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On the annual International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, observed every August 9, the global community is turning its attention to the long-standing systemic injustices facing Indigenous communities worldwide, while centering the 2025 theme that honors a little-recognized pillar of Indigenous well-being: Indigenous midwives.

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres opened this year’s observance with a stark assessment of the systemic barriers that continue to shape Indigenous life. “Indigenous Peoples around the world continue to face overwhelming marginalization, discrimination and exclusion,” Guterres said. “Rooted in colonialism and patriarchy, these profound disparities are sustained by a deeply held resistance to recognizing and respecting the rights, dignity, and freedoms of indigenous peoples.” He traced these harms back centuries, noting that colonial systems robbed Indigenous communities of their ancestral lands, political and economic self-determination, cultural heritage, and even separated Indigenous children from their families to forcibly assimilate them into dominant societies.

These historical harms have translated into stark modern inequities. Global demographic data from the United Nations estimates that 476 million Indigenous people reside across 90 countries, accounting for less than 6% of the world’s total population. Yet this small demographic group makes up at least 15% of the global population living in extreme poverty. Beyond their social and economic marginalization, Indigenous communities hold a disproportionate responsibility for global ecological health: their traditional territories cover 28% of the world’s land surface, hold 11% of the planet’s total forest reserves, and contain the vast majority of the world’s remaining intact biodiversity. Culturally, they are also the primary stewards of global linguistic diversity: Indigenous communities speak the overwhelming majority of the world’s roughly 7,000 distinct languages and represent more than 5,000 unique cultural identities.

In the Caribbean region, the story of Indigenous survival mirrors this global experience. Before European colonization began in 1492, the Caribbean was home to a diversity of Indigenous nations, including the Taino — who occupied the Greater Antilles and Bahamas, with the Lucayan people as a distinct regional branch — the Kalinago (also called Island Caribs) of the Lesser Antilles, and earlier archaic groups including the Ciboney and Guanahatabey. The Kalinago, who originally named the island of Dominica Waitukubuli, meaning “tall is her body,” remain the resident Indigenous nation of Dominica today. After Christopher Columbus’ 1492 voyage that opened the era of European colonization, successive waves of Spanish, Portuguese, English, Dutch and French settlers displaced and decimated Indigenous populations across the region. Today, descendants of these original Indigenous nations, alongside other Caribbean Indigenous groups including the Maya, Garifuna and Surinen, still maintain their cultural identities and communities across the region.

The International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples was formally established by the UN General Assembly in December 1994, with the August 9 date chosen to mark the first meeting of the UN Working Group on Indigenous Populations held in 1982. Each year, the day adopts a targeted theme to draw attention to underrecognized issues facing Indigenous communities; the 2026 theme, “Honouring Indigenous Midwives: Safeguarding Life and Well-being,” centers the critical role of Indigenous midwifery in cultural survival and community health.

UN officials emphasize that honoring Indigenous midwives is far more than a symbolic gesture: it is an opportunity to recognize these women and knowledge keepers as core caregivers to Indigenous communities, reaffirm the enduring value of Indigenous knowledge systems, and advance culturally centered health care that meets the needs of current and future Indigenous generations. Indigenous knowledge systems are rooted in holistic worldviews that tie together land, spirituality, community and daily life, developing intergenerational practices of care that have sustained Indigenous well-being for millennia.

Indigenous midwifery is one of the most vital expressions of these knowledge systems. It supports the intergenerational transmission of cultural knowledge, strengthens collective Indigenous identity, and ensures the continuity of Indigenous ways of life. Yet the practice continues to face deep structural barriers and systemic discrimination that excludes Indigenous knowledge from formal national health frameworks, limiting Indigenous communities’ access to culturally appropriate maternal care.

Across the globe, Indigenous peoples maintain unique cultural traditions, social structures, and relationships to the natural world that remain distinct from the dominant societies surrounding them. Despite their diverse cultural contexts, Indigenous communities worldwide share a common struggle to protect their inherent rights as distinct peoples. For centuries, Indigenous nations have fought for formal recognition of their identities, traditional ways of life, and inherent rights to their ancestral lands, territories and natural resources. Still, systemic violations of Indigenous rights persist, leaving Indigenous communities among the most disadvantaged and vulnerable populations globally.

