52 Anyangwe/Right to self-determination under the African Charter Separate statehood for an entity may legitimately be achieved in several ways: by agreement between the parties; by the exercise of a constitutional right to secede after following due constitutional processes;12 by force as the appropriate remedy of last resort in the face of grave injustice and unremitting human rights abuses;13 through a legitimate referendum; or following the dissolution of a constitutive federation.14 It is the declared policy of the UN and of states in general to oppose any attempt at the partial or total disruption of the national unity and territorial integrity of a country. However, state practice and the consistent and cumulative view of the organs of the UN since the late 1980s show that the right of self-determination may be exercised even within independent states. The separation of Somaliland from Somalia, and the recent secession of South Sudan from Sudan and that of Kosovo from Serbia are clear examples, as are the Russianrecognised Georgian break-away regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia.15 2.3 Self-determination and secession When a nation within a state claims external self-determination it is in fact claiming a ‘right’ to secede. Secession clashes with the principle of territorial integrity. It results in the dismemberment of the state concerned and for that reason it is generally disapproved of. It is tolerated by the international community only in exceptional circumstances (as a remedy of last resort) such as cases of massive human rights violations against a distinct people or where secession is carried out with the acquiescence of the state concerned. Beyond these exceptional cases, self-determination by way of secession is generally frowned upon due to its adverse effects on the state system. Secession is considered too disruptive of international stability. Indeed, the number of self-identified nations today far exceeds the number of existing states. Moreover, even if there was a willingness on the part of the international community to redraw boundaries according to selfidentified nations within states, there is no legal process for redrawing state boundaries according to the will of peoples.16 The same concern about international stability is also the reason for the disapproval of territorial aggrandisement or the annexation of territories. In this connection, while self-determination may be of some use in resolving cases of disputed frontier lines on the basis of the wishes of the 12 13 14 15 16 A Kreptul ‘The constitutional right of secession in political theory and history’ (2003) 17 Journal of Libertarian Studies 39. A Buchanan Justice, legitimacy and self-determination: moral foundations for international law (2007). N Jayawickrama The judicial application of human rights law (2002) 228. For other examples of self-determination claims in the recent past, see C Anyangwe ‘Manumission from black-on-black colonialism: Sovereign statehood for the British Southern Cameroons’ in S Ndlovu-Gatsheni & B Mhlanga (eds) Bondage of boundaries and identity politics in postcolonial Africa 163, 166. Pavkovic & Radan (n 2).