The study focuses on the current status of the Sami indigenous community of Sweden and on the implementation of the concept of self-determination for indigenous peoples, as presented by the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) of 2007. Nowadays, even if the Sami community of Sweden can enjoy several political, economic, social and cultural rights, a lot remains to be done concerning the development of their self-determination because several international principles related to indigenous rights have not been implemented so far.   Therefore, the aim of the study is to explore how the Sami people of Sweden define and understand the principle of self-determination for indigenous peoples and how they would like to implement it in the future, while also focusing on what can be learned from their particular situation from a conceptual perspective. To achieve that, the research has been mainly based on a field study carried out at the end of April 2014 and at the beginning of May 2014. Several representatives belonging to different Sami political parties and Sami stakeholder’s organisations have been interviewed on the field. Moreover, two academic researchers and one public relations officer have also been contacted and interviewed afterwards to offer a different perspective on the topic.   The findings of the study indicate that the interviewees have highlighted three main issues while defining the concept of self-determination for indigenous peoples: the importance of recognition and self-identification, the respect of indigenous traditions and the protection of traditional lands. Besides, many ideas mostly based on the development of the Swedish Sami Parliament have also been mentioned while thinking about the future. The study has also shown that the indigenous position in Sweden is quite paradoxical because even if the Sami people have some rights, they do not have self-determination as the current situation is still dominated by the state. Finally, another major aspect of the findings has also indicated that self-determination is mainly about changing attitudes between the states and indigenous peoples.

This thesis explores the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) and its implications for resolving Indigenous issues. This thesis focuses on Aboriginal title issues in British Columbia and the self-determination issues in Nigeria to consider the application of UNDRIP in different political and geographic contexts. It is important to look at both jurisdictions because of the historical similarities they share as well as the distinctions between them. Each nation has a particular history and experience with British colonization that has shaped how they interact with Indigenous nations. Yet Canada and Nigeria have responded differently to their own colonial histories. Interestingly, in 1969, Canada sent aid to provide food for the Biafrans in Nigeria during the Nigerian Civil War of 1967 – 1970. The incident will be discussed in-depth in this thesis. Furthermore, in this thesis, I argue that the application of UNDRIP can enable for the elimination of the aboriginal title test to which Indigenous peoples in Canada are subjected in Canadian courts. I argue that the courts should apply UNDRIP principles in resolving aboriginal title claims. I also argue that Nigeria should adopt and implement UNDRIP to enable the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) to exercise their right to self-determination. UNDRIP provides a form of recognition for Indigenous nations that leaves state territorial integrity in place. As such, IPOB exercise of the right to self-determination will not threaten Nigeria’s territorial integrity in accord with article 46 of UNDRIP. / Graduate / 2023-07-25

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Approximately 15 years ago the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) were signed, with 144 in favour, 11 abstentions and 4 rejections. The UNDRIP was ground-breaking, but the rejection from 4 powerful states (Canada, USA, New Zealand and Australia), and the subsequent lack of implementation decreased the expectations. This study sets out to investigate three states, Canada, Colombia, and Bolivia, and how they have implemented the declaration. Each state has cast a different vote on the declaration, which constructed a dissimilar stance on the UNDRIP. With a comparative research analysis, cases from each state will be reviewed through key-concepts from post-colonialism, such as hegemony, environmentalism, and place. Data is collected from national constitutions, court rulings and articles on the contrasting priorities of the government and the indigenous peoples. To measure the realization, three articles have been selected from the declaration. This paper concludes that even though the states have made substantial progress in legally adopting the declaration, practical realization lacks. This is due to the countries concern of losing political power were the indigenous peoples to gain self-determination or the inability to conduct extractive projects on indigenous territory which would increase national income.

