77 institutional presence in their territories; the absence of a process of consultation to seek the prior, free and informed consent of communities to the exploitation of natural resources in their territories; the ill-treatment, threats and harassment to which members of the communities have reportedly been subjected on the occasion of protests against hydroelectric infrastructure construction projects, mining operations or tourism facilities on their territory; and the non-recognition of the special status of indigenous communities that are not within a comarca (articles 1, 26 and 27 of the 386 Covenant). 294. Similarly, the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights noted in its Report of Concluding Observations on Panama, in September 2001, that: 12. […] The Committee is deeply concerned about the persisting disadvantage faced in practice by members of indigenous communities in Panama, and in particular about the marked disparities in the levels of poverty and literacy and access to water, employment, health, education and other basic social services. The Committee is also concerned that the issue of land rights of indigenous peoples has not been resolved in many cases and that their land rights are threatened by mining and cattle ranching activities which have been undertaken with the approval of the State party and have resulted in the displacement of indigenous peoples from their traditional ancestral and agricultural lands. … 28. … [The Committee] urges the State party to pay particular attention to improving poverty and literacy rates and access to water, employment, health, education and other basic social services for indigenous peoples. The Committee recommends that the issue of land rights of indigenous peoples be fully resolved so as to avoid their coming under threat by mining and cattle ranching 387 activities that result in their displacement from their traditional ancestral and agricultural lands. 295. In the instant case, the petitioners alleged that the repeated refusal to carry out the obligations with respect to the territorial rights of the Kuna indigenous people of Madungandí and the Emberá of Bayano constituted discrimination based on their ethnic origin. They noted the existence of distinct and more preferential attention to individual private property, which contrasts with the situation of lack of protection of indigenous property rights. The State, for its part, did not controvert the allegations specifically related to the violation of the right to non-discrimination. 296. Similarly, the Inter-American Commission approved the prejudicial impact on the traditional forms of subsistence of the Kuna de Madungandí and Emberá de Bayano indigenous peoples, caused by the Bayano Hydroelectric and the Panamerican Highway. Specifically, it referred to the lack of basic services, such as water and electricity, the proliferation of diseases such as malaria, the high malnutrition rates among children under five years old, and the deforestation of the territory, among others. 297. In connection with the obligation of the State to eliminate discriminatory regulations from the legal framewok, the Commission noted that the Constitution of Panama contains provisions that recognize certain rights of indigenous peoples, such as the right to collective property. Similarly, it noted that in the Constitution itself, article 126, which relates to agrarian policy, establishes in its last subparagraph that such policy “would be applicable to indigenous communities in accordance with scientific methods of cultural change.” 298. In the opinion of the IACHR, this legal framework presupposes the persistence of discriminatory factors in the legal order in relation to protection of the right to property over the ancestral territory and natural resources of indigenous peoples. The application of provisions from the agrarian regime, based on the logic of the productive use of the land, gives rise to a situation of lack of protection in which the special, unique, and internationally protected relationship of indigenous peoples with their 386 UN Human Rights Committee. Consideration of Reports Submitted by the States Parties under Article 40 of the Covenant. Concluding Observations. CCPR/C/PAN/CO/3. April 17, 2008. para. 21. 387 UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Consideration of Reports by States Parties under Articles 16 and 17 of the Covenant. Concluding Observations. E/C.12/1/Add.64. September 24, 2001. paras. 12 and 28.