Inuit and non-Inuit inhabitants have the same right to vote in Nunavut.
9As Nunavut is a territory, Nunavut’s head of State is a Commissioner appointed by the federal Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development. The Commissioner’s role is however symbolic.
10The Conference Board of Canada, undated. p. 82: ‘In the 1999–2000 fiscal year, the entire budget of the Government of Nunavut was $619 million, of which $574 million came from the federal government. Nevertheless, this system is sustainable over the long term since federal funding is not expected to disappear’.
11In Jujuy, the main author visited the Capital San Salvador de Jujuy and the smaller communities Maimara and Susques. In Nunavut the capital Iqualuit, and Pangnirtung, a smaller community, were visited.
12Sigrun Henjum, a master student under the project, carried out dietary surveys in a shantytown of the capital San Salvador de Jujuy, in the semi-rural community Maimara and in the rural community of Susques in Jujuy.
13Affirmative action is based on the recognition that even if national laws provide for non-discrimination and equal opportunities, de facto equality of rights may be hampered by structural or social barriers. Affirmative action helps diminish or eliminate conditions which cause or help perpetuate discrimination, and may involve preferential treatment of a certain group for a specific time ([Sub-Commission, 2000] and [Eide, 2001]). Affirmative action is time-restricted and cannot be continued after the purpose has been achieved, since continued preference for members of the group would then constitute unjustified discrimination and might lead to group conflicts ([Sub-Commission, 1993] and [Sub-Commission, 2000]).
14Formerly the UN Human Rights Commission.
15An initiative led by Namibia, co-sponsored by a number of African countries, resulted in an amended draft that would have the Assembly decide “to defer consideration and action on the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples to allow time for further consultations thereon”. Furthermore, the Assembly would also decide “to conclude consideration of the Declaration before the end of its sixty-first session”. This was adopted.
16General Comments (GC) are interpretations given by the Committees on the content of human rights provisions. In the practice of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) these are referred to as “general recommendations”. For further information see i.e. http://www.ohchr.org/english/bodies/cescr/index.htm.
17The nomenclature of obligations, duties and responsibility is somewhat ‘floating’, but it is true to say that for any right someone has a duty, thus one talks about rights-holders and duty-bearers. Duties of states become legal obligations for those states that have committed themselves through ratifying a relevant binding convention, while for non-state actors without such formal commitment one often talks about a ‘moral duty’ or a ‘responsibility’.
18For a further overview, see Eide and Kracht, 2005 Eide, W.B., Kracht, U., 2005. The Right to Adequate Food in Human Rights Instruments. In: Eide, W.B., Kracht, U. (Eds.), Food and Human Rights in Development, vol. 1, Legal and Institutional Dimensions and Selected Topics. Intersentia, Antwerpen-Oxford.Eide and Kracht (2005).
19Formerly the UN Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities.
20Mr. Jean Ziegler was appointed to this function by the UN Commission on Human Rights in 2000 and reappointed for another 3 years period in 2003.
21According to paragraph 17 of the CG 12 ‘Violations of the Covenant occur when a State fails to ensure the satisfaction of, at the very least, the minimum essential level required to be free from hunger. In determining which actions or omissions amount to a violation of the right to food, it is important to distinguish the inability from the unwillingness of a State party to comply’.
22In article 75 (22) of the Argentinean Constitution.
23After the 1970s, a wave of democratization swept over Latin America. As a consequence many States reformed their national constitutions. These Constitutional reforms marked an attempt to clear away the legacy left by the “indigenismo”, a hemisphere-wide policy of which one aim was to promote economic and social development in order to overcome the “centuries-long backwardness” of indigenous communities and assimilate them into the Nation-State model (Stavenhagen, 1999). Under this policy, indigenous communities were assigned State land, but were given the same legal status as minors, and both the land and the indigenous were administered by the government (Cancino, 2005).
24Chapter IV, article 75(17): To recognize the ethnic and cultural pre-existence of indigenous peoples of Argentina. To guarantee respect for the identity and the right to bilingual and intercultural education; to recognize the legal capacity of their communities, and the community possession and ownership of the lands they traditionally occupy; and to regulate the granting of other lands adequate and sufficient for human development; none of them shall be sold, transmitted or subject to liens or attachments. To guarantee their participation in issues related to their natural resources and in other interests affecting them. The provinces may jointly exercise these powers.
25Chronic malnutrition, or low height for age (stunting) is defined as height for age more than 2 standard deviation (SD) below the median value of the reference (healthy) population.
26Kuhnlein H., Personal communication. The term is used by to mean culture loss, as opposed to the term acculturation.
27In Jujuy some restaurants went as far as refusing to accept Kolla costumers. In spite of negative attitudes and open racism towards the Kolla a systematic search through the newspaper archive in the library in San Salvador de Jujuy revealed a total lack of mention of discrimination against Kolla. Discrimination against women, physically disabled, and against Jews were however recurrent issues.
28The Spanish colonizers arriving in Jujuy were looking for fertile land and farm labour. An undocumented number of the “Indians” were killed. Others were put to work on haciendas and in mines, subject to the “Indian tax” and forced labour ([Lamas, 2003] and [Stavenhagen, 1988]). Many Kolla today live in the cold and arid Andes region, 3000–6000m over sea level.
29According to the Lhaka Honaht (“Our Land”) Association of Communities of Salta Province the Provincial and Federal governments built an international bridge through territories the communities vindicate, cutting hunting and gathering areas. The communities were never consulted.
30In the mainly indigenous administrative units the number of pupils who do not finish 9th grade is at times more than 90%.
31The provision provides that: 35. (1) The existing aboriginal and treaty rights of the aboriginal peoples of Canada are hereby recognized and affirmed. (2) In this Act, “aboriginal peoples of Canada” includes the Indian, Inuit and Métis peoples of Canada. (3) For greater certainty, in subsection (1) “treaty rights” includes rights that now exist by way of land claims agreements or may be so acquired. (4) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, the aboriginal and treaty rights referred to in subsection (1) are guaranteed equally to male and female persons.
32The prevalence of diabetes is only 1.9% in the Inuit compared to 4.2 in Canada.
33In Nunavut hypertension rates are lower than in Canada (6.2% compared to 13% in Canada) (Conference Board of Canada, undated). Even if the mortality from stroke is higher among the Inuit than among other western populations, the total burden of CHD is lower (Bjerregaard et al., 2003).
34Body Mass Index (BMI) is a simple index of weight-for-height that is commonly used to classify underweight, overweight and obesity in adults. It is defined as the weight in kilograms divided by the square of the height in meters (kg/m2). For example, an adult who weighs 70kg and whose height is 1.75m. will have a BMI of 22.9.
35The term for food harvested in the surrounding natural environment.
36The national Inuit organization in Canada.
37The Inuit Circumpolar Conference (ICC) is the international organization representing approximately 150,000 Inuit living in the Arctic regions of Alaska, Canada, Greenland and Chukotka, Russia (ICC, 2007).
38In the sociological literature, shame emphasizes the need to be accepted by others, and stems from a feeling of being judged by someone with whom one identifies (Sayers, 2004).
39A sled pulled by a team of dogs, which has been a traditional means of transportation for Inuit.
40Commented by Stephanie Meakin, at the Inuit Circumpolar Conference (ICC) Canada head office.
41The pupils for instance learn about Inuit history, the physics of how a sled works, and the organic chemistry of meat curing.