Anne-Maria Magga studies the laws and legal principles related to the land use of Sámi reindeer husbandry in her dissertation in the field of political science. The research shows that the Sámi siidas (traditional Sámi reindeer herding units) still have their own laws today, which work alongside the Finnish reindeer herding cooperative institution.

The starting point of the research is the understanding of the discipline of Indigenous law that Indigenous Peoples have had their own functioning societies before colonialism and that they have governed their communities based on their own laws. In Finland, there is a perception that only the states can enact binding laws, but Magga's dissertation shows that the siidas have kept their own laws in reindeer husbandry to this day.

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Photo by Marko Junttila