Calls to scrap plans for an iron ore mine in Sweden have been made by two UN human rights experts to protect indigenous Sami people.
David Boyd, a special rapporteur on human rights and the environment, and Jose Francisco Cali Tzay, a special rapporteur on the rights of Indigenous peoples, have asked the Swedish government to pause a license for the proposed iron ore mine.
The experts have explained to the Swedish government that the mine would cause “irreversible risks” to the land inhabited by the indigenous Sami people due to the significant amount of toxic waste that the mine would give off.
The Sami people have also expressed concern over the proposed mine as it would disrupt reindeer herding and their land.
Greta Thunberg, the Swedish climate activist, has joined a recent protest organized by the Sami people. In a statement, Thunberg expressed, “The future of humanity should be prioritized above the short-term profit of a company.”