About the Commission - Sanningskommissionen samer

The Truth Commission for the Sami People
The work of the Truth Commission for the Sami People is now under way. The Commission will survey and examine the policies pursued towards the Sami from a historical perspective, and their consequences for the Sami people. Read more about the Commission’s work.
The Truth Commission for the Sami People is a government inquiry that was established following the Sami Parliament’s petition. The Commission is an independent and autonomous body and should interpret and carry out the assignments stated in the directive from the Swedish Government. You can read the directive here. Committee terms of reference (link)

The Sami youth organisation Sáminuorra first wrote a letter in 2008 to the responsible minister at the time, demanding that the Government establish a truth commission. In 2019, the Sami Parliament submitted a petition to the Ministry of Culture for the central government to fund the process of establishing an independent truth commission. By that time, the Sami Parliament had long been working on this issue. In 2020, it received a commission from the Government to prepare and solidify the work in the Sami society. The Sami Parliament’s report on this work is available here. [Link to the report in Swedish.] In November 2021, the Government decided to appoint a truth commission for the Sami People. Its members were appointed in June 2022.
Unlike several other similar commissions, the term ‘’reconciliation’ is not included in this commission’s name. In its petition to the Ministry of Culture, the Sami Parliament pointed out that the Truth Commission is meant to be followed by a reconciliation process after the Commission’s work is completed, provided that the Commission’s proposed recommendations are met.