UN to investigate plight of US Native Americans
The UN is to conduct an investigation into the plight of US Native Americans, the first such mission in its history. A UN statement said:
"This will be the first mission to the US by an independent expert designated by the UN human rights council to report on the rights of the indigenous peoples."
The human rights inquiry led by James Anaya, the UN special rapporteur on indigenous peoples, is scheduled to begin on Monday.
Many of the country's estimated 2.7 million Native Americans live in federally recognised tribal areas which are plagued with unemployment, alcoholism, high suicide rates, incest and other social problems.
The UN mission is potentially contentious, with some US conservatives likely to object to international interference in domestic matters. Since being appointed as rapporteur in 2008, Anaya has focused on natives of Central and South America.
The US signed up in 2010 to the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which establishes minimum basic rights for indigenous people globally.