that created neo-colonialism.”67 A glaring example of this includes the
case of Resolution 1803 (XVII), which called for the right of peoples
to permanent sovereignty over natural resources. Despite states from
the Global South succeeding in pushing for this resolution, the UNGA
included a clause on the obligation of states to compensate private, and
often colonial, companies in the case of expropriation.68
The reality of neocolonialism and/or partial decolonization has manifested
in South Africa in different ways, where colonialism’s enduring effects
and new articulations are undeniable. Despite the abolition of formal
apartheid, apartheid in South Africa, “did not die; it was privatized.”69
Wide-spread systemic segregation and racial discrimination still exists in
South Africa today, primarily due to the fact that decolonization was not
fully realized as the application of international law and legal principles
was incomplete.
The work of the UN and the international community alike have undoubtedly
succeeded in delegitimizing certain forms of overt colonization. However,
despite the legal foundations, it is clear that the application of the existing
legal framework on decolonization is insufficient and negligent. Accordingly,
proper decolonization can only unfold when international law is taken as a
whole, and when the international community meets all of its obligations
under international legal principles. The underlying problem with the lack
of substantial avenues for effective decolonization, especially in the case of
Palestine, is not necessarily due to a lack of legal mechanisms. In fact, it is the
lack of political will and selective and/or partial application of international
law that prevents the total elimination of colonization. As such, a thorough
rights-based and accountability-based approach is necessary in order to
envision an effective framework for decolonization.
67 Antony Anghie, Imperialism, Sovereignty, and the Making of International Law (Cambridge University
Press 2006), 192.
68 Resolution 1803 (XVII) (n 50), art 4.
69 Sizwe Mpofu-Walsh, The New Apartheid (Tafelberg 2021), 6.
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