Decolonisation_of_Oceania

Decolonisation of Oceania

Decolonisation of Oceania

Independence of Oceanic countries from colonial rule

The decolonisation of Oceania occurred after World War II when nations in Oceania achieved independence by transitioning from European colonial rule to full independence.

While most of the countries of Oceania have a specific independence day, the independence of Australia and the independence of New Zealand were a gradual process and cannot be associated clearly with a specific date. Most of the British colonies in Australia gained responsible government in the 1850s, as did New Zealand in 1856. This was formalised into Dominion status in the 1900s, but with the United Kingdom retaining certain (disused) powers de jure. Although they were de facto sovereign states by the 1920s, Australia and New Zealand refused the formal recognition of their full sovereignty when offered through the Statute of Westminster in 1931, before accepting it respectively in 1942 and 1947.

Oceania continues to include a number of dependent territories controlled by colonial powers. The United Nations list of non-self-governing territories includes six Oceanian territories – the French dependencies of French Polynesia and New Caledonia, the American territories of American Samoa and Guam, the British dependency of Pitcairn Islands, and the New Zealand territory of Tokelau.

Timeline

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Stages of decolonisation

More information Country, Date of current form of government ...

Oceania

This is a list of all present sovereign states in Oceania[19] and their predecessors. The region of Oceania is generally defined geographically to include the subregions of Australasia,[20] Melanesia,[21] Micronesia and Polynesia, and their respective sovereign states. Oceania was originally colonised by Europeans with Australia and New Zealand primarily by the British, and the Pacific Islands primarily by the British, French and Dutch. Today, Oceania consists of fourteen sovereign states of various government types, the most common consisting of parliamentary systems.

More information Sovereign state, Predecessors ...

See also

Notes

  1. [1]
    Some territories changed hands multiple times, so in the list is mentioned the last colonial power. In addition to it, the mandatory or trustee powers are mentioned for territories that were League of Nations mandates and UN Trust Territories.
  2. [2]
    Date of decolonization for territories annexed by or integrated into previously decolonized independent countries are given in separate notes, as are dates when a commonwealth realm abolished its monarchy. Any discrepancies between dates listed here and public holidays celebrating the country's independence (and whether the date listed is celebrated as a holiday at all) are noted, as well as the national day if the country does not have an independence day.
  3. [3]
    First head of state after independence. For current and former Commonwealth realms instead of the first head of state is listed as the first head of government.
  4. [4]
    Many Indigenous Australians and supporters of the Australian Indigenous sovereignty movement would contest the status of Australia as decolonised, noting that neither colonial Britain nor the subsequent Commonwealth of Australia ever signed a treaty with any of the hundreds of distinct Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander societies that existed prior to colonisation and still exist today. See:
    Ghillar, Michael Anderson (15 June 2015). "Decolonisation: to be or not to be included in the Constitution?". Sovereign Union.;
    Taylor, Zoe (5 December 2017). "Listen up: decolonisation is a collective effort by all Australians". Curtin University.;
    Korff, Jens (5 September 2021). "Decolonisation: What does it mean for me?". Creative Spirits.;
    Barayamal (6 January 2023). "What is decolonising Australia?".
  5. [5]
    Transcontinental country, partially located in Asia.
  6. [6]
    Not celebrated as a holiday. Netherlands New Guinea was separated from the Dutch East Indies on 29 December 1949. Following skirmishes with Indonesia in 1961 and the New York Agreement, the Netherlands transferred the authority of Dutch New Guinea to a UN protectorate on 1 October 1962 and it was integrated into Indonesia on 1 May 1963. The date 17 August 1945 (when Sukarno formally proclaimed Indonesia's independence) is celebrated as Indonesia's date of independence.
  7. [7]
    Joint position known as O Ao o le Malo, whose individuals are severally referred to as O le Ao o le Malo.
  8. [8]
    As a League of Nations mandate and later UN Trust Territory Nauru was under effective Australian administration with the United Kingdom and New Zealand as nominal co-trustees.
  9. [9]
    As the Dominion of Fiji.
  10. [10]
    Celebrated as Fiji Day. (While Fiji does not have a holiday called Independence Day, Fiji Day is celebrated as such). On 7 October 1987 after two military coups, Fiji formally abolished its Commonwealth monarchy and became a republic.
  11. [11]
    Having been out of office since 13 April 1987, on 5 December Mara was sworn in along with Penaia Ganilau as Prime Minister and President respectively. From the abolition of Fiji's monarchy to Mara's and Ganilau's inauguration, Sitiveni Rabuka served as Head of the Interim Military Government.
  12. [12]
    The main part of German New Guinea after the World War I became a League of Nations mandate and later a UN Trust Territory as the Territory of New Guinea under Australian administration. The Territory of Papua was a British colony transferred to the British Dominion of Australian administration in 1902.
  13. [13]
    Vanuatu was a joint British-French Condominium
  14. [14]
    See 1983 Marshallese Compact of Free Association referendum.
  15. [15]
    See 1983 Micronesian Compact of Free Association referendum.
  16. [16]
    Since 4 August 1965 the Cook Islands are a state in free association with New Zealand. The UN recognized them as a state under international law in 1992 Archived 19 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine. The Cook Islands are fully independent in their foreign relations and defence, but retain a residual constitutional link with New Zealand concerning citizenship.
  17. [17]
    Since 19 October 1974 Niue is a state in free association with New Zealand. The UN recognized it as a state under international law in 1994 Archived 19 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine. Niue is fully independent in its foreign relations and defence but retains a residual constitutional link with New Zealand concerning citizenship.
  18. [18]
    Finlayson, Christopher (20 March 2024). He Kupu Taurangi : Treaty settlements and the future of Aotearoa New Zealand. Huia Publishers. p. 14. ISBN 978-1-77550-615-7. OCLC 1238026659.
  19. [19]
    "United Nations Statistics Division – Countries of Oceania". Millenniumindicators.un.org. Archived from the original on 13 July 2011. Retrieved 17 April 2009.
  20. [20]
    The use and scope of this term varies. The UN designation for this subregion is "Australia and New Zealand."
  21. [21]
    Excludes parts of Indonesia, island territories in Southeast Asia (UN region) frequently reckoned in this region.
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