United Nations General Assembly Resolution 1541 (XV)

United Nations General Assembly Resolution 1541 (XV), adopted on December 15, 1960, is a key resolution regarding self-determination and the factors determining whether a territory has reached a full measure of self-government. It is titled "Principles which should guide Members in determining whether or not an obligation exists to transmit information called for under Article 73 e of the Charter."

The resolution arose in the context of the decolonization era and the ongoing debate about which territories administered by member states of the United Nations were considered "non-self-governing territories" requiring the administering power to report to the UN on their economic, social, and educational conditions, as stipulated in Article 73(e) of the UN Charter.

Resolution 1541 (XV) provided a set of principles to guide the General Assembly and member states in deciding when a territory had achieved a "full measure of self-government." These principles are crucial because they determine whether a member state is still obligated to transmit information about a particular territory under Article 73(e).

The resolution outlines three main ways a territory can achieve a full measure of self-government:

• Emergence as a sovereign independent State: This refers to the traditional process of a colony gaining independence and becoming a fully recognized sovereign nation.
• Free association with an independent State: This involves a freely negotiated relationship between a territory and an independent state, based on equality and the right of the territory to change its status in the future through a free and democratic process. The territory must retain the right to determine its internal constitution without external interference.
• Integration with an independent State: This occurs when a territory integrates fully into an independent state on the basis of complete equality between the inhabitants of the former territory and those of the independent state. The integration must be the result of a freely expressed wish of the territory's people, typically through a referendum or other democratic means.

The resolution emphasizes that the choice of status must be the result of a free and voluntary decision by the people of the territory, expressed through informed and democratic processes. The UN has frequently referred back to Resolution 1541 (XV) when evaluating the status of territories claiming to have achieved self-government through one of these three methods. It remains a significant document in international law and decolonization.