Arctic Peoples

Arctic Indigenous Leaders will be in [GP:Salekhard], Russia near the end of October for meetings of the Arctic Council . This is the highest level meeting of the council, held once every two years, in which many of the Arctic states are represented by their Foreign Ministers. These “Ministerial” meetings give direction for the work of the Council for the next two years.

The Indigenous Leaders are hopeful that this meeting will produce a plan that results in real action on climate change by the Council. Following the release of the Arctic Climate Impact Assessment during the last Ministerial meeting, Indigenous Peoples expected that the Council would follow up on the obvious needs for both mitigation and adaptation as responses to the present and coming levels of climate change. In a statement delivered during the last Arctic Council meeting in Syktyvkar, the Indigenous Leaders made a statement on the Council’s climate change action to date, calling it “deeply disappointing”.

The Leaders made some suggestions on how to improve the Council’s climate change response, including the involvement of more experts and the development of “an impacts and adaptation program that includes community-based pilot projects on adaptation, and stresses comparative work on education, outreach and communications, and capacity building.”

Read the rest of this entry »

Press release from Saami Council and Finland’s Sámi Central Organization

The Government of Finland misjudged its position on Sámi issues when it became a member of the new UN Human Rights Council last spring.  On May 9, 2006, Finland was elected to the Council based on its freely given commitment to propose to its parliament, during 2006, legislation to remove all obstacles to Finland’s ratification of the ILO Convention No. 169 concerning Indigenous and Tribal Peoples in Independent Countries, dealing with the unresolved rights of the Sámi over land, resources and livelihood.

So far, Finland has not fulfilled its commitment to the UN, and, thus, is treading on Sámi human rights.  A proposal of legislation, prepared by ministries in June 2006, has not been acted upon. In September, this year, the member of the Finnish Government has publicly announced that the government is not going to submit the Draft Government Bill to the Parliament.
Read the rest of this entry »