If non-self-governing territories could attain independence, why did the UN subject Southern Cameroons (Ambazonia) to the torturous process of attaining independence by joining either Cameroun or Nigeria? Read on....
Justice M. Mbuh
<6> DECOLONIZATION 05/03/94
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More than 80 nations whose peoples were formerly under colonial rule have joined the United Nations as sovereign independent States since the world Organization was founded in 1945. The United Nations has played a crucial role in that historic change
by encouraging the aspirations of dependent peoples and by setting goals and standards to accelerate their attainment of independence.

The decolonization efforts of the United Nations derive from the Charter principle of "equal rights and self-determination of peoples", as well as from three specific chapters in the Charter--XI, XII and XIII--devoted to the interests of dependent peoples. Since 1960, the United Nations has also been guided by
the General Assembly's Declaration on the Granting of
Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples (resolution 1514(XV)), by which Member States proclaimed the necessity of bringing colonialism to a speedy end.

Despite the great progress made against colonialism, almost 2 million people still live under colonial rule, and the United Nations continues its efforts to help achieve self-determination and independence in the remaining dependent Territories.


<6.1> INTERNATIONAL TRUSTEESHIP SYSTEM 05/03/94
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Under Chapter XII of the Charter, the United Nations established the International Trusteeship System for the supervision of Trust Territories placed under it by individual agreements with the States administering them. The System applied to: (i) Territories then held under Mandates established by the League of Nations after the First World War; (ii) Territories detached from enemy States as a result of the Second World War; and (iii) Territories voluntarily placed under the System by States responsible for their administration. The basic objective of the System was to promote the political, economic and social
advancement of the Trust Territories and their progressive development towards self-government or independence.

The Trusteeship Council was established under Chapter XIII of the Charter to supervise the administration of Trust Territories and to ensure that Governments responsible for their administration took adequate steps to prepare them for the achievement of the
Charter goals.

In the early years of the United Nations, 11 Territories were placed under the Trusteeship System. By 1975, all except the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, a strategic Trust Territory administered by the United States under an agreement approved by the Security Council, had either attained independence or were united with a neighbouring State to form an
independent country.

The Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands originally comprised three archipelagos with a total of 2,100 islands. In 1975, one of the archipelagos, the Northern Mariana Islands, voted to become a Commonwealth of the United States upon termination of
the trusteeship and was administratively separated from the balance of the Territory. Subsequently, the remaining islands became three separate self-governing entities with their own constitutions: the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia and Palau. In due course, the Marshall Islands and
the Federated States of Micronesia, in exercise of their right to self-determination, chose free association with the United States as their political status, leading the Security Council in 1990
to terminate the Trusteeship Agreement for all the entities except Palau. Since 1990, Palau is the entirety of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, the last ward of the Trusteeship System.

By 1990, the following Territories had exercised the right to self-determination:

Togoland under British United with the Gold Coast (Colony
administration and Protectorate), a Non-Self-Governing
Territory administered by the United
Kingdom, in 1957 to form Ghana

Somaliland under Italian United with British Somaliland
administration Protectorate in 1960 to form Somalia

Togoland under French Became independent as Togo in 1960
administration

Cameroons under French Became independent as Cameroon in 1960
administration

Cameroons under British The northern part of the Trust Territory
administration joined the Federation of Nigeria on 1 June
1961 and the southern part joined the
Republic of Cameroon on 1 October 1961

Tanganyika under British Became independent in 1961 (in 1964,
administration Tanganyika and the former Protectorate
of Zanzibar, which had become independent
in 1963, united as a single State under
the name of the United Republic of
Tanzania)

Ruanda-Urundi under Voted to divide into the two sovereign
Belgian administration States of Rwanda and Burundi in 1962

Western Samoa under New Became independent as Samoa in 1962
Zealand administration

Nauru, administered by Became independent in 1968
Australia on behalf of
Australia, New Zealand
and the United Kingdom

New Guinea, administered United with the Non-Self-Governing
by Australia Territory of Papua, also administered
by Australia, to become the independent
State of Papua New Guinea in 1975

Federated States of Became fully self-governing in free
Micronesia Association with the United States in
1990

Republic of the Became fully self-governing in free
Marshall Islands Association with the United States
in 1990

Commonwealth of the Became fully self-governing as a
Northern Mariana Islands Commonwealth of the United States
in 1990


<6.2> NON-SELF-GOVERNING TERRITORIES 05/03/94
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The Charter of the United Nations also addresses the issue of other Non-Self-Governing Territories not brought into the Trusteeship System.

