Self-determination

Self-determination is a principle stating that peoples constituting a nation or social group sharing history, language, or culture have the right to decide their own political status and the direction of their economic, social, and cultural development. The term encompasses both a political principle and a matter of international law.

The principle is referenced in the Charter of the United Nations, particularly in sections outlining the organization's objectives. It also appears in the first article of both human rights treaties of 1966 (the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights), both of which begin with the statement that all peoples have the right to self-determination.

Origins of the idea

The idea became prominent during the First World War. U.S. President Woodrow Wilson and leaders of the Russian Revolution both invoked it, but with different aims: Wilson spoke of restructuring the collapsed monarchies of Europe, while the revolutionary side used it to argue against imperialism. After the Second World War, the principle became a legal basis on which many Asian and African territories founded their claims to independence.

Self-determination and decolonization

In 1960 the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted a resolution concerning the granting of independence to colonial and trust territories. That resolution was followed by the establishment of a committee to monitor progress. In most of the organization's official usage, self-determination has been applied directly to colonial and externally administered territories, not as a mechanism for the separation of an already independent state.

Internal and external

Scholars typically distinguish two types. External self-determination refers to the right of a people to establish an independent state or to unite with another. Internal self-determination refers to the right of people to participate in the governance of the country in which they live, through voting, representation, and autonomous administration. Many states and international bodies favor the internal interpretation, to discourage demands for separation.

Conflict with other principles

Self-determination often conflicts with another principle of international law: territorial integrity and the sovereignty of existing states. There are many cases in which groups claiming to be a 'people' entitled to separation, while the state governing them contends the issue is an internal matter. For this reason, recognition of new states often depends on the political interests of other states, not solely on legal interpretation.