Vatican Repudiates ‘Doctrine of Discovery'
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On Thursday, March 30, 2023, the Vatican issued a statement repudiating the Doctrine of Discovery, a deeply problematic and racist framework used to justify Europe's colonial '‘discovery’' of the ‘'New World.’'
"The Vatican's statement renounces the mindset of cultural or racial superiority. It strongly condemns any attitudes or actions that threaten or damage the dignity of the human person.” Geraldine Patrick Encina Indigenous Relations, One Earth
The above quote is from One Earth
For more information on the Doctrine of Discovery, please visit the link below.
The 2015 report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC) called for the Government of Canada to:13
1. Adopt and implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples; and,
2. Renounce the concepts of Terra Nullius and the Doctrine of Discovery.
Without the Doctrine of Discovery, the current status quo of colonial control over Indigenous Peoples will no longer exist. Indigenous sovereignty and jurisdiction will need to be defined so that a new relationship can then be established based on the reconciliation of Indigenous sovereign rights with Crown rights.
(2015) Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada: Calls to Action, at para 45. i & ii. https://caid.ca/TRCFinCal2015.pdf
45. “We call upon the Government of Canada, on behalf of all Canadians, to jointly develop with Aboriginal peoples a Royal Proclamation of Reconciliation to be issued by the Crown. The proclamation would build on the Royal Proclamation of 1763 and the Treaty of Niagara of 1764, and reaffirm the nation-to-nation relationship between Aboriginal peoples and the Crown. The proclamation would include, but not be limited to, the following commitments:
i. Repudiate concepts used to justify European sovereignty over Indigenous lands and peoples such as the Doctrine of Discovery and terra nullius.
ii. Adopt and implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples as the framework for reconciliation.” [Emphasis Added]
The Indigenous Foundation https://www.theindigenousfoundation.org/articles/the-doctrine-of-discovery-and-terra-nullius :
- “The Doctrine of Discovery was the principle used by European colonizers starting in the 1400s in order to stake claim to lands beyond the European continent. The doctrine gave them the right to claim land that was deemed vacant for their nation. Land was considered terra nullius (vacant land) if it had not yet been occupied by Christians. Such vacant lands could be defined as “discovered” and as a result sovereignty, title and jurisdiction could be claimed. In doing so the Doctrine of Discover invalidated the sovereignty of Indigenous nations and gave Christians the right to subjugate and confiscate the lands of Indigenous Peoples.” Shreya Shah
Assembly of First Nations (2018) Dismantling the Doctrine of Discovery: https://www.afn.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/18-01-22-Dismantling-the-Doctrine-of-Discovery-EN.pdf
- “…This was invalidly based on the presumed racial superiority of European Christian peoples and was used to dehumanize, exploit and subjugate Indigenous Peoples and dispossess us of our most basic rights. This was the very foundation of genocide.1 Such ideology lead to practices that continue through modern-day laws and policies.”
- “The Doctrine of Discovery allowed the Crown to claim sovereignty over Indigenous Peoples and land by holding that Indigenous Peoples cannot claim ownership of land.”