This is a list of currently active

separatist Separatism is the advocacy of cultural, ethnic, tribal, religious, racial, governmental or gender separation from the larger group. As with secession, separatism conventionally refers to full political separation. Groups simply seeking greate ...

movements in

Oceania Oceania (, , ) is a region, geographical region that includes Australasia, Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Spanning the Eastern Hemisphere, Eastern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres, Oceania is estimated to have a land area of ...

. Separatism includes

autonomism Autonomism, also known as autonomist Marxism is an anti-capitalist left-wing political and social movement and theory. As a theoretical system, it first emerged in Italy in the 1960s from workerism (). Later, post-Marxist and anarchist tendenc ...

and

secession Secession is the withdrawal of a group from a larger entity, especially a political entity, but also from any organization, union or military alliance. Some of the most famous and significant secessions have been: the former Soviet republics le ...

ism. What is and is not considered an autonomist or secessionist movement is sometimes contentious. Entries on this list must meet three criteria: #They are active movements with living, active members. #They are seeking greater autonomy or self-determination for a geographic region (as opposed to personal autonomy). #They are the citizen/peoples of the contested area. Under each region listed is one or more of the following *''De facto'' state: for regions with ''

de facto ''De facto'' ( ; , "in fact") describes practices that exist in reality, whether or not they are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms. It is commonly used to refer to what happens in practice, in contrast with ''de jure'' ("by la ...

'' autonomy from the government *Proposed state: proposed name for a seceding

sovereign state A sovereign state or sovereign country, is a polity, political entity represented by one central government that has supreme legitimate authority over territory. International law defines sovereign states as having a permanent population, defin ...

*Proposed autonomous area: for movements toward greater autonomy for an area but not outright secession **''De facto'' autonomous government: for governments with ''de facto'' autonomous control over a region **Government-in-exile: for a government based outside of the region in question, with or without control **Political party (or parties): for

political parties A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or pol ...

involved in a political system to push for autonomy or secession **Militant organisation(s): for armed organisations **Advocacy group(s): for non-belligerent, non-politically participatory entities **

Ethnic An ethnic group or an ethnicity is a grouping of people who identify with each other on the basis of shared attributes that distinguish them from other groups. Those attributes can include common sets of traditions, ancestry, language, history, ...

ethno-religious An ethnoreligious group (or an ethno-religious group) is a grouping of people who are unified by a common religious and ethnic background. Furthermore, the term ethno-religious group, along with ethno-regional and ethno-linguistic groups, is a s ...

racial A race is a categorization of humans based on shared physical or social qualities into groups generally viewed as distinct within a given society. The term came into common usage during the 1500s, when it was used to refer to groups of variou ...

regional In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

religious Religion is usually defined as a social system, social-cultural system of designated religious behaviour, behaviors and practices, morality, morals, beliefs, worldviews, religious text, texts, sacred site, sanctified places, prophecy, prophecie ...

group(s)

Australia

Aboriginal Australians Aboriginal Australians are the various Indigenous peoples of the Australian mainland and many of its islands, such as Tasmania, Fraser Island, Hinchinbrook Island, the Tiwi Islands, and Groote Eylandt, but excluding the Torres Strait Islands ...

* Ethnic group: Aboriginal Australians ** Proposed state:

various Various may refer to: * Various (band), an English dubstep/electronic music duo * Various artists, a term for a compilation album containing pieces by various musicians * Various authors, a book containing works by several writers * '' The Vario ...

** Pressure groups:

Aboriginal Tent Embassy The Aboriginal Tent Embassy is a permanent protest occupation site as a focus for representing the political rights of Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islander people. Established on 26 January (Australia Day) 1972, and celebrating i ...

Murrawarri Republic The Murrawarri Republic is a micronation that declared its independence from Australia in 2013, claiming territory straddling the border of the states of New South Wales and Queensland within Australia. The territory is the traditional homelan ...

* Ethnic group:

Norfolk Islanders Norfolk Islanders also referred to as just Islanders are the inhabitants or citizens of Norfolk Island, an States and territories of Australia, external territory of Australia. The Islanders have their own unique identity and are predominantly ...

**Proposed state: Norfolk Island ** Pressure groups: Norfolk Island Party

Torres Strait Islands The Torres Strait Islands are a group of at least 274 small islands in the Torres Strait, a waterway separating far northern continental Australia's Cape York Peninsula and the island of New Guinea. They span an area of , but their total land ...

