Transmitting heritage of indigenous peoples

1. Indigenous peoples' heritage should ordinarily be learned only by the means customarily employed by its traditional owners for teaching the specific knowledge concerned. Each indigenous people's rules and practices for the transmission of heritage and sharing of its use must be recognized generally in the national legal system. 2. In the event of a dispute over the custody or use of any element of an indigenous people's heritage, judicial and administrative bodies should be guided by the advice of indigenous elders who are recognized by the indigenous communities or peoples concerned as having specific knowledge of traditional laws. 3. Governments, international organizations and private institutions should support the development of educational, research and training centres which are controlled by indigenous communities, and strengthen these communities' capacity to document, protect, teach and apply all aspects of their heritage. 4. Governments, international organizations and private institutions should support the development of regional and global networks for the exchange of information and experience among indigenous peoples in the fields of science, culture, education and the arts. This may include electronic networks where feasible and appropriate. 5. Governments, with international cooperation, should provide the necessary financial resources and institutional support to ensure that every indigenous child has the opportunity to achieve both fluency and literacy in his/her own traditional language.