The Declaration regarding Non-Self-Governing Territories (Chapter XI of the Charter) provides that Members of the United Nations which administer Territories whose peoples have not attained a
full measure of self-government recognize the principle that the interests of the inhabitants of those Territories are paramount, and accept as a sacred trust the obligation to promote to the
utmost the well-being of the inhabitants.

To this end, administering Powers, in addition to ensuring the political, economic, social and educational advancement of the peoples, as well as their just treatment, undertake to develop
self-government, to take due account of the political aspirations of the peoples, and to assist them in the progressive development of their free political institutions. Administering Powers are obliged to transmit regularly to the Secretary-General
statistical and other information on the economic, social and educational conditions in their respective Territories.

In 1946, eight Member States--Australia, Belgium, Denmark, France, the Netherlands, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States--enumerated the Territories under their administration which they considered to be non-self-governing. In all, 72 Territories were enumerated, of which eight became
independent before 1959. Transmission of information by the administering Power was discontinued for 21 others for various reasons. In some cases such as Puerto Rico, Greenland, Alaska and Hawaii, the General Assembly accepted the cessation of information, while in others, the decision was taken unilaterally
by the administering Power.

In 1963, the Assembly approved a revised list of Territories to which the 1960 Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples applied. This list of 64 Territories included the two remaining Trust Territories (Nauru
and the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands); all the Non-Self-Governing Territories for which information was transmitted under Article 73e of the Charter, including four administered by Spain; Namibia (then referred to as South West Africa); and those Non-Self-Governing Territories about which no information had been transmitted, but which the Assembly had
specifically deemed to be Non-Self-Governing Territories, namely the Territories under Portuguese administration and Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe). In 1965, the list was further expanded to include French Somaliland, now Djibouti, and Oman, while in
1972 the Comoro Islands were also included. New Caledonia was added in 1986.

From 1960 to 1990, 53 Territories attained self-government. As of 1992, there were 17 Non-Self-Governing Territories and one Trust Territory.


TERRITORIES TO WHICH THE DECLARATION ON DECOLONIZATION
CONTINUES TO APPLY (as at 30 June 1992)

Territory Administering Authority

Africa:

Western Sahara Spain (1)

Asia and the Pacific:

American Samoa United States
East Timor Portugal (2)
Guam United States
New Caledonia (3) France
Pitcairn United Kingdom
Tokelau New Zealand

Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean and Mediterranean:

Anguilla United Kingdom
Bermuda United Kingdom
British Virgin Islands United Kingdom
Cayman Islands United Kingdom
Falkland Islands (Malvinas) United Kingdom
Gibraltar United Kingdom
Montserrat United Kingdom
St. Helena United Kingdom
Turks and Caicos Islands United Kingdom
United States Virgin Islands United States


(1) On 26 February 1976, Spain informed the Secretary-General that
as of that date it had terminated its presence in the Territory
of the Sahara and deemed it necessary to place on record that Spain considered itself thenceforth exempt from any responsibility of an international nature in connection with the administration of the Territory, in view of the cessation of its participation in the temporary administration established for the
Territory. In November 1990, the General Assembly reaffirmed that the question of Western Sahara was a question of decolonization which remained to be completed by the people of Western Sahara.

(2) On 20 April 1977, Portugal informed the Secretary-General that effective exercise of its sovereignty over the Territory had ceased in August 1975 and that the only information that could be transmitted would concern the first months of 1975. In subsequent years, Portugal further informed the Secretary-General
that conditions prevailing in East Timor continued to prevent it from assuming its responsibilities for the administration of the Territory.

(3) On 2 December 1986, the General Assembly determined that New Caledonia was a Non-Self-Governing Territory.


<6.3> DECLARATION ON THE GRANTING OF INDEPENDENCE 05/03/94
TO COLONIAL COUNTRIES AND PEOPLES ac590

The urgent demands of dependent peoples to be free of colonial domination, and the international community's perception that Charter principles were being too slowly applied, led to the General Assembly's proclamation in December 1960 of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries
and Peoples (resolution 1514(XV)).

The Declaration states that the subjection of peoples to alien subjugation, domination and exploitation constitutes a denial of fundamental human rights, is contrary to the Charter, and is an impediment to the promotion of world peace and cooperation, and
that "immediate steps shall be taken, in Trust and
Non-Self-Governing Territories or all other Territories which have not yet attained independence, to transfer all powers to the peoples of those Territories, without any conditions or reservations, in accordance with their freely expressed will and
desire, without any distinction as to race, creed or colour in order to enable them to enjoy complete independence and freedom".

