Also known as: Self Determination
Self-determination is the right or capacity of a people or group to define their political, social, cultural, and economic development. In Indigenous and governance contexts, it includes autonomy, self-government, and the ability to control decisions affecting internal and local affairs.
Indigenous groups can define "self-determination" in several different ways. The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), Article 3 states that "Indigenous peoples have the right of self-determination. By virtue of that right, they freely determine their political status and freely pursue their economic, social, and cultural development." Article 4 states that "Indigenous peoples, in exercising their right to self-determination, have the right to autonomy or self-government in matters relating to their internal and local affairs, as well as ways and means for financing their autonomous functions."