Scope and Use

This page is designed for journalists, researchers, and civil society partners who need a clear, internationally legible description of the legal standards referenced by SMDP. When quoting SMDP’s positions, use the Party Charter and relevant Statements. This page explains the framework and terminology used in SMDP’s advocacy.

Why SMDP Uses an International Law Framework

SMDP expresses its objectives in a rights-based, internationally legible form to support peaceful, lawful, and democratic participation. This approach emphasizes human dignity, cultural survival, and non-discrimination, and provides a shared vocabulary for dialogue with journalists, researchers, civil society, and international institutions.

SMDP’s priority concerns include protection of indigenous language and cultural continuity, recognition of indigenous collective rights relating to land, grasslands, and natural resources, and prevention of forced or systemic assimilation that threatens cultural survival.

Key Instruments and Standards (Structured)

This section lists widely recognized international instruments and standards relevant to indigenous rights, human rights, and democratic participation. SMDP references these standards as principles and terminology for rights-based advocacy.

United Nations Indigenous Rights Standards (UNDRIP)

SMDP treats UNDRIP as a core articulation of indigenous peoples’ rights and a primary vocabulary for international advocacy. In SMDP usage, UNDRIP supports (1) cultural and linguistic survival, (2) education and identity, (3) participation and representation, and (4) land, resources, and community consent.

• Identity, culture, and community life: protection of indigenous identity, cultural institutions, and ways of life.
• Language and education: rights to revitalize, use, transmit, and educate through indigenous languages.
• Participation: meaningful participation in decisions affecting indigenous communities and their future.
• Land and resources: recognition of indigenous peoples’ relationships to ancestral lands and natural resources.
• Consent and consultation: standards emphasizing meaningful consultation and community consent for decisions affecting indigenous peoples.

Language, Education, and Cultural Rights

SMDP frames language as a central foundation of cultural survival and intergenerational continuity. In this framework, language rights include the right to learn, use, and transmit language publicly and privately, and to sustain cultural life through indigenous-led educational and cultural initiatives.

• Language as cultural survival: erosion of language is treated as a direct threat to cultural continuity and dignity.
• Education and transmission: standards supporting education that enables indigenous language transmission and cultural knowledge.
• Cultural life: protection of cultural expression, cultural institutions, and community-led cultural preservation.

Participation, Expression, and Non-Discrimination

SMDP’s framework emphasizes peaceful democratic participation and universal non-discrimination. This includes freedom of expression and association, the right to participate in public affairs, equality before the law, and rejection of hatred, supremacy claims, and exclusionary politics.

• Peaceful participation: political change must be pursued through non-violent, lawful, democratic processes.
• Freedom of expression and association: protection for civil society, journalism, research, and political participation.
• Non-discrimination and equality: rights-based advocacy without racism, hatred, or exclusionary ideology.

Land, Resources, Environment, and Community Consent

SMDP uses internationally recognized standards that emphasize the collective relationship between indigenous peoples and their ancestral lands, grasslands, and resources. In SMDP usage, sustainable stewardship and meaningful community participation are essential to cultural survival and long-term stability.

• Collective land and resource rights: community-based stewardship and recognition of ancestral relationships to land and resources.
• Environmental integrity: opposition to ecological degradation that undermines community life and future generations.
• Consultation and consent: standards supporting meaningful consultation and community consent in decisions affecting indigenous communities.
• Responsible governance: integrating traditional ecological knowledge with transparent, long-term stewardship.

Core Principles (SMDP Usage)

• Human dignity: rights-based advocacy grounded in universal dignity and equality.
• Language as cultural survival: indigenous language is the core of intergenerational continuity.
• Collective rights: certain rights—especially relating to language, culture, and land—are collective rights held by communities.
• Non-discrimination: rejection of hatred, supremacy claims, and exclusionary politics.
• Peaceful participation: non-violent, lawful, democratic methods only.
• Stewardship: sustainable land and resource governance integrating community knowledge and responsibility.
• Process over predetermined outcomes: support for inclusive dialogue and democratic processes without imposing a single final political status.

Key Terms (How SMDP Uses Them)

• Indigenous peoples / indigenous community: a rights-based category emphasizing distinct identity, cultural continuity, and collective rights.
• Self-determination: meaningful participation in decisions affecting political, cultural, social, and economic life. It does not automatically imply secession.
• Forced or systemic assimilation: policies or practices that suppress language use, disrupt cultural transmission, or structurally marginalize indigenous identity in education and public life.
• Collective land and resource rights: community rights to maintain relationships to ancestral lands and resources and to participate meaningfully in decisions affecting them.
• Community consent: meaningful consultation and community agreement in decisions affecting indigenous communities, consistent with internationally recognized standards.

Quote-Ready Standard Paragraphs (SMDP Reference Text)

The paragraphs below are safe-to-quote summaries of SMDP’s reference framework. For dated positions, cite the relevant Statements page. For constitutional commitments, cite the Party Charter.

• Non-violence and democratic process: SMDP pursues its objectives exclusively through non-violent, lawful, and democratic participation. SMDP rejects armed struggle, coercion, and extra-legal political action. Durable political solutions require transparent democratic procedures, independent institutions, and protection of civic space for journalism, research, and civil society.
• Language and cultural survival: SMDP treats indigenous language as a core foundation of cultural survival and intergenerational continuity. Policies or practices that suppress public language use, disrupt language transmission in education, or marginalize indigenous identity are understood as forms of forced or systemic assimilation that threaten cultural continuity and dignity.
• Indigenous rights and international standards: SMDP uses internationally recognized human rights and indigenous rights standards—especially UN indigenous rights terminology—to communicate in an internationally legible form with journalists, researchers, and institutions. These standards are referenced as principles and shared vocabulary for rights-based advocacy, not as a substitute for official statements.
• Land, grasslands, resources, and stewardship: SMDP emphasizes the collective relationship between indigenous communities and ancestral land, grasslands, and natural resources. SMDP supports sustainable, community-based stewardship and meaningful participation in decisions affecting indigenous communities, consistent with internationally recognized standards regarding consultation and community consent.
• Non-discrimination and pluralism: SMDP rejects hatred, racism, supremacy claims, and exclusionary politics. SMDP’s advocacy is grounded in universal human dignity, equality before the law, and non-discrimination, and supports pluralism, coexistence, and peaceful dialogue.

Citation Guidance

• For the Party’s constitutional commitments, cite: https://smdp-democracy.org/charter.html
• For official, dated positions, cite the relevant statement page under /statements/.
• For safe-to-quote background and media guidance, cite: https://smdp-democracy.org/media.html
• When referencing this framework page itself, cite the permanent canonical URL below.