* Ethnic group:

Torres Strait Islanders Torres Strait Islanders () are the Indigenous Melanesian people of the Torres Strait Islands, which are part of the state of Queensland, Australia. Ethnically distinct from the Aboriginal people of the rest of Australia, they are often grouped ...

** Proposed state:

*Proposed state:

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

**Political party:

WAxit Party The Small Business Party (formerly Micro Business Party and WAxit Party) is a political party registered in the Australian state of Western Australia. The party's primary platform is secessionism of Western Australia from the Federation. Histo ...

*Proposed state:

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

** Pressure groups:

First Party of Tasmania Secessionism in Tasmania has been proposed several times throughout Tasmania's history. Pre-federation Before Federation, there was a lot of support for Tasmania joining the Commonwealth, though there was some opposition. The opposition argued th ...

* Proposed state:

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

** Advocacy group: Victorian Independence Movement

Chile

(Easter Island) *Ethnic group:

Rapa Nui Easter Island ( rap, Rapa Nui; es, Isla de Pascua) is an island and special territory of Chile in the southeastern Pacific Ocean, at the southeasternmost point of the Polynesian Triangle in Oceania. The island is most famous for its nearly ...

Federated States of Micronesia

*People: Chuukese ** Proposed state: Chuuk

France

French Polynesia on the globe (French Polynesia centered)

* Ethnic group:

Tahitians The Tahitians ( ty, Māohi; french: Tahitiens) are the Polynesian ethnic group indigenous to Tahiti and thirteen other Society Islands in French Polynesia. The numbers may also include the modern population in these islands of mixed Polynesian ...

** Political party: Tavini Huiraatira ** Proposed state: Flag_of_French_Polynesia

Tahiti Tahiti (; Tahitian ; ; previously also known as Otaheite) is the largest island of the Windward group of the Society Islands in French Polynesia. It is located in the central part of the Pacific Ocean and the nearest major landmass is Austr ...

Kingdom of Tahiti The Kingdom of Tahiti was a monarchy founded by paramount chief Pōmare I, who, with the aid of British missionaries and traders, and European weaponry, unified the islands of Tahiti, Moʻorea, Teti‘aroa, and Mehetia. The kingdom eventually ...

Marquesas The Marquesas Islands (; french: Îles Marquises or ' or '; Marquesan: ' ( North Marquesan) and ' ( South Marquesan), both meaning "the land of men") are a group of volcanic islands in French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France in t ...

* Ethnic group:

** Proposed State: Flag of Marquesas Islands

Independent from but remaining within the

French Republic France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

Moorea Moorea ( or ; Tahitian: ), also spelled Moorea, is a volcanic island in French Polynesia. It is one of the Windward Islands, a group that is part of the Society Islands, northwest of Tahiti. The name comes from the Tahitian word , meaning " ...

* Proposed state: Republic of Hau Pakumotu * Ethnic groups:

Kanaks The Kanak ( French spelling until 1984: Canaque) are the indigenous Melanesian inhabitants of New Caledonia, an overseas collectivity of France in the southwest Pacific. According to the 2019 census, the Kanak make up 41.2% of New Caledonia's ...

Caldoche Caldoche is the name given to European inhabitants of the France, French overseas collectivity of New Caledonia, mostly native-born European origin French. The formal name to refer to this particular population is ', short for the very formal ' ...

** Political parties:

Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front The Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front (french: Front de Libération Nationale Kanak et Socialiste, FLNKS) is a pro-independence alliance of political parties in New Caledonia. It was founded in 1984 at a congress of various politica ...

Caledonian Union The Caledonian Union (, UC) is a pro-independence and the oldest political party in New Caledonia. In the latest legislative elections of May 10, 2009, the party won around 11.65% of the popular vote, and 9 out of 54 seats in the Territorial Co ...

Party of Kanak Liberation The Party of Kanak Liberation (french: Parti de libération kanak, Palika) is a socialist pro-independence political party in New Caledonia. It is a component of the National Union for Independence, which in turn is one of the two components of ...

Kanak Socialist Liberation The Kanak Socialist Liberation (french: link=no, Libération Kanak Socialiste, LKS) is a Kanak pro-independence and socialist political party in New Caledonia. History The LKS was founded by a split in the Party of Kanak Liberation (Palika) i ...

,
Labour Party,

Federation of Pro-Independence Co-operation Committees The Federation of Pro-Independence Co-operation Committees () is a political party in New Caledonia supporting the island's independence from France, although it is the most moderate of all nationalist parties. The FCCI was founded in 1998 by th ...

