Asia Indigenous Peoples Network on Extractive Industries and Energy (AIPNEE) submitted today a joint letter, on behalf of Indigenous Peoples organizations, supporting civil society and environmental groups, and individuals from 37 countries around the world, to the International Seabed Authority (ISA) and its Member States calling for a moratorium or precautionary pause on deep sea mining (DSM). The letter was submitted before the meeting of the ISA Member States from 13-31 July 2026, especially given that no Asian Member State has supported a DSM moratorium so far.

The letter – endorsed by 96 Indigenous Peoples organizations and civil society and environmental groups and 32 individuals from 37 countries across the world – highlights why a moratorium or precautionary pause on deep sea mining is imperative from the perspectives of Indigenous Peoples, science, and international law.

In the letter, we recall that Indigenous Peoples are stewards of 25% of the world’s land and seas, and that coastal Indigenous Peoples have a unique understanding of the ocean as “a mother, ancestor, relative, or living kin” that form part of a broader network of reciprocal relationships, responsibilities, and genealogical connections which underpin cultural identity, governance systems, and stewardship practices.

In this context, the letter underscores that

Indigenous Peoples are rightsholders of customary coastal and marine territories, knowledge holders who have and continue to act as sustainable managers of marine environment, and frontliners who most immediately and acutely experience the adverse impacts of exploitative activities at sea.

As stated in the letter, DSM has actual and potential threats to coastal Indigenous communities. Namely, DSM can potentially reduce the biodiversity and productivity of their traditional fisheries caused by waste, noise, and other disturbances from mining, which can lead to unwanted or forced urban migration away from ancestral lands, and ultimately translate as a threat to the Indigenous Peoples’ right to self-determination, among other rights, as enshrined in international laws, including the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), and raises equity concerns under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) UNCLOS.

States, civil society and Indigenous Peoples organizations have overwhelmingly voted to call for a moratorium on DSM until and unless FPIC of affected Indigenous Peoples is obtained, among other conditions, at international bodies such as the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). However, mining companies are aggressively escalating DSM explorations. Hence, it is now more important than ever to stand together to protect the deep sea and all those who depend on it.

We welcome the 43 ISA Member States that have publicly endorsed a moratorium or precautionary pause on DSM. In addition, we lay out specific demands to the ISA and its Member States in the letter:

1. We request the Member States that are yet to endorse a moratorium or precautionary pause on DSM to do so immediately and publicly, and to ensure that a moratorium or precautionary pause on DSM is implemented at the ISA.
2. We call on the ISA to create space for inclusive and meaningful engagement of Indigenous Peoples in the global dialogue on DSM and ocean governance more broadly by establishing an Indigenous Peoples Advisory Body at the ISA.

Read the full letter here