In 1961, the Assembly established a 17-member Special
Committee--enlarged to 24 members in 1962--to examine the application of the Declaration, and to make suggestions and recommendations on the progress and extent of its implementation. Commonly referred to as the Special Committee of 24 on decolonization, its full title is the Special Committee on the Situation with regard to the Implementation of the Declaration on
the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples.

The General Assembly has also adopted ad hoc resolutions to mark milestone anniversaries of the Declaration. By its resolution 43/47, the General Assembly, recalling that 1990 would mark the
thirtieth anniversary of the Declaration, declared 1990-2000 as the International Decade for the Eradication of Colonialism , and requested the Secretary-General to submit a report that would
enable the Assembly to consider and adopt an action plan aimed at ushering in the twenty-first century a world free from colonialism.

In a resolution adopted at its 45th session, the Assembly expressed its conviction that the thirtieth anniversary should provide an opportunity for Member States to rededicate themselves to the principles and objectives enunciated in the Declaration and for concerted efforts to be made to remove the last vestiges of colonialism in all regions of the world. It also urged the administering Powers to ensure that the activities of foreign economic interests did not run counter to the interest of the inhabitants of the Territories, requested Member States to ensure
that the permanent sovereignty of the colonial Territories over their natural resources was respected; reiterated that, as regards smaller Territories, factors such as size, location, size
of population and limited natural resources should not delay the speedy exercise of the people of colonial Territories of their right to self-determination and independence.

In three decades since the Declaration on decolonization was adopted in 1960, some 60 former colonial Territories, inhabited by more than 80 million people, have attained independence and
joined the United Nations as sovereign Members.

In its consideration of the Non-Self-Governing Territories, the General Assembly has each year reaffirmed that the continuation of colonialism in all its forms and manifestations is incompatible with the Charter, the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights and the Declaration on decolonization, and poses a serious threat to international peace and security.

The Assembly has called upon the administering Powers to take all necessary steps to enable the dependent peoples of the Territories to exercise fully and without delay their inalienable right to self-determination and independence. It has also called
upon the administering Powers to withdraw immediately and unconditionally their military bases and installations from colonial Territories and to refrain from establishing new ones, and it has condemned the continuing activities of foreign economic and other interests which are impeding the implementation of the Declaration.

With regard to the smaller Territories, the Assembly has repeatedly reaffirmed that questions of territorial size, geographical location, size of population and limited natural resources should in no way delay the implementation of the Declaration.

The Assembly has urged the specialized agencies and other organizations of the United Nations system to extend all necessary moral and material assistance to peoples of colonial Territories and to their national liberation movements. It has also invited all States to make, or continue to make, offers of study and training facilities for inhabitants of Non-Self-Governing Territories, including scholarships and travel funds.

In respect of certain territories, such as East Timor, the Falkland Islands (Malvinas), and Western Sahara, the Assembly has entrusted the Secretary-General with specific tasks in assisting in and facilitating the process of decolonization, in accordance with the United Nations Charter and the objectives of the Declaration.


TRUST AND NON-SELF-GOVERNING TERRITORIES THAT HAVE ACHIEVED INDEPENDENCE SINCE THE ADOPTION OF GENERAL ASSEMBLY RESOLUTION 1514(XV)


State or other entity Date of admission to
the United Nations

Africa:
Algeria 8 October 1962
Angola 1 December 1976
Botswana 17 October 1966
Burundi 18 September 1962
Cape Verde 16 September 1975
Comoros 12 November 1975
Djibouti 20 September 1977
Equatorial Guinea 12 November 1968
Gambia 21 September 1965
Guinea-Bissau 17 September 1974
Kenya 16 December 1963
Lesotho 17 October 1966
Malawi 1 December 1964
Mauritius 24 April 1968
Mozambique 16 September 1975
Namibia 23 April 1990
Rwanda 18 September 1962
Sao Tome and Principe 26 September 1975
Seychelles 21 September 1976
Sierra Leone 27 September 1961
Swaziland 24 September 1968
Uganda 25 October 1962
United Republic of Tanzania (1) 14 December 1961
Zambia 1 December 1964
Zimbabwe 18 April 1980

Asia:
Brunei Darussalam 21 September 1984
Democratic Yemen 14 December 1967
Oman 7 October 1971
Singapore 21 September 1965

