170216 Ola Stinnerbom, Sami artist and drum maker, poses for a portrait on February 16, 2017 in Sunne, Sweden.The Sami people traditionally inhabit a territory known as Spmi, which traverses the northern parts of Norway, Sweden, Finland and the Russian Kola peninsula. Although the Sami are divided by the formal boundaries of the four States, they continue to exist as one people and are united by cultural and linguistic bonds and a common identity.Sweden voted in favour of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in 2007, but has not ratified the ILO Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention, 1989 (No. 169), despite recommendations from international human rights mechanisms to do so.In 2016 the UN Human Rights Committee and the UN ICESCR Committee raised continuing concerns about the ability of Sami people to enjoy the rights of Indigenous Peoples, notably their land rights.Nine Samis, Maxida Mrak, Anders Sunna, Katarina Kielatis, Matti Berg, Ola Stinnerbom, Merethe Kuhmunen, Bo Sunna, Marika Renhuvud and Mattias Jonsson tell their stories about how it is to live like a Sami today in Sweden.Photo: Joel Marklund / BILDBYRN
