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Tetuwan Oyate
Teton Sioux Nation Treaty Council
PO Box 2003, Rapid City, SD 57709
Feb.4, 2010
PRESS RELEASE
"UN Advocate for Great Sioux Nation Passes Away"
"Professor's Death a Great Loss for the Great Sioux Nation"
One of the greatest champions at the United Nations for Indigenous Peoples,
and especially for the Great Sioux Nation, was Professor Dr. Miguel Alfonso
Martinez who taught International Law at the University of Havana, Cuba.
Professor Martinez passed away at 1 p.m. on Monday February 1, 2010.
Professor Martinez spent 10 years of his life working on a "Study on
Treaties, Agreements and other Constructive Arrangements between States and
Indigenous Populations" as a Special Rapporteur and member of the United
Nations' Sub-Commission on the Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of
Minorities. He traveled to South Dakota in 1994 and 1995 to meet with many
elders of the Great Sioux Nation to learn their understanding of the Fort
Laramie Treaty of 1868.
In the summer of 1997, during the Sub-Commission meeting in Geneva,
Switzerland, the late Chief Garfield Grass Rope stated, "Professor Martinez's
report is critical to our survival. It seems sad that the existence of a
race of people may hang on a report, but without international intervention
on our behalf we will soon be overrun by the invader. For this reason, we
hope that Professor Martinez's report will be given the highest priority."
On June 22, 1999 , the Treaty Study was appproved by the United Nations
Commission on Human Rights confirming that the Fort Laramie Treaty was an
international agreement. With that approval, the UN also approved the
recommendations the Study contained. "It was a great contribution to the
rights of our Peoples. The work is a milestone in the UN system. In total,
he spent many years in the UN system working for the rights of all peoples.
It is a great loss," said Dr. Sharon Venne, International Law Professor,
Yukon, Canada.
Representatives from the Teton Sioux Nation Treaty Council worked with
Professor Martinez for many years at the United Nations in Geneva. He was
born May 16, 1935, in Havana, Cuba, and was elected to the UN Sub-Commission
on the Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities in 1984.
His death is a great loss to the people of the Great Sioux Nation.
For more information contact Charmaine White Face, Spokesperson, Teton
Sioux Nation Treaty Council, at 605-343-5387, or via email at
bhdefenders@msn.com
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