Caribbean:
Antigua and Barbuda 11 November 1981
Bahamas 18 September 1973
Barbados 9 December 1966
Belize 25 September 1981
Dominica 18 December 1978
Grenada 17 December 1974
Guyana 20 September 1966
Jamaica 18 September 1962
Saint Christopher and Nevis 23 September 1983
Saint Lucia 18 September 1979
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 16 September 1980
Suriname (2) 4 December 1975
Trinidad and Tobago 18 September 1962

Europe:
Malta 1 December 1964

Pacific:
Federated States of Micronesia 17 September 1991
Fiji 13 October 1970
Kiribati (3) ----
Marshall Islands 17 September 1991
Nauru (3) ----
Papua New Guinea 10 October 1975
Samoa 15 December 1976
Solomon Islands 19 September 1978
Tuvalu (3) ----
Vanuatu 15 September 1981


(1) The former Trust Territory of Tanganyika, which became independent in December 1961, and the former Protectorate of Zanzibar, which achieved independence in December 1963, united into a single State in April 1974.

(2) By resolution 945(X), the General Assembly accepted the cessation of the transmission of information regarding Suriname following constitutional changes in the relationship between the
Netherlands, Suriname and the Netherlands Antilles which were embodied in the Charter of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

(3) Kiribati, Nauru and Tuvalu, which became independent on 12 July 1979, 31 January 1968 and 1 October 1978, respectively, have not applied for United Nations membership


<6.4> NAMIBIA 05/03/94
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Namibia--formerly known as South West Africa--was the only one of the seven African Territories once held under the League of Nations Mandate System that was not placed under the Trusteeship System. The General Assembly recommended in 1946 that South Africa do so, but South Africa refused. Instead, South Africa
informed the United Nations in 1949 that it would no longer transmit information on the Territory, on the grounds that the Mandate had lapsed with the demise of the League.

In 1950, the International Court of Justice held that South Africa continued to have international obligations towards the Territory, and that the United Nations should exercise the supervisory functions of the League of Nations in the administration of the Territory. South Africa refused to accept
the Court's opinion, and continued to oppose any form of United Nations supervision over the Territory.

In 1966, the Assembly declared that South Africa had failed to fulfil its obligations under the Mandate. It terminated that Mandate, and placed the Territory under the direct responsibility of the United Nations. In 1967, the Assembly established the
United Nations Council for South West Africa to administer the Territory until independence. It thus became the only Territory for which the United Nations, rather than a Member State, assumed
direct responsibility. In 1968, the Council was renamed the United Nations Council for Namibia, when the Assembly proclaimed that, in accordance with the wishes of its people, the Territory would be thenceforth known as Namibia.

Later that year, in the face of South Africa's refusal to accept the Assembly's decision and cooperate with the Council for Namibia, the Assembly recommended that the Security Council take measures to enable the Council to carry out its mandate.

In its first resolution on the question, the Security Council, in 1969, recognized the termination of the Mandate, described the continued presence of South Africa as illegal, and called on South Africa to withdraw its administration immediately. In 1970, the Security Council declared for the first time that all
acts taken by South Africa concerning Namibia after the
termination of the Mandate were "illegal and invalid".

This view was upheld in 1971 by the International Court of Justice. The Court stated that South Africa's presence was illegal, and that South Africa was under obligation to withdraw its administration. South Africa, however, continued to refuse to comply with the United Nations resolutions, and continued its
illegal administration of Namibia, including the imposition of apartheid laws, the bantustanization of the Territory, and the exploitation of its resources.

The Council for Namibia enacted in 1974 a Decree for the Protection of the Natural Resources of Namibia, under which no person or entity could search for, take or distribute any natural resources found in Namibia without the Council's permission. Any person or entity contravening the Decree could be held liable for
damages by the future government of an independent Namibia.

Also in 1974, the Council established the Institute for Namibia, located in Lusaka, Zambia. The Institute, which operated until after independence, provided Namibians with education and training equipping them to administer a free Namibia.

In 1976 the Security Council for the first time demanded that South Africa accept elections for the Territory under United Nations supervision and control.

In the same year, the General Assembly condemned South Africa for organizing so-called constitutional talks at Windhoek, Namibia's capital, designed to perpetuate the colonial oppression and exploitation of Namibia. It decided that any independence talks must be between South Africa and the South West Africa People's
Organization (SWAPO), which the Assembly recognized as the sole and authentic representative of the Namibian people.

The Assembly also launched a comprehensive assistance programme in support of Namibia's nationhood, involving assistance by United Nations organizations and specialized agencies.

