Brown-bag seminar: The Draft Nordic Sami Convention

When: Tuesday June 2^nd, 1115-1200

Where: Centre for Sami Studies, Guovssu, TEO H2.228

Informal lunch seminar with a presentation by Dorothée Cambou, PhD candidate in International and European Law at Vrije Universiteit Brussel.

In her own words:

In 2005, an expert group representing the governments of Finland, Norway and Sweden together with the Sami Parliaments has adopted a Draft Nordic Sami Convention. The document recognizes the right of the Sami to self-determination, including the right to determine its own economic, social and cultural development and to dispose, to their own benefit, over its own natural resources. In this regard, the Draft Nordic Sami Convention reflects the development of international law both in relation to the rights of indigenous peoples and to the law on self-determination. Of importance, the Draft also defines how the right to Sami self-determination can be implemented in the Nordic States.

In the light of these considerations, the purpose of my presentation is to describe and assess the value of the Draft Nordic Sami Convention; both for the development of international law on self-determination and for the development and protection of the Sami culture, natural resources and way of life. Within this analysis, a specific focus is given to the understanding of what the right of Sami to self-determination means and entails in practical terms. As we shall see, the Draft Convention seeks to establish a model of self-determination that permits to ensure the equality of the Sami people with the rest of the population.