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Realising Indigenous Children’s Rights: Aligning the Principles of Self-Determination and the Best Interests of the Child. The Case of Indigenous Peoples in Canada

Sebastiansdottir Peters, Katla Yr LU (2025) JAMM07 20251
Department of Law
Faculty of Law
Abstract
he historical legacy of colonialism worldwide has created challenges for Indigenous peoples, including racial discrimination and marginalization. This is reflected in, inter alia, the overrepresentation of Indigenous children in child welfare systems, even in countries performing comparably high in human right advancements otherwise. While there may be a broad spectrum of reasons for this issue, this thesis focuses on the problematic dissonance of two human rights principles in their application, the best interests of the child (BIoC) and Indigenous peoples’ right to self-determination. The thesis argues that the BIoC principle has limited Indigenous peoples right to self-determination, because the application and decontextualized... (More)
he historical legacy of colonialism worldwide has created challenges for Indigenous peoples, including racial discrimination and marginalization. This is reflected in, inter alia, the overrepresentation of Indigenous children in child welfare systems, even in countries performing comparably high in human right advancements otherwise. While there may be a broad spectrum of reasons for this issue, this thesis focuses on the problematic dissonance of two human rights principles in their application, the best interests of the child (BIoC) and Indigenous peoples’ right to self-determination. The thesis argues that the BIoC principle has limited Indigenous peoples right to self-determination, because the application and decontextualized interpretation of the BIoC might not reflect the Indigenous communities’ understanding and values. Consequently, the limitations of the right to self-determination have resulted in the BIoC not being applied in a way that truly reflects the Indigenous child’s best interests and needs in their socio-cultural context. The thesis examines how these two principles can be aligned, so that they not only coexist but further enhance each other. (Less)
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author
Sebastiansdottir Peters, Katla Yr LU
supervisor
organization
course
JAMM07 20251
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
language
English
id
9201839
date added to LUP
2025-06-18 11:11:19
date last changed
2025-06-18 11:11:19
@misc{9201839,
  abstract     = {{he historical legacy of colonialism worldwide has created challenges for Indigenous peoples, including racial discrimination and marginalization. This is reflected in, inter alia, the overrepresentation of Indigenous children in child welfare systems, even in countries performing comparably high in human right advancements otherwise. While there may be a broad spectrum of reasons for this issue, this thesis focuses on the problematic dissonance of two human rights principles in their application, the best interests of the child (BIoC) and Indigenous peoples’ right to self-determination. The thesis argues that the BIoC principle has limited Indigenous peoples right to self-determination, because the application and decontextualized interpretation of the BIoC might not reflect the Indigenous communities’ understanding and values. Consequently, the limitations of the right to self-determination have resulted in the BIoC not being applied in a way that truly reflects the Indigenous child’s best interests and needs in their socio-cultural context. The thesis examines how these two principles can be aligned, so that they not only coexist but further enhance each other.}},
  author       = {{Sebastiansdottir Peters, Katla Yr}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Realising Indigenous Children’s Rights: Aligning the Principles of Self-Determination and the Best Interests of the Child. The Case of Indigenous Peoples in Canada}},
  year         = {{2025}},
}