The Sámi Parliament of Sweden (, , , ) is the representative body for people of Sámi heritage in
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...
based in
Kiruna
(; ; ; ) is the northernmost Stad (Sweden), city in Sweden, situated in the province of Lapland, Sweden, Lapland. It had 17,002 inhabitants in 2016 and is the seat of Kiruna Municipality (population: 23,167 in 2016) in Norrbotten County. The c ...
. It acts as an institution of cultural autonomy for the indigenous
Sámi people
The Sámi ( ; also spelled Sami or Saami) are the traditionally Sámi languages, Sámi-speaking indigenous people inhabiting the region of Sápmi, which today encompasses large northern parts of Norway, Sweden, Finland, and of the Kola Peninsula ...
.
History
The Sami Parliament Act
Sametingslag (1992:1433) established the Swedish Sami Parliament as of 1 January 1993. By law, the first official elections were held on 16 May 1993. Its first session was opened by the King of Sweden,
Carl XVI Gustaf
Carl XVI Gustaf (Carl Gustaf Folke Hubertus; born 30 April 1946) is King of Sweden. Having reigned since 1973, he is the longest-reigning monarch in Swedish history.
Carl Gustaf was born during the reign of his paternal great-grandfather, K ...
, on 26 August 1993 in Kiruna. It has 31 representatives, who are elected every four years by general vote. The current chairperson of the Sámi Parliament is
Paulus Kuoljak, since 2017. The chairperson is formally assigned by the
Swedish Government upon the proposal of the Sami Parliament.
The
2021 election was held on 16 May 2021, with 9,220 people registered as voters, mostly living in Norrbotten or Västerbotten.
Responsibilities
Sweden has taken this active part for two reasons:
* to recognise the Sámi minority as an
indigenous people
There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...
to distinguish it from other minorities;
* to raise the Sámi
minority influence
Minority influence, a form of social influence, takes place when a member of a minority group influences the majority to accept the minority's beliefs or behavior. This occurs when a small group or an individual acts as an agent of social change b ...
which comes into conflict with the European
majority democracy system, i.e., the group with the most votes wins.
Elections and voting system
Sámi Parliament is democratically elected and acts as an autonomous authority. Sámi inhabitants have a vote, in addition to the regular elections in Sweden, to elect representatives to the Sámi Parliament if:
* they identify as culturally or ethnically Sámi, and either
** they speak
a Sámi language, or
** they have had or have a parent, or grandparent, that speaks or spoke a Sámi language
See also
*
List of Chairpersons of the Sami Parliament of Sweden
*
Sámi politics
Sámi politics refers to politics that concern the Sámi people, Sámi ethnic group in Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia. In a more narrow sense, it has come to indicate the government of Sámi affairs by Sámi political institutions. This article ...
*
Sámi Parliament of Finland
*
Sámi Parliament of Norway
*
Sámi Parliament of Russia
References
{{Reflist
External links
Sami Parliament of Sweden
Politics of Sweden
Sámi in Sweden
Parliament
In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
1993 establishments in Sweden
Kiruna
Political parties of minorities in Sweden
20th-century establishments in Norrbotten County