The Doctrine of Occupation through “<i>Terra Nullius</i>” as a Right of Self-Determination of Peoples and the Legal Status of “Liberland” Territory under International Law

Abstract

There has been much written about the legality of peoples’ right to self-determination, particularly the external aspect that involves the secession of a state or the formation of a new state through the landmass division of an existing state. This article departs from discussing the right of peoples to self-determination through secession and instead investigates the doctrine of occupation through terra nullius as an aspect of the right of peoples to self-determination. This article contends that the relationship between peoples’ right to self-determination and terra nullius is untenable under current international law. As a result, the author of this article disputes the liberland territory’s claim as State under the claims of terra nullius , arguing that claims of terra nullius cannot be legally claimed by an individual person, despite the territory meeting some of the requirements set out in Article 1 of the Montevideo convention on how to recognize a State. To reach its conclusion, this study employed a qualitative research method.