Sovereign Dineh Nation (SDN) ______________________________ Media Release For further information please contact Pamela Kraft (212) 564-3329 or Marsha Monestersky (718) 349-1841 January 27, 1998 On February 3, 1998 Mr. Abdelfattah Amor, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Religious Intolerance, of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, will meet with traditional Dineh (Navajo) in Black Mesa, Arizona to investigate charges of human rights violations by the United States government. If the traditional Dineh (Navajo) people in Black Mesa, Arizona, are forced to leave their lands as mandated by a recent relocation law, they will no longer be able to practice their religion. In an attempt to get the Relocation laws (P.L. 93-531 and P.L. 104-301) repealed so they can stay on their land, members of the Dineh Nation hope to have the United Nations cite the U.S. for violations of International Human Rights Law. The United Nations Human Rights Commission Representative will visit the Navajo Reservation to hear testimony on human rights violations against traditional Dineh and Hopi people. The Dineh practice a land-based, site-specific religion. They want to be protected as Living Treasures, preserving their right to practice their traditional ways on their land. Mr. Abdelfattah Amor, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Religious Intolerance, will conduct an on-site visit in Black Mesa. This is the first time the U.S. will be formally investigated by the UN for violations of the right to freedom of religion or belief. The Dineh filed a complaint with the United Nations Human Rights Commission in 1997 charging the US government with human rights violations. The Dineh suffer from the consequences of US governmental laws that have legalized the denial of access to water, livestock confiscation, the ability to gather firewood to heat their homes in winter and any housing improvement - even in cases of life threatening illnesses. British-owned Peabody Coal Company (PCC), the world’s largest privately-owned coal company, operates the Black Mesa/Kayenta strip mine in the heart of Black Mesa. Over 4,000 burial and sacred sites have been destroyed as a result of strip mining. There is no protection given to Dineh burial grounds and sacred sites. Their religion which is land-based and site specific represents the foundation of their lives. The Dineh continue to this day to face forced relocation, eviction, and human rights violations. Since 1974, over 12,000 Dineh have been relocated from their ancestral land, 3,000 remain, sheep herding and weaving rugs. They endure because of their sacred ties to their traditional land - their Jerusalem, their Mecca. Mr. Amor’s mandate “urges states to exert their utmost efforts, in accordance with their national legislation and in conformity with international human rights standards, to ensure that religious places, sites and shrines are fully respected and protected.” The Dineh are heartened by the support of over 250 Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs), many affiliated with the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) of the UN, representing some one billion individuals worldwide. An inter-faith coalition of NGOs will be in Black Mesa February 2-4, 1998 at the invitation of the Dineh to witness the historic meeting. They include the United Methodist Church, the World Council of Churches, National Council of Churches, NGO Decade Committee of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, International Indian Treaty Council, the Human Rights Caucus, the Values Caucus, the Peace Caucus and others. Reverend Dr. Thom White Wolf Fassett, General Secretary of the General Board of Church and Society of The United Methodist Church, has been chosen by the NGOs to lead the delegation. Mr. Amor will be accompanied by a Human Rights officer from the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. His role is to examine incidents and governmental action in all parts of the world inconsistent with the provision of the Declaration on the elimination of All Forms of Intolerance based on Religion or Belief and to recommend remedial measures for such situations. -end- Mr Amor's visit is front page news on UN Web page Office of the High Commissioner's Web Page http://www.unhchr.ch/ Mr. Amor's press release http://www.unhchr.ch/news/dpipress4.htm Attachment Converted: "d:\eudora98\attach\UNMEDIA.DOC"