The Consequences of Swedish National Law on Sámi Self-Constitution—The Shift from a Relational Understanding of Who Is Sámi Toward a Rights-Based Understanding

Abstract

According to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, indigenous peoples have the right to determine their own identity or membership in accordance with their own collective customs and traditions. However, what is left of indigenous customary ways of applying membership rules after decades of state intervention? In this article, I show that Swedish national legislation has moved Sámi society away from a relational and responsibility-based understanding of who is Sámi toward a rights-based understanding. I argue that we need to see how national legislation has affected the way in which indigenous nations themselves apply their customary membership governance.