Countries that do not recognise indigenous peoples under international law

France
Refuses to recognise any indigenous groups, even though it governs overseas territories with Kanaks (New Caledonia), Polynesians, etc.
Position: “all citizens are French, no distinctions” (Jacobin universalism).
Sources:
https://minorityrights.org/minorities/kanaks/
https://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/france-no-indigenous-people-here

China
Denies having “indigenous peoples.”
Instead, recognises 56 ethnic groups, all labelled equal “nationalities.”
Tibetans, Uyghurs, Mongols, etc. = minorities, but not indigenous, so no UN indigenous protections.
Sources:
https://iwgia.org/en/china.html
https://www.un.org/esa/socdev/unpfii/documents/workshop_data_background.doc

Turkey
Stance: no “indigenous,” only “Turkish citizens.”
Kurds, Armenians, Assyrians etc. = treated as minorities, not indigenous.
Officially blocks UNDRIP frameworks inside Turkey.
Sources:
https://minorityrights.org/country/turkey/
https://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/universal-periodic-review-turkey

Bangladesh
Denies that Jumma peoples (Chittagong Hill Tracts) are indigenous.
Labels them “small ethnic groups” instead.
Refuses to apply UN indigenous definitions.
Sources:
https://iwgia.org/en/bangladesh.html
https://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/bangladesh-indigenous-peoples-denied-identity

UK
Explicitly claims no indigenous peoples exist in the British Isles.
Refuses to ratify ILO 169 (key indigenous rights convention).
Official UN documents confirm the UK’s rejection.
Sources:
https://www.ohchr.org/en/indigenous-peoples
https://www.ilo.org/dyn/normlex/en/f?p=1000:11300:0::NO:11300:P11300_INSTRUMENT_ID:312314

Countries that redefine or dilute “indigenous”

Russia
Recognises only “Indigenous small-numbered peoples of the North” (tiny Arctic groups under 50k people).
Excludes Tatars, Bashkirs, Chechens etc. from indigenous status.
Token recognition = culture/hunting rights, not land sovereignty.
Sources:
https://www.un.org/development/desa/indigenouspeoples/wp-content/uploads/sites/19/2019/11/Russian-Federation.pdf
https://iwgia.org/en/russia.html

USA
Recognises 574 federally recognised tribes.
Tribes are treated as “domestic dependent nations” with sovereignty but limited land control.
Federal recognition = access to funding, legal recognition, treaties.
Sources:
https://www.bia.gov/federally-recognized-tribes
https://www.ncai.org/about-tribes

Canada
Recognises First Nations, Inuit, Métis under Section 35 of the 1982 Constitution.
Formally endorses UNDRIP, but implementation inconsistent (e.g. Wet’suwet’en pipeline dispute).
Unlike UK/France/Turkey, Canada at least legally acknowledges indigenous status.
Sources:
https://www.rcaanc-cirnac.gc.ca/eng/1100100013785/1601313942155
https://www.un.org/development/desa/indigenouspeoples/declarations/implementation-of-undrip/canada.html

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Pub: 16 Aug 2025 09:33 UTC

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