CONCRETE AND COMPARATIVE RESEARCH ON REALIZATION OF RIGHTS OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLE

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This study originally purported to investigate political and legal characteristics of countries who have long tradition and practices concerning indigenous peoples in order to explore the possibility to realize the rights of the Ainu, the indigenous people of northern Japan. The study dealt, for example, with Native American's land claim movements, the indigenous rights provision of the Canada's 1982 Constitution, the Mabo decision of the High Court of Australia.During the research, however, the Japanese government began to prepare a new legislation for the Ainu. Considering the importance of the new law, the investigator decided to include the examination of the governmental proposal into the study. In addition, Sapporo District Court's decision concerning "Nibutani Dam" in March 1997 provided significant material to the study.As a result of the study, the investigator gained insights including ;Although the Ainu New Law is often criticized for want of provisions recognizing indigenous rights of the Ainu, it is not unreasonable for Japan who lacks experience to deal with indigenous peoples to begin by restoring Ainu's traditional culture which is the source of the people's pride."Nibutani Dam" decision employed the acknowledgment of the Ainu as indigenous people as a factor that makes the Government's obligation to give consideration to their cultural rights stronger than for a non-indigenous minority group. This approach provides persuasive argument for recognizing apecial constitutional and lagal rights of the indigenous people in Japan.