On the heels of the Summit of the Americas, the Native People of the 'new' world held a summit of their own. The Indigenous Peoples Summit of the Americas brought together representatives "in unity and on the critical importance of protecting the inherit rights of Indigenous Peoples.", as stated in the Summit's declaration

.

"The importance of this Summit is fourfold," Assembly of First Nations National Chief Matthew Coon Come said. "[That includes] recognition, promotion, enhancement and implementation of our rights as Indigenous Peoples from an economic and social perspective."

The Summit, subtitled "Indigenous Peoples Development and Connecting to the New Economy," was held from March 28 to 31 in Ottawa. The issues and decisions raised at the Indigenous Summit will be forwarded to the Organization of American States for the Summit of the Americas.

The Summit's declaration states that, "the past few centuries have witnessed the extinction of entire Indigenous nations in the Americas and the extinguishing of entire cultures, heritage, languages and peoples, through colonization, dispossession, disease, poverty, displacement and genocide. Our cultures are under serious threat throughout the Americas."

At the Summit, it was resolved that, "the fundamental collective human rights of Indigenous Peoples including particularly our right to self-determination, must be recognized and respected in accordance with international law. As such our rights are inalienable and not subject to extinguishment or termination."

Kenneth Deer, editor and publisher of The Eastern Door in Kahnawake, said he enjoyed the Summit. However, he felt that there were some problems with the format of the Summit. "Many of the South Americans weren't interested in that [trade and technology], they were focused on rights," Deer said.

Generally, South American Indigenous people have not reached the same level of recognition with the governments of their countries compared to those in North America. Indigenous people in South America still face such issues as colonization, poverty and genocide on a daily basis.

Deer said that because of the size of the panels, there was not enough time left to thoroughly discuss the final declaration that will be presented to the OAS.

Prior to the Summit, Coon Come, on behalf of the organizers, said, "opportunities will exist to actively participate in discussions through workshops, panels, discussions and document presentations. We encourage all sectors of Indigenous society to attend, including elders, youth, women and leaders."

Deer also said that there were "too many people on panels making statements and there was no interaction [with the people attending the Summit]."

The Summit was broadcast to the United Nations Commission of Human Rights in Geneva.
The Indigenous Peoples' declaration also stated that, "This extinction, exploitation, appropriation and dispossession of our cultural resources is ongoing, particularly under World Trade Organization international trade agreements, such as the Agreement on Trade-Related Intellectual Property. Indigenous women have particularly been affected by the inadequate protection of their unique knowledge."