In recent decades, the international community has increasingly acknowledged that targeted special measures are required to protect Indigenous rights, preserve their distinct cultures and ways of life, and redress historical harms. On this 2026 International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, the article’s author, educator and social commentator Wayne Campbell — who focuses on how development policy shapes cultural and gender equity — calls on the global community to unite to raise awareness of the day’s core mission. The observance serves a critical purpose: advancing Indigenous rights, celebrating Indigenous traditional knowledge, and addressing pressing shared challenges including land preservation and health equity. Today, the global community pauses to recognize and celebrate the extraordinary diversity of Indigenous cultures and their enduring contributions to global society and planetary health.

The Dominica Social Security (DSS) has unveiled plans for its much-anticipated annual Pensioners’ Appreciation Day, a special occasion dedicated to honoring the island nation’s senior age pensioners for their lifelong contributions to national development. Scheduled for Thursday, September 17, 2026, the event will run from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the scenic State House Grounds, offering a welcoming space for retired community members to gather and connect.

This year’s gathering carries the official theme “Pensioners’ Appreciation Day – Honoring Our Age Pensioners”, reinforcing the DSS’s commitment to centering and valuing the senior population of Dominica. Attendees will enjoy a curated morning of activities, including lively live entertainment, complimentary refreshments, and abundant opportunities for fellowship with other pensioners from across the island. Beyond the social activities, the core mission of the annual event is to extend formal gratitude to seniors who helped build modern Dominica through decades of work and community investment.

All DSS age pensioners interested in joining the celebration are required to confirm their attendance no later than August 31, 2026. To secure a spot at the event, pensioners can reach organizers via phone at either 255-8311 or 275-2600. The annual appreciation event has become a beloved tradition for Dominica’s senior community, creating a dedicated space to recognize the legacy and ongoing importance of pensioners to the island’s social and cultural fabric.

For more than two weeks, the unexplained disappearance of 15-year-old Portsmouth native Jerbia Paul has held the attention of communities across Dominica. Now, law enforcement has confirmed a critical new development: one individual is in police custody as investigators ramp up efforts to resolve the case. In a press briefing with reporters on Monday, Police Public Relations Officer Inspector Fixton Henderson would not confirm widespread social media speculation that the detained person is a serving member of the Commonwealth of Dominica Police Force, only confirming that the inquiry remains active and moving forward.

“All I can say is that the matter is being thoroughly investigated and one person is currently in custody,” Henderson told reporters, declining to share further details due to the ongoing nature of the probe. Paul was first reported missing after she was last spotted in Portsmouth on July 31. When authorities launched their official missing person search, they released a public description of the teen: she stands roughly 5 feet 2 inches tall, has a slim build and dark complexion, and was wearing a black T-shirt, blue jeans and black slippers when she was last seen.

In the two weeks since Paul vanished, investigators have followed up on dozens of tips and leads from the public. Parallel to official police efforts, a large-scale ground search has been organized by Paul’s family members, friends, local volunteers and ordinary community members, who have combed through areas in and around Portsmouth and adjacent neighboring communities. The disappearance has triggered widespread public concern across the island, and Paul’s mother Jacinta Paul has made repeated emotional pleas for anyone with information to step forward. She has described the endless uncertainty over her daughter’s fate as an unending nightmare, urging anyone who holds even small details about Jerbia’s whereabouts to contact law enforcement immediately.

The high-profile case has also drawn intervention from the country’s top security official. National Security Minister Rayburn Blackmoore has publicly called on Dominicans to avoid sharing unconfirmed information across social media platforms. He warned that spreading unvetted rumors does not just risk undermining the formal investigation, it also inflicts additional unnecessary emotional harm on the Paul family. Blackmoore emphasized that law enforcement teams are working around the clock to uncover the full facts of the case.

As of Monday, police have not released any information about the identity of the person in custody, nor have they confirmed what potential criminal charges may be connected to the detention. Authorities are continuing their public appeal for credible information from the public that could move the investigation forward. Anyone with details can contact the Portsmouth Police Station at 266 4654, the Criminal Investigations Department at 266 5165, Jacinta Paul directly at 276 4052, or any local police station in Dominica. Anonymous tips can also be submitted through Crime Stoppers Dominica at 1-800-8477. Police have reiterated that the investigation remains ongoing and have asked the public to refrain from unsubstantiated speculation as detectives continue their work.