self-determination

Self-determination refers to a people's right to form its own political entity, and internal self-determination is the right to representative government with full suffrage.

AI overview

Self-determination is the right of a group of people to establish their own independent political system and govern themselves. It matters because it ensures that people have a say in how they are governed, including through representative government where everyone gets to vote.

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Commons category: Self-determination

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~82 min read

Article

57 sections

Contents

History
Pre-20th century
World Wars I and II
Europe, Asia and Africa
The Cold War world
The UN Charter and resolutions
The communist versus capitalist worlds
Asia
After the Cold War
Current issues
Defining "peoples"
Self-determination versus territorial integrity
Methods of increasing minority rights
Self-determination versus majority rule/equal rights
Constitutional law
Drawing new borders
Notable cases
Artsakh
Assyria
Australia
Azawad
Balochistan
Basque Country
Biafra
Catalonia
Chechnya
East Turkistan
Eastern Ukraine
Ethiopia
Falkland Islands
Gibraltar
Greenland
Hong Kong
Indigenous peoples
Israel
Kashmir
Kurdistan
Nagalim
North Borneo and Sarawak
Northern Cyprus
Palestine
Quebec
Sardinia
Scotland
South Africa
South Tyrol
Székely Land
Taiwan
Tibet
United States
Western Sahara
West Papua
Western Cape
See also
References
Bibliography
External links

Self-determination refers to a people's right to form its own political entity, and internal self-determination is the right to representative government with full suffrage.

Self-determination is a cardinal principle in modern international law, binding, as such, on the United Nations as an authoritative interpretation of the Charter's norms. The principle does not state how the decision is to be made, nor what the outcome should be (whether independence, federation, protection, some form of autonomy or full assimilation), and the right of self-determination does not necessarily include a right to an independent state for every ethnic group within a former colonial territory. Further, no right to secession is recognized under international law.