Finland Times

Sami people in Inari, Finnish Lapland. File Photo – Lehtikuva.

Finally, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Indigenous and Tribal Convention is set to be implemented in the country.

The government on Thursday tabled a bill in parliament paving the way for ratification of the convention.

 

Article 14 of the ILO convention number 169 states that the rights of ownership and possession of the peoples concerned over the lands which they traditionally occupy shall be recognised.

The convention was adopted in 1989 in Geneva but its implementation in Finland has taken nearly 25 years.

In Finland, the agreement applies to the Sami people.

 

Discussion on the convention has been centred to how its provisions with regard to indigenous peoples’ ownership and management rights of the lands which they occupy were to fit in the Finnish legislation.

According to the bill, Sami homeland ownership and management rights are not to be changed. However, rights of the Sami people to participate in planning and decision making in their areas is to be strengthened.

To ensure this, Metsähallitus, the state enterprise which administers million of hectares of state-owned land and water areas, will have to explore means of cooperation with the Sami Parliament and the Skolt Sami Village Meeting on how land and water areas management plans affect Sami people’s life.

According to the government, the ratification of the convention does not pose an immediate impact on the national economy.

 

However, the binding convention stipulates that indigenous people must have access to some benefits of the natural resources in the lands they occupy, and this could lead to complications later.