The status of the right to secession in international law within the context of the conflict between the principles of self-determination and territorial integrity

Abstract

The principles of self-determination and territorial integrity are some of the most important norms in modern international law, enshrined in the UN Charter and numerous subsequent sources of law. However, in practice, the two come in conflict when a minority group’s desire for complete self-determination in the form of secession confronts the territorial inviolability of the state within which that group resides. This paper seeks to answer how such a situation is managed by the international community through examining the status of a right to secession in international law. It is a concept surrounded by much controversy, however, in the contemporary international arena, where secessionist movements play an important role in conflicts, the right to secession cannot go unaddressed. The objective of this paper is to analyse the approach taken in international law to the right to secession and dissect which elements of this approach ought to be improved.