The problem of culturalizing indigenous self-determination: Sámi cultural autonomy in Finland

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article examines the culturalization of Sámi self-determination in Finland. Employing a structural injustice analysis, it argues that the prevailing framework of Sámi cultural autonomy acts as a significant barrier to the effective realisation and practice of the right to Indigenous self-determination. The article traces the trajectory of constructing and limiting Sámi rights in the sphere of language and culture while failing to pass comprehensive legislation addressing land rights, central to operationalising Indigenous self-determination and exercising self-government. It considers the ways in which enacting Sámi self-government is framed in the current Finnish legislation as consultation and analyses how the government has in recent years failed to meet its own legislative duties in this regard. The article underscores the essential link between the right to self-determination, Indigenous land rights, and the tangible practice of political self-government, shedding light on the difference between political and cultural autonomy.