Guyana’s REDD+ model features the placement of almost all of the country’s rainforest under long-term protection in return for monetary incentives that will be used to move the country along a low carbon development trajectory. It is a model of forestry preservation and sustainable development that the Government of Guyana is developing in partnership with the Government of Norway. This model of development is part of the global climate change mitigation scheme, Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation plus (REDD+). REDD+ is a series of initiatives focused on/in developing countries seeking to diminish carbon dioxide emissions caused by deforestation and degradation, processes recognized as being one of the leading causes of climate change. It aims to dramatically reduce these emissions by creating an incentive mechanism that will pay developing countries to halt destructive processes that lead to deforestation and degradation. Guyana’s REDD+ model has significant implications for Amerindians who occupy the forested regions of Guyana, where most REDD+ related activities are scheduled to take place. Although this model is developing in a context where the legal and political regime governing Amerindians is weak, the treatment of Amerindians in REDD+ development leaves much to be desired in terms of both recognition and protection of important human rights. This Thesis reviews Guyana’s pioneering REDD+ model to show that it is failing to safeguard Amerindian rights recognized under international human rights law. Within the framework of the law, it argues that Guyana’s actions are contrary to its international obligations regarding indigenous peoples. Appropriate measures that should be adopted by Guyana to safeguard Amerindian rights are explored and proposed in this thesis. Possible measures that can be adopted by Norway, the World Bank, and the international community to motivate Guyana to undertake reforms are also examined.

The intention with this essay is to illustrate the conflicts that might occur when states implement renewable energy strategies on lands that have traditionally belonged to indigenous peoples. To do so I have analysed case studies from Sweden as well as Latin America regarding renewable energy projects in areas that could be claimed to belong to indigenous groups and compared the conclusions from these studies to what the existing legal framework on the topic of the rights of indigenous peoples dictates. The results show that the main international legislation on the topic is very clear in expressing that states should grant indigenous peoples access to lands and territories that have traditionally been occupied by them, as well as granting them participation in the exploitation of natural resources. The analysis of the case studies shows that there exists a tendency among states to bypass what is stipulated in the international regulations when executing renewable energy projects, as well as using the term “sustainable development” as a cover-up when violating the rights of indigenous peoples. Although the international legislation on the topic is very precise, the majority of the world’s countries have not ratified the main legally binding convention. I conclude that one reason for this could be that states would find it hard to reach environmental objectives while at the same time complying with the legislation on the rights of indigenous peoples, i.e. states face difficulties in fulfilling sustainable environmental and economic objectives with sustainable social objectives.

Indigenous autonomy, self-government and self-determination have historically been an area of conflict within the settler colonial state of Canada. This thesis aims to analyze critically the Canadian state’s alleged progressive nature in regard to nation-to-nation relations as well as the discourses that portray Canadian society as fostering Indigenous rights. Grounded in previous research and contextual background, this study uses the Discourse Historical Approach (DHA) to investigate how Canadian media produces and reproduces discourse around the issues connected with Indigenous resistance since the ‘Oka Crisis’ of 1990, based on the selected material published by The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The findings illustrate that while liberal-influenced narratives have improved, significant identification of decolonization within Canada’s media was not found and the structures of settler colonialism remain largely unchanged.

This thesis scrutinises the state plans for future mining operations in two specific areas in northern Sweden, namely Rönnbäck/Rönnbäcken and Gállok/Kallak, and how these plans have become issues of intense dialogues and debates nationwide during the previous years. This is partly because of environmental reasons but the primary matter is because these two areas have traditionally belonged to the indigenous Saami people where they are pursuing reindeer husbandry. Despite the many voices of the Swedish society as well as the Saami people that have been raised against the mining plans in these two specific areas, the Swedish government still approved the mining companies to start pursing their activities in both cases. Because of this, several human rights issues have been invoked against the Swedish state in terms of the directly affected Saami’s rights as an indigenous people. Some of these invocations have been made by referring to the ICERD and UNDRIP. Therefore, on the basis of the Saami’s right to fair rectification as an indigenous people, the aim of this work is to further examine how state actions for rectification, because of previous state conducted human rights violations, are being perceived by different actors; in this case the Swedish state and the Saami people. By applying the theoretical framework of rectificatory justice, and conducting the method of analysing the arguments and perceptions of the Saami people as well as the Swedish state, the main focus of the thesis is to further examine the two cases of Rönnbäck/Rönnbäcken and Gállok/Kallak. The thesis’ main finding is that there are many discrepancies between the Saami people and the Swedish state in terms of their views on fair rectificatory arrangements as well as the rights of the Saami as an indigenous people.