In 1977, the Assembly declared that South Africa's decision to annex Walvis Bay--Namibia's main port and vital economic avenue--was illegal, null and void and an act of colonial expansion.

At a special session on Namibia in 1978, the Assembly expressed support for the armed liberation struggle of the Namibian people, and stated that any settlement must be arrived at with the agreement of SWAPO and within the framework of United Nations resolutions.

The United Nations plan for Namibian independence. In 1978, Canada, France, the Federal Republic of Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States submitted to the Security Council a proposal for settling the question of Namibia. According to the proposal, elections for a Constituent Assembly would be held
under United Nations auspices. Every stage of the electoral process would be conducted to the satisfaction of a Special Representative for Namibia appointed by the Secretary-General. A United Nations Transition Assistance Group (UNTAG) would be at
the disposal of the Special Representative to help him supervise the political process and to ensure that all parties observed all provisions of an agreed solution.

The Security Council requested the Secretary-General to appoint a Special Representative for Namibia and to submit recommendations for implementing the settlement proposal. By resolution 435 (1978), the Council endorsed the United Nations plan for Namibia
and decided to establish UNTAG.

In 1980, South Africa accepted the plan proposed by the five Powers and in 1981 participated in a pre-implementation meeting at Geneva. However, South Africa did not agree to proceed towards a cease-fire, one of the conditions set by the United Nations for implementing resolution 435. Negotiations were again
stalled when South Africa attached new conditions which the United Nations did not accept, in particular one which linked the independence of Namibia with the withdrawal of Cuban troops from Angola.

In the following years, the Secretary-General and his Special Representative travelled extensively throughout southern Africa, discussing problems, clarifying positions, exploring new concepts
and exchanging views with all parties. Various countries promoted talks on the issue--among them the five Western sponsors of the 1978 proposal and Zambia. Gradually the unresolved matters yielded to the give and take of negotiations.

The Secretary-General reported in 1987 that all outstanding issues relevant to the United Nations plan, including the choice of an electoral system, had been resolved. Only the condition linking independence to troop withdrawal remained an obstacle.

On 22 December 1988, a tripartite agreement among Angola, Cuba and South Africa, mediated by the United States, was signed at United Nations Headquarters. The agreement committed the signatory States to a series of measures to achieve peace in the
region, and opened the way to the United Nations independence plan. Under the agreement, South Africa undertook to cooperate with the Secretary-General to ensure Namibia's independence through free and fair elections.

At the same time, Angola and Cuba signed an agreement on the withdrawal of Cuban troops from Angola. In accordance with this agreement, the United Nations sent an observer mission--the United Nations Angola Verification Mission--to Angola to verify the withdrawal of Cuban troops (see section on UNAVEM under
Peacemaking and Peace-keeping in Chapter III).

The starting date for the implementation of the independence plan was 1 April 1989.

UNTAG was made up of people of 124 nationalities. An
international staff of some 900 civilians observed the whole electoral process, conducted by the Namibian authorities. UNTAG's 1,500 police officers ensured a smooth electoral process and monitored the local police. Its 4,300 military staff monitored the cease-fire between SWAPO and South African forces,
and the withdrawal and demobilization of all military forces in Namibia. Namibia was divided into 23 electoral districts. Registration centres were set up all over the country. Some 2,200 rural registration points were covered by 110 mobile registration teams.

Registration of voters began on 3 July 1989. When the process ended on 23 September, 701,483 Namibians had registered, and more than 34,000 had been helped to repatriate by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees--of some 41,000 registered with that agency.

The elections, held from 7 to 11 November 1989 to choose the 72 delegates to the Constituent Assembly, saw a voter turnout of 97 per cent. UNTAG monitored the balloting and the counting of votes. On 14 November, the Special Representative for Namibia
declared that the elections had been free and fair. SWAPO obtained 41 Assembly seats. The Democratic Turnhalle Alliance obtained 21 seats, and five smaller parties shared the remaining 10.

By 22 November 1989, South Africa's remaining troops had left Namibia. The Constituent Assembly met for the first time on 21 November to draft a new Constitution, which was unanimously approved on 9 February 1990. On 16 February the Assembly elected
SWAPO leader Sam Nujoma as President of the Republic for a five-year term.

Namibia became independent on 21 March 1990. On that day, in Windhoek, the United Nations Secretary-General administered the oath of office to Namibia's first President. On 23 April 1990, Namibia became the United Nations' 160th Member.

The operation that led to Namibia's independence was one of the most complex ever undertaken by the United Nations. Because of its combined military and civilian components, it stands as a unique experience in United Nations history.