NIM has recently initiated the establishment of a working group on indigenous rights as part of our collaboration with GANHRI. This week, NIM and GANHRI held the first meeting of the network. In total, over 20 institutions from all continents participated.
The parties have reached an agreement in the mediation between south Fosen sijte and the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy. For the reindeer owners in north Fosen, the situation is still unresolved, and it is urgent to find a solution that will end the human rights violation there as well.
Natural resource development in indigenous areas, including the construction of wind parks as part of the national renewable energy initiative, raises several human rights issues. In June 2019, NIM arranged a seminar in Karasjok together with Norway’s National Contact Point for Responsible Business Conduct to discuss the impacts of natural resource development on the Sámi people and the responsibility of businesses to respect human rights. This is the report from the seminar.
In this report, we wish to clarify State authorities’ human rights obligations to prevent, combat and investigate violence and abuse where the person exposed to violence or abuse is Sámi. The report also examines the situation today to better understand the challenges that prevent Sámi victims of violence from receiving adequate help and the measures implemented by Norwegian authorities to remedy this problem. We point out deficiencies in the State’s compliance with its obligation to secure the rights and freedoms of the people within its jurisdiction and make a number of recommendations for improvement.
Urfolk har et særlig vern under menneskerettighetene. Samene har status som urfolk i Norge. Dette innebærer blant annet særlige plikter for staten til å sikre samenes rettigheter til naturressursutnyttelse, mulighet til å bevare og utvikle sitt språk, kultur og samfunnsliv samt rett til å bli konsultert i relevante saker.