The Sámi Parliament in Finland is disappointed with the decision of Constitutional Law Committee to postpone processing of Act on the Sámi Parliament

11 members of the Constitutional Law Committee, committee counsellors and representatives of the Government and the Regional Council of Lapland took part in the visit. All members of the Sámi Parliament in Finland were invited to the meeting of the Constitutional Law Committee and the Sámi Parliament. Some were present in person at Sajos while others participated via a remote connection.

– The Sámi Parliament in Finland wishes to thank the Constitutional Law Committee for the meeting and visit to the Sámi homeland. It was important to get to express our views and engage in dialogue on important issues, says Pirita Näkkäläjärvi, President of the Sámi Parliament.

During the meeting, the Constitutional Law Committee told the Sámi Parliament in Finland that they are postponing the processing of the proposal for the Act on Sámi Parliament until after the repeat election on account of the decision of the Supreme Administrative Court to rerun the election.

President of the Sámi Parliament in Finland, Pirita Näkkäläjärvi, expressed that the Sámi Parliament had hoped that the amendment of the Act on the Sámi Parliament would have progressed as planned and the new Act could have entered into force on 1 July 2024.

– The postponement is a disappointment, because a negotiated agreement on the proposal for the Act on the Sámi Parliament is on the table. It is a proposal that has been approved by two consecutive Governments of Finland and the Sámi Parliament in Finland approved it during its previous term by votes 15 to 3, 1 absent. The proposal would also solve the persisting international human rights violations stated by UN treaty bodies, President Näkkäläjärvi states.

The decisions by the Supreme Administrative Court put pressure on advancing the law amendment

The Supreme Administrative Court has issued three yearbook decision concerning the Act on the Sámi Parliament and the elections of the Sámi Parliament on 27 March. The votes for the important yearbook decision KHO 2024:44 were 5 to 2. The decision states that judicial uncertainty is related to the matter. The Supreme Administrative Court also notes in its decision that opinions by human rights organisations have not led to a law amendment by the time the decision was issued.

– In our view, the decisions by the Supreme Administrative Court and public comments by Kari Kuusiniemi, President of the Supreme Administrative Court, increase the pressure to remedy and amend the Act on the Sámi Parliament in accordance with decisions issued by UN treaty bodies, President Näkkäläjärvi states.

In 2019, the United Nations Human Rights Council and in 2022, the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) issued condemnatory observations on Finland concerning the interpretation of the Act on the Sámi Parliament and obliged Finland to review the Act in a manner that respects the rights of the Sámi to self-determination. The Act on the Sámi Parliament was enacted in 1995 and it is outdated in many respects.

– The Sámi also have the right to legislation that is up to date. It should be possible for us to evolve all three Sámi languages alive in Finland, our culture, all traditional Sámi livelihoods, vitality of the Sámi homeland and our way of life with an amended Act on the Sámi Parliament as a basis, President Näkkäläjärvi says.

In addition to the amendment of the Act on the Sámi Parliament, the meeting with the Constitutional Law Committee also involved discussion on other topical matters, such as River Teno fishing regulations and rights to hunt and fish in the Sámi homeland and particularly in the Vuotso area.

Preparation for the repeat election has started

The Sámi Parliament in Finland has started preparing for the repeat election. The repeat election is due to be held 1 – 30 June 2024. The electoral office has already started their work and the Executive Board of the Sámi Parliament proposes reappointment of the Election Committee to arrange the repeat election. According to the Act on the Sámi Parliament and the decision of the Supreme Administrative Court, repeat election shall be carried out by the same Election Committee as in the repealed elections, if possible. The Sámi Parliament’s plenum will meet on 12 April.

Further information:

Pirita Näkkäläjärvi
President of the Sámi Parliament in Finland
+358 (0)44 753 3766
pirita.nakkalajarvi@samediggi.fi