ABSTRACT
To a varying degree, legal and political arrangements have been established in order to promote a greater degree of autonomy for the Saami people. One result of these legal and political reforms is the establishment of the popularly elected Saami bodies in Norway, Sweden and Finland. The claims of further development of Saami politics and a legal coherence appear as a dilemma because the level of conflict seems to increase. Democracy is perceived as a framework for combining private interests, which to a varying degree, represent the interests of a majority or a minority. In the debate about special status for indigenous people, it is often asserted that there is a conflict between individual and collective rights. The deliberative perspective considers the role of shared political deliberations in promoting a sense of community, as essential. For minorities the possibilities to establish their own public sphere are of vital importance for the struggle for recognition.
