A/HRC/18/35/Add.2
conference with the Special Rapporteur, representatives from the Government of Sweden
informed the Special Rapporteur that, due to the position of the Sami Parliament and others,
it has decided not to move forward with the bill until it has established a dialogue with
Sami people regarding the bill’s content.
23.
The Sami Parliament Act10 of 1993 established the Swedish Sami Parliament with
the principal function of “monitoring issues concerning the Sami culture in Sweden.”11 The
Swedish Sami Parliament is both a Government agency and a popularly elected body.
Problems concerning the basic character of the Swedish Sami Parliament in relation to the
advancement of Sami self-determination are discussed in section (IV)(A)(2) below. The
Sami Parliament Plenary Assembly has 31 members,12 who are elected every four years.13
24.
The specific tasks of the Swedish Sami Parliament include allocating State funds for
Sami organizations, cultural programmes and other matters; appointing the board of
directors for a Sami school; managing work to promote the Sami language; participating in
community development, including in relation to reindeer herding and use of land and
water; and providing information about Sami conditions.14 In 2007, many responsibilities
related to reindeer husbandry were transferred from the Swedish Board of Agriculture to
the Sami Parliament. However, despite this important development, there is ongoing
concern, as expressed by the Human Rights Committee, about the “limited extent to which
the Sami Parliament may participate in the decision-making process on issues affecting
land and traditional activities of the Sami people.”15
25.
The 1971 Reindeer Grazing Act recognizes the Sami’s right to use land and water
for themselves and for their reindeer, within certain geographic areas defined by the law.16
Reindeer herding rights in Sweden are exclusive to Sami and are limited to those Sami who
live within designated communities, called sambys, and practise reindeer herding as their
principal livelihood. About 3,000 Sami in Sweden practise reindeer herding as their
traditional livelihood, herding approximately 250,000 reindeer across about 40 per cent of
the Swedish territory, though reportedly not all of this is usable pasture land.
26.
Sweden is party to the major United Nations human rights instruments and voted in
favour of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in 2007. It has also ratified
the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities and the European
Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. However, Sweden has not ratified ILO
Convention No. 169.
D.
Finland
27.
The Constitution of Finland recognizes the Sami as an indigenous people17 and
recognizes their right to cultural autonomy within their homeland, noting that “in their
native region, the Sami have linguistic and cultural self-government.”18 The Sami
Parliament Act of 1995 defines the Sami homeland as “the areas of the municipalities of
Enontekiö, Inari and Utsjoki, as well as the area of the reindeer owners’ association of
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
8
The Sami Parliament Act (1992:1433).
Ibid., chap. 1, section 1.
Ibid., chap. 2, section 2.
Ibid., chap. 3, section 1
Ibid., chap. 2, section 1.
CCPR/C/SWE/CO/6, para. 20.
Rennäringslag (1971:437).
Constitution of Finland, section. 17.
Art. 121.