Explainer

Independence, autonomy and self-government

Three different political arrangements that are often confused, and why this atlas keeps them apart.

2 min read · updated 15 September 2026

Independence

Independence means a separate sovereign state. A 1933 regional treaty among American states lists four qualifications of a state: a permanent population, a defined territory, government and capacity to enter into relations with other states.[1] Some processes define the term themselves: Greenland’s Self-Government Act says independence would mean Greenland assuming sovereignty over its territory, and the governments of Papua New Guinea and Bougainville agreed a definition that includes recognition and UN membership.[2][3]

Autonomy

Autonomy means a region governs some of its own affairs inside an existing state. The powers and guarantees differ. Iraq’s Constitution recognises the Kurdistan Region as a federal region with its own legislative, executive and judicial powers outside exclusive federal matters, and the Bougainville Peace Agreement gives Bougainville a home-grown constitution and a right to take on more powers over time.[4][5]

Self-government

Self-government is used in two senses. In UN decolonisation practice, a “full measure of self-government” can be reached through independence, free association or integration with an independent state.[6] In domestic arrangements it can describe wide powers that stop short of statehood: under Greenland’s arrangement, for example, foreign, defence and monetary policy cannot be transferred.[7]

How this site uses the terms

The atlas records objectives by actor and date rather than giving a whole movement one label. A case can appear in more than one collection: “Independence movements”, “Political status and decolonisation” and “Autonomy and Indigenous self-government” are browsing aids, not verdicts.

Goals also change. According to the BBC, the PKK called for independence when founded in 1978 and shifted to demands for autonomy in the 1990s.[8]

Sources for this page

Each number marks a specific claim. Notes give the source, its locator and how it relates to the claim.

  1. 1.

    Claim: Article 1 of the 1933 Montevideo Convention lists a permanent population, a defined territory, government and capacity to enter into relations with other states as qualifications of a state.

    • Seventh International Conference of American States, Convention on Rights and Duties of States (Montevideo Convention) (The Avalon Project, Yale Law School (copy), 26 December 1933) link, art. 1. Government perspective or primary official source Source record
  2. 2.

    Claim: Greenland’s Self-Government Act states that independence would mean Greenland assuming sovereignty over its territory.

    • Statsministeriet (Prime Minister’s Office, Denmark), Act no. 473 of 12 June 2009 on Greenland Self-Government (Statsministeriet, 12 June 2009) link, s. 21(4), PDF p. 5. Source record
  3. 3.

    Claim: Before the 2019 Bougainville referendum the two governments agreed that independence meant a nation recognised under international law and by other states as separate from Papua New Guinea, with a defined territory, a government chosen by its people and capacity for international relations and UN membership.

    • Government of Papua New Guinea and Autonomous Bougainville Government, Joint Communique on the Outcome of the Bougainville Referendum (UN Peacemaker (copy), 11 January 2021) link, PDF pp. 1–2. Government perspective or primary official source Source record
  4. 4.

    Claim: Iraq’s 2005 Constitution recognises the region of Kurdistan and its existing authorities as a federal region, with executive, legislative and judicial powers outside the federal government’s exclusive powers.

    • Republic of Iraq, Iraq’s Constitution of 2005 (Constitute Project, 2005) link, arts. 117 and 121. Government perspective or primary official source Source record
  5. 5.

    Claim: The Bougainville Peace Agreement provides for an autonomous Bougainville Government under a home-grown constitution, with a constitutional right to assume increasing control over powers and resources.

    • Government of Papua New Guinea and Leaders representing the people of Bougainville, Bougainville Peace Agreement (United Nations Security Council, 23 October 2001) link, Introduction and outline, PDF p. 12. Government perspective or primary official source Source record
  6. 6.

    Claim: Under resolution 1541 (XV), a Non-Self-Governing Territory can be said to have reached a full measure of self-government by emergence as a sovereign independent State, free association with an independent State, or integration with an independent State.

    • United Nations General Assembly, General Assembly resolution 1541 (XV): Principles which should guide Members in determining whether or not an obligation exists to transmit the information called for under Article 73 e of the Charter (United Nations, 15 December 1960) link, annex, principle VI. Source record
  7. 7.

    Claim: Under the Greenland arrangement, the constitution, nationality, the Supreme Court, foreign, defence and security policy and monetary policy cannot be transferred.

    • Statsministeriet (Prime Minister’s Office, Denmark), Greenland (Statsministeriet) link, section on assumption of fields of responsibility. Government perspective or primary official source Source record
  8. 8.

    Claim: According to the BBC, the PKK called for an independent state when founded in 1978 and in the 1990s shifted to demands for greater cultural and political autonomy. Attributed to BBC News (2019)

    • BBC News, Who are the Kurds? (BBC, First published 21 October 2014; updated 15 October 2019) link, section on Turkey. Source record

Source note

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