The United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) ruled on March 10 that the U.S. government’s actions towards the Western Shoshone violated the UN’s international anti-discrimination policy, the Associated Press reports. The ruling marks the first decision by a UN Committee against the United States’ federal Indian law and policy. In 1979, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the federal government had "trusteeship" over Western Shoshone land. Since then, the United States has denied Western Shoshone fair access to their land, using it for such purposes as military testing and nuclear waste disposal. The UN called on the United States to initiate a dialogue with Western Shoshone people, halt plans to privatize ancestral land, and cease limiting the use of their lands for fishing, hunting, grazing and other traditional activities. The Committee has set a July 15, 2006 deadline for the U.S. to provide information on the actions taken toward these resolutions.