Soft law is a common feature of international governance, occupying a grey zone between the realms of politics and law. The multifaceted concept can refer to vague provisions or norms generally, but is most useful when defined as international instruments adopted in a non-binding form. Whilst the advantages and appeal of soft law have been widely studied, with its effects explored in both International Relations (IR) and International Law (IL) scholarship, states' behaviour on commitment to soft law per se has remained underexplored. It is often assumed that its non-binding status upon adoption makes commitment to soft law a relatively inconsequential endeavor, at least in comparison to hard law. In this thesis, incorporating insights from public international law into rationalist IR approaches, I argue that soft law instruments can have important effects over time and bring substantial costs for states to bear. This is particularly the case for soft law instruments 'hardening' through domestic law, treaties or customary international law, increasing the sovereignty and implementation costs attached to commitment. I further argue that those potential costs of soft law are taken into account by states when making decisions on commitment. Depending on the importance and likelihood of the costs foreseen, states can craft their commitment to mitigate these costs or block them from arising. Empirical evidence for the place of the costs of soft law in states' decision-making on commitment is offered through an in-depth case study of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, with a focus on the opposition it faced upon adoption - an unusual occurrence for a UN declaration in the field of human rights. Recognizing the potential costs of soft law and their impact on state commitment helps to bridge theory and practice regarding the creation of non-binding instruments and sheds light on challenges raised by the use of soft law by states and non-state actors at the frontiers of international law-making.

In this thesis I offer a brief overview of the current legislative, regulatory and treaty frameworks impacting emergency management in British Columbia, with a particular emphasis on Crown-identified First Nation roles. I show that the regime overwhelmingly positions non-First Nation governments, contractors and other organizations to manage emergencies on behalf of First Nations. I explore emergency management as a manifold process that includes protracted planning, mitigation and recovery phases, which, unlike emergency response, are carried out with lower levels of urgency. I consider Canadian Constitution Act, 1982 (s. 35) Aboriginal rights in light of the lack of statutorily prescribed inclusion of First Nations in off-reserve emergency management, particularly at the planning, mitigation and recovery phases concluding that the jurisprudence to date (including the duty to consult and Aboriginal title) does not appear to have revolutionized the regime. While the constitutional status of Aboriginal rights should operate to insure adequate First Nation direction in each stage of emergency management, the regime continues to restrictively prioritize other constitutional priorities, such as division of powers and civil liberties. To better understand the omission, I theorize the lack of Crown implementation of s. 35 Aboriginal rights generally as an ‘obligation gap’, highlighting how an analysis of s. 35 Aboriginal rights as ‘negative rights’ fails to compel implementation of the full scope of Crown obligations implicit within the jurisprudence to date. I then offer a new framework for s. 35 as justiciable ‘recognition rights’ and juxtapose ‘recognition rights’ with the idea of justiciability of government inaction through a brief comparative analysis of socioeconomic rights in South Africa’s constitution and Canada’s constitutional Aboriginal rights. With a decided emphasis on the obligations of the Crown, this thesis attempts to offer fodder to First Nations and legal practitioners seeking to challenge the emergency management landscape where First Nations seek an enhanced role in protecting and restoring their respective territories in anticipation of, and in the wake of, disaster. For convenience and clarity, contemporary geographical and jurisdictional references to the areas now known as Canada and British Columbia are used throughout the thesis without intention to detract from the integrity of First Nation claims to their traditional and ancestral territories.