Report of the National Inquiry into the Land Rights of Indigenous Peoples 39 traditionally owned, occupied, used, or acquired. Article 26(3) requires that States provide ‘legal recognition and protection’ for indigenous lands and that ‘[s]uch recognition shall be conducted with due respect to the customs, traditions and land tenure systems of’ indigenous peoples. Article 27 requires States, in cooperation with indigenous peoples, to establish and implement ‘a fair, independent, open and transparent process’ to recognize and adjudicate indigenous rights to lands and resources traditionally owned, occupied, or used. This process must provide ‘due recognition to indigenous peoples’ laws, traditions, customs and land tenure systems’. 4.17 Article 28(1) secures the right to remedies in the event of the confiscation, occupation, use, or damage to the traditional lands of indigenous people without their free, prior and informed consent. The available remedies include restitution, but if not available, just, fair and equitable compensation must be paid. Article 28(2) requires that compensation shall be in the form of lands equal in quality, size, and legal status or of monetary compensation. 4.18 Article 32(2) requires States to consult and cooperate in good faith with indigenous people and obtain their free and informed consent before approving projects affecting indigenous lands, ‘particularly in connection with the development, utilization or exploitation of mineral, water or other resources.’ Article 40 ensures the right to prompt resolution of conflicts with States or others and effective remedies for infringements on individual or collective indigenous rights. These decisions must provide ‘due consideration to the customs, traditions, rules and legal systems of the indigenous peoples concerned’. Article 38 requires States to consult and cooperate with indigenous peoples in adopting appropriate measures to achieve the goals of the Declaration. International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) 4.19 The ICCPR is the foundational international human rights instrument elaborating on the civil rights protected under the UN Universal Declaration on Human Rights. The multilateral treaty, which entered into force on 23 March 1976, has been signed or ratified by 152 States.66   4.20 Article 27 of the ICCPR prohibits State parties from denying persons belonging to minority groups, their rights, ‘in community with the other members of their group, to enjoy their own culture, to profess and practise their own religion, or to use their own language.’67 Article 27 rights are distinct from the right to self-determination under Article 1(1) of the ICCPR and supplement the other rights under the ICCPR.68 While Article 27 rights do ‘not prejudice the sovereignty and territorial integrity of a State party’, they may, nonetheless, be ‘closely associated with territory and use of its resources. This may be particularly true of members of indigenous communities constituting a minority.’69 4.21 Positive actions (eg. enactment of legislation) may be necessary to protect Article 27 rights.70 Furthermore, although article 27 rights belong to individuals, their protection may depend upon the minority group’s ability to maintain their culture, language, and religion.71 66 Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, ‘Status of Ratifications of the Principal International Human Rights Treaties’ (2004) <http.unhchr.ch/pdf/report.pdf> at 1 February 2008. 67 ICCPR art 27 68 United Nations Human Rights Committee, General Comment No. 23: The rights of minorities (Art. 27) (1994) 1, 3.1, CCPR/C/21/ Rev.1/Add.5 (‘HRC, General Comment No. 23’). 69 HRC, General Comment No. 23. 70 Ibid 71 Ibid chapter 4_a4.indd 39 7/5/13 6:46 PM