The Journal of Autonomy and Security Studies (JASS) is a peer-reviewed, open access e-journal published by the Åland Islands Peace Institute (AIPI), Mariehamn, Åland, Finland. The journal addresses its overarching theme of peace and security from the perspectives of autonomy, demilitarisation, and minority protection.
The Vol. 2 Issue 1 of JASS includes the following articles:
The aims of Åland and Finland regarding a new Act on the Autonomy of Åland
Susann Simolin
The main question of this article is what intentions Åland and Finland hold regarding the self-government of Åland, and how this is mirrored in the ongoing process for a revision of the Åland Autonomy Act. This matter is studied through a comparison of three central documents in the revision process, issued by three parliamentary committees, one Ålandic, one Finnish, and one joint. The article analyses how the parties describe the background and development of Åland’s autonomy, the original purpose of the autonomy and the aims for the fourth generation of autonomy legislation. Also, some of the concrete proposals for changes in the Autonomy Act are discussed in order to see if the intentions of the two parties coincide or differ.
One Hundred Years of Solitude: The Significance of Land, Rights for Cultural Protection in the Åland Islands
Rhodri Williams
The aim of this research is to contribute to current debates surrounding Åland’s autonomy regime by seeking a fuller understanding of the origins and the evolving role of rules restricting outsiders from acquiring landed property in the autonomous Åland Islands region of Finland. The autonomy and minority protection regime that prevails in Åland is of particularly long standing, and the conditions that have shaped the evolution of Åland’s land rules have changed considerably during the nearly 100 years of their application. The article also briefly considers the relationship between the evolving Åland land rules and more recent efforts to articulate and justify exclusive rights to traditional homelands in other settings, and particularly those involving minorities and indigenous peoples.
The issue can be found at www.jass.ax.