Indigenous Peoples & International Law

 

Criminology 429/ First Nations Studies 429

 

Spring 2011


[This page was revised last on 05 April 2011]

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Date

Topic/Readings to Prepare

07 January

* Course Syllabus 

14 January

* Two key Papal Bulls: Romanus Pontifex (1455) and the Inter Caetera (1493)

* The Spanish Requerimiento (1510)
* Bartolome de Las Casas: Brief Account of the Devastation of the Indies (1542)

* Sharon Venne (text): Read Doctrine of Discovery (pp.2-10)

* Film: The Mission (viewed in class)

* PowerPoint slides for 14 January: From Papal Bulls to Valladolid

21 January

* Francisco de Vitoria: On the Indians Lately Discovered (1532). [An overview of de Vitoria's De Indis et De Ivre Belli Relectiones]

* PowerPoint slides for 21 January: de Vitoria

28 January

* Hugo Grotius: On the Law of War and Peace (1625)

* The Treaty of Westphalia (1648) [NB: The treaty itself is a long and complex document that is a challenge to interpret (and don't feel you have to read the whole thing); more important is the significance of the treaty, which is summarized well enough for our purposes at the Wikipedia site]

* Thomas Hobbes: The Leviathan (1651)

* Emmerich de Vattel: The Law of Nations, or the Principles of Natural Law (1758)

* Book 1, Chapter 01: Of Nations or Sovereign States

* Book 1, Chapter 07: Of the Cultivation of the Soil

* Book 1, Chapter 16: Of the Protection Sought by a Nation, and its Voluntary Submission to a Foreign Power

* Book 1, Chapter 18: Of the Establishment of a Nation in a Country

* PowerPoint slides for 28 January: From Grotius to de Vattel

04 February

* The Royal Proclamation (1763)

* John Borrows: Wampum at Niagara: The Royal Proclamation, Canadian Legal History, and Self-Government (optional)

* The first of the Marshall Decisions:

 * Johnson v M'Intosh (1823)

* Film: Black Robe (to be viewed in class)

11 February

* The second and third of the Marshall Decisions (read one): 

* Cherokee Nation v State of Georgia (1831)

* Worcester v Georgia (1832)        

* Sharon Venne (text): Read Sources of International Law, Secondary Sources, Conclusions (pp.10-27)

18 February

* No class because of SFU Spring Reading Break

25 February

* International Court Decisions in the era of positivist law:

         - Island of Palmas (1928) (read this one)
         - Legal Status of Eastern Greenland (1933)
(optional)

* International Institutions of the day (League of Nations):

         - The Redman's Appeal for Justice (1923) (read this one)

         - Chief Deskaheh tells why he is over here again (1923) (optional).

* PowerPoint slides for 25 February: Positivist Law

04 March

* ILO Conventions #107 (1957) and #169 (1989)

* UN Resolutions 1514 and 1541 (both 1960)

* Sharon Venne (text): Read Modern International Organizations (pp.29-54) and Indigenous Peoples and Minorities in International Law (pp.68-96) and Key Provisions of the "Draft Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples" (pp.107-134)

* United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (2007)

* Mid-term take-home assignment due 11 March

* PowerPoint slides for 02 March: Rights-Based Era

March 11

Class Presentations:

* Stacia: The Taino (Puerto Rico)

* Lei: Indigenous Peoples in Taiwan

* Catherine: The Métis (Canada)

March 18

Class Presentations:

* Sandy: The Nago (India)

* Mike: The Cree (Canada)

* Sandy: Indigenous Peoples in Mongolia

* Amie: Aborigines (Australia)

* Sinai: The Ainu (Japan)

March 25

Class Presentations:

* Bev: The Squamish (Canada)

* David: Indigenous People of Tibet

* Dana-Lee: The Cherokee (USA)

* Janelle: The Nisga’a (Canada)

* Manvir: The Zulu (South Africa)

April 1

Class Presentations:

* Raman: The Kalash (Pakistan)

* Stephanie: The Amhara (Ethiopia)

* Sharon: The Maya (Guatemala)

* Pooya: The Yakima (USA)

* Bruce: The Tlingit (USA)

08 April

Taking Stock: Indigenous Peoples and Contemporary International Situations, Institutions, and Aspirations

11 April

Term project essays due. Please submit electronically according to these instructions.

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