Forum set up to enhance solidarity among world's indigenous peoples+

SAPPORO, April 25 Kyodo - A forum was set up Saturday in Sapporo to enhance solidarity among indigenous peoples around the world, with the ethnic Ainu people in Hokkaido, northern Japan, serving as a major founder.

The network of indigenous peoples from around the world was launched by about
400 members, including Ainu, college professors and ordinary citizens.
Organizers of the Indigenous Peoples Summit, which was held last July in
Biratori, Hokkaido, originally proposed the establishment of the forum.
Shiro Kayano, a 51-year-old Ainu who heads the network, said at the inaugural
meeting that he expects the forum to work to ''retrieve the rights'' of
indigenous peoples.
The forum will promote exchanges of information among different ethnic groups
with the aim of securing their autonomy and rights concerning land ownership.
It also plans to foster leaders for new generations to pass on indigenous
cultures and support indigenous people who are facing difficulties socially and
economically, the members said.
The event held last year prior to the Group of Eight summit at the Lake Toya
resort in Hokkaido drew more than 20 ethnic groups from 11 countries including
the United States and New Zealand.
==Kyodo