UN body brainstorms future of colonized territories

Tony Hotland ,  The Jakarta Post ,  Bandung   |  Thu, 05/15/2008 12:35 PM  |  World

Representatives of colonized territories, administering powers and the United Nations decolonization body on Wednesday kicked off a meeting on the future of the world's remaining 16 non-self-governing territories.

Chairman of the UN's decolonization committee Marty Natalegawa, also Indonesia's UN Ambassador, said the three-day meeting was to promote constructive communication between the administering powers and the governed territories.

Marty said some of the territories still had disputes with the administering powers over jurisdiction, while others, mostly island territories, were being questioned whether or not they would be sustainable on their own.

"This meeting is to take into account the existing realities because each territory has its own circumstances. We need to inform ourselves so there will be progress," said Marty, who was elected chairman in February.

Territories with no jurisdiction disputes with their administering powers, Marty said, had three options regarding their future: independence, free association (autonomy) and integration.

"Many of these territories have had internal and constitutional reviews with the respective administering powers. An instance is Tokelau, which recently chose not to opt for independence through a referendum. We need to see the realities on the ground," he said.

Tokelau is New Zealand's last dependent territory. A UN-sponsored referendum on self-determination took place in February 2006, with the majority of votes for autonomy but falling short of the two-thirds majority required for it to pass.

A repeat referendum was held in October 2007, again narrowly failing to approve autonomy with votes short by just 3 percent.

For the territories whose ability to self-govern is in question, the meeting is also to address how the UN system can be of help in terms of capacity building or economic development, Marty said.

"These small island territories are prone to environmental degradation, and the UN can be of service."

He added that the committee was important for Indonesia "to leave an imprint on a mission that is very dear to us".

Bandung hosted the 1955 Asia-Africa conference during a time when many of these countries were still colonized. Indonesia had been colonized by Portugal, the Netherlands and Japan respectively before proclaiming independence in 1945.

The special committee on granting independence to colonial countries and peoples, or the Committee of 24, has assisted, since its 1945 inception, nearly 750 million people attain independence in more than 80 former colonized territories.

According to UN Charter, non-self-governing territories are those whose peoples have not yet attained a full measure of self-government.

Of the remaining 16 such territories, half are in the Americas, five in Oceania, two in Africa and one in Europe.

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