Renewed Caledonian Union The Renewed Caledonian Union (, UC-R) is a political party in New Caledonia formed by dissidents from the Caledonian Union. It is a member of the National Union for Independence (UNI) coalition, which is in turn a member of the Kanak and Socialis ...

** Proposed state: Flag_of_FLNKS

New Caledonia ) , anthem = "" , image_map = New Caledonia on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , map_alt = Location of New Caledonia , map_caption = Location of New Caledonia , mapsize = 290px , subdivision_type = Sovereign st ...

or Kanaky

Indonesia

Maluku (province) Maluku is a province of Indonesia. It comprises the central and southern regions of the Maluku Islands. The main city and capital of Maluku province is Ambon on the small Ambon Island. The land area is 62,946 km2, and the total population ...

* Ethnic group:

Moluccans Moluccans are the Austronesian-speaking and Papuan-speaking ethnic groups indigenous to the Maluku Islands (also called the Moluccas), Indonesia. The region was historically known as the Spice Islands, and today consists of two Indonesian provin ...

** Proposed state: Flag_of_South_Moluccas

South Moluccas ** Government-in-exile:

Republik Maluku Selatan South Maluku, also South Moluccas, officially the Republic of South Maluku, was an unrecognised secessionist republic that claimed the islands of Ambon, Buru, and Seram, which make up the Indonesian province of Maluku. Dutch conquest exerte ...

(member of the

Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization The Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization, or simply UNPO is an international organization established to facilitate the voices of unrepresented and marginalised nations and peoples worldwide. It was formed on 11 February 1991 in The Ha ...

) ** Advocacy group:

Maluku Sovereignty Front The Maluku Sovereignty Front (FKM) ( id, Front Kedaulatan Maluku) is a secessionist movement on Ambon Island, aiming to restore the Republic of the South Moluccas (RMS). It was established on June 15, 2000 at Ambon. They have been monitored by ...

Papua * Ethnic group:

Papuans The indigenous peoples of West Papua in Indonesia and Papua New Guinea, commonly called Papuans, are Melanesians. There is genetic evidence for two major historical lineages in New Guinea and neighboring islands: a first wave from the Malay Arch ...

** Proposed state: Morning_Star_flag

West Papua or unification with Flag_of_Papua_New_Guinea

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...

** Government-in-exile:

Republic of West Papua The Republic of West Papua ( id, Republik Papua Barat) is a proposed state consisting of the Western New Guinea region. The region has been administered by Indonesia since 1 May 1963 under several names in the following order, West Irian, Irian ...

(member of the

) ** Militant organisation:

Free Papua Movement "Free Papua Movement" ( id, Organisasi Papua Merdeka, OPM, tpi, Fri Wes Papua Grup) is an umbrella term for the independence movement established during 1965 in the West Papuan or West New Guinea territory which is currently being administrat ...

** Advocacy group:

United Liberation Movement for West Papua The United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) unites the three main political independence movements seeking independence for Western New Guinea (West Papua) from Indonesia under a single umbrella organisation. The ULMWP was formed on 7 ...

New Zealand

Cook Islands on the globe (Polynesia centered)

Cook Islands ) , image_map = Cook Islands on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , capital = Avarua , coordinates = , largest_city = Avarua , official_languages = , lan ...

* Ethnic group:

Cook Islanders Cook Islanders are residents of the Cook Islands, which is composed of 15 islands and atolls in Polynesia in the Pacific Ocean. Cook Islands Māori are the indigenous Polynesian people of the Cook Islands, although more Cook Islands Māori cur ...

** Proposed state:

Cook Islands ) , image_map = Cook Islands on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , capital = Avarua , coordinates = , largest_city = Avarua , official_languages = , lan ...

*** Initiative by the Cook Islands

Ariki An ariki (New Zealand, Cook Islands), ꞌariki (Easter Island), aliki (Tokelau, Tuvalu), ali‘i (Samoa, Hawai‘i), ari'i (Society Islands, Tahiti), aiki or hakaiki (Marquesas Islands), akariki (Gambier Islands) or ‘eiki (Tonga) is or was a mem ...

which considers both the

Cook Islands ) , image_map = Cook Islands on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , capital = Avarua , coordinates = , largest_city = Avarua , official_languages = , lan ...

' previous status as a British protectorate and its current status as associated state of

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

to be illegitimate. Aims to set up the Cook Islands as a sovereign state independent of both the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

and

South Island The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman ...

* People: South Islanders **Proposed state or autonomus area:

New Munster Province New Munster was an early original European name for the South Island of New Zealand, given by the Governor of New Zealand, Captain William Hobson, in honour of Munster, the Irish province in which he was born. Province When New Zealand was sep ...

Papua New Guinea

*Proposed state: Bougainville * Proposed autonomous province: New Ireland

Solomon Islands

Malaita Province Malaita Province is the most populous and one of the largest of the nine provinces of Solomon Islands. It is named after its largest island, Malaita (also known as "Big Malaita" or "Maramapaina"). Other islands include South Malaita Island ...

* Proposed state:

Malaita Malaita is the primary island of Malaita Province in Solomon Islands. Malaita is the most populous island of the Solomon Islands, with a population of 161,832 as of 2021, or more than a third of the entire national population. It is also the se ...

United States

* Ethnic group:

Chamorro Chamorro may refer to: * Chamorro people, the indigenous people of the Mariana Islands in the Western Pacific * Chamorro language, an Austronesian language indigenous to The Marianas * Chamorro Time Zone, the time zone of Guam and the Northern Mari ...

, Non-Natives ** Proposed state: Republic of Guam Flag of the Northern Mariana Islands

Northern Marina Islands * Ethnic group:

, Carolinian, Palauan and Other

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe the original p ...

** Proposed state: Flag of the Northern Mariana Islands

Northern Marina Islands or Unification with Flag of American Samoa

American Samoa American Samoa ( sm, Amerika Sāmoa, ; also ' or ') is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the island country of Samoa. Its location is centered on . It is east of the International ...

* Ethnic group: Samoan ** Proposed state: Flag of American Samoa

or Unification with Flag of Samoa

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands (Manono Island, Manono an ...

*Ethnic group:

Native Hawaiians Native Hawaiians (also known as Indigenous Hawaiians, Kānaka Maoli, Aboriginal Hawaiians, First Hawaiians, or simply Hawaiians) ( haw, kānaka, , , and ), are the indigenous ethnic group of Polynesian people of the Hawaiian Islands. Hawaii ...

, Haoles **Proposed state: Flag of Hawaii

Republic of Hawaii The Republic of Hawaii ( Hawaiian: ''Lepupalika o Hawaii'') was a short-lived one-party state in Hawaii between July 4, 1894, when the Provisional Government of Hawaii had ended, and August 12, 1898, when it became annexed by the United State ...

or The Hawaiian Kingdom **Pressure groups: Nation of Hawaiʻi (organization),

Office of Hawaiian Affairs The Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA) is a self-governing corporate body of the State of Hawaii created by the 1978 Hawaii State Constitutional Convention. Background In 1893, pro-American elements in Hawaii overthrew the monarchy and formed the ...

, Ka Lāhui Hawaiʻi **Political party:

Aloha ʻĀina Party The Aloha ʻĀina Party ( Hawaiian for " love of the land") is a political party in Hawaiʻi that advocates for the sovereignty of Hawaiʻi and the promotion of Hawaiian cultural values. History The Aloha ʻĀina Party was reconvened in 2015 by f ...

(The purpose of these organizations and The Hawaiian Sovereignty Movement is to create Native Hawaiian nations within the State of Hawaii equal to Native American nations, or to obtain complete independence from the USA).

Vanuatu

Espiritu Santo Espiritu Santo (, ; ) is the largest island in the nation of Vanuatu, with an area of and a population of around 40,000 according to the 2009 census. Geography The island belongs to the archipelago of the New Hebrides in the Pacific region o ...

* Ethnic group:

Ni-Vanuatu Ni-Vanuatu (informally abbreviated Ni-Van) is a large group of closely related Melanesians, Melanesian ethnic groups native to the island country of Vanuatu. As such, ''Ni-Vanuatu'' are a mixed ethnolinguistic group with a shared ethnogenesis tha ...

** Proposed autonomous area:

Vemerana Nagriamel (sometimes seen as Vemarana, Vemerana or the Nagriamel Customs Union or Nagriamel Movement) is a political party in Vanuatu. History The party was established in January 1966 at a meeting of chiefs in Espiritu Santo convened by Chief B ...

*** Political party:

Nagriamel Nagriamel (sometimes seen as Vemarana, Vemerana or the Nagriamel Customs Union or Nagriamