ITEM 5: The Right of Peoples to Self-determination
The Right of Peoples to Self-determination and Its Applications to Peoples Under Colonial or Alien Domination or Foreign Occupation
Chairperson,
"The right to self-determination is defined as a fundamental human right in the Charter of the United Nations, the two principal human rights covenants, the Declaration on the Right to Development, and other international instruments and declarations". As the Human Rights Committee reminds us, the realization of this right is essential to the effective guarantee and observation of individual human rights. Its denial constitutes a violation of internationally accepted and ratified human rights standards and a threat to international peace and security.
Today traditional peace and security parameters are challenged by the changing nature of conflict. Globalisation obliges us to reconceptualise governance at all levels, which is challenged by the eroding sovereignty of the endangered species called "nation-state" and the increasingly important impact of non-state actors. A culture of peace based upon good governance, sustainable development, democracy, and the rule of law requires a human centred security that includes the protection of communities and individuals from internal violence and that builds upon prevention.
The pre-eminent place of self-determination in both Covenants stresses the key role this right should play in the holistic approach that the High Commissioner advocated in her opening statement. This approach is based upon the interdependency and indivisibility of political, civil, economic, social and cultural rights. The realization of the right to self-determination can prevent conflicts resulting from the violation of these rights. A 1998 UNESCO Conference advocates a broad understanding of self-determination as "an ongoing process of choice for the achievement of human security and fulfilment of human needs with a broad scope of possible outcomes and expressions suited to different specific situations".
Universal realization of this right requires the abolishment of discriminatory applications. Firstly, to abolish the categorisation of peoples as its' collective title holder into "state population", "indigenous peoples", "minorities", which is based upon arbitrary and overlapping criteria. It sanctions not only a discriminatory entitlement of rights by every category but also violates the UN purpose "to develop friendly relations among nations based on respect for the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples" Secondly, to abolish the artificial distinction between "classical colonialisation" and "internal colonisation". In 1979 Special Rapporteur Hector Gross Spiell already affirmed that "colonial and alien domination means any kind of domination, whatever form it may take, which the people concerned freely regard as such." Freedom does not distinguish between external and internal colonisation.
This internal colonisation is institutionalised, state-sanctioned discrimination where States subject peoples under their rule that are --religiously, linguistically, ethnically-- "different" from the majority. A structurally unequal access to and enjoyment of basic services, human rights, resources, and power prevent these communities to control their own destiny. This gives rise to self-determination claims aimed at guaranteeing human security for their people. Kosovo illustrated once again that these internal conflicts end up being international conflicts. Yesterday's crimes fuel today's retaliations and turn the post-conflict construction of a multi-cultural society into a fata morgana. The logical consequence of the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples is equality of all peoples before the law and the prohibition of discrimination against and between peoples. As the African group suggested at the PrepCom I of the UN WCAR 2001, the right to self-determination should be an essential strategy to achieve equality and non-discrimination. Regrettably, however, this has been omitted from the draft Declaration and Plan of Action.
The lack of preventive mechanisms facilitated indirectly ethnic cleansing and violent outburst in Kosovo and Chechnya. But has the UN learned its lessons? Is the UN devising an operational framework to address these self-determination claims effectively and at an earlier stage? Where can victims of the violation of the right to self-determination turn to? What UN instance considers the legitimacy of their claims, or offers these victims a perspective for a peaceful settlement? Do we want to see the tragedies facing Palestine, Western Sahara, Tibet, Chechnya, Kosovo, Kurds, Tamils and indigenous peoples being repeated in Montenegro, Zanzibar, Cabinda, West Papua, East Turkestan or with Crimean Tartars? Do their sufferings and casualties not oblige us –at least morally-- to look for proactive ways to peacefully exercise the right to self-determination? Modern exercise of self-determination allows peoples to share power via many forms of self-government and does not inevitably result in independence. The UN should engage in the transfer of know how in this field and make this available to the conflicting parties.
Romana, therefore, recommends the Commission on Human Rights to request the Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights to elaborate a working paper on the implementation of the right to self-determination as a contribution to international peace and security, including in an internal colonization context. This working paper should provide a thematic and horizontal overview in relation to other agenda items of the Commission. It should also lead to the re-conceptualisation of the right to self-determination in a broad sense, and reflect how treaty bodies and other UN mechanisms can effectively implement this right with a view towards conflict prevention. Finally the paper should look into available self-government practices to gain a better insight into the accommodation of self-determination claims and the conditions under which such arrangements may work or may not work. Thank you, Chairman.
