Sami Land Rights

Abstract

Abstract The Indigenous Sami people traditionally live in what is now Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Russia. A crucial matter for Indigenous peoples, including the Sami living in Sweden, is that of the recognition of their land rights and access to their traditional lands. This article’s aim is to present and analyse recent case law developments in Sweden that relate to the recognition and protection of Sami land rights, specifically the Girjas and Talma cases, through legal-scientific and textual analyses and relevant legal literature. Both cases concern Sami reindeer herding rights in Sweden and the Swedish state as defendant. These cases raise complex legal issues and historical circumstances, demonstrating the need for the Swedish state to treat Sami land rights as equal to other civil rights in Swedish society, in line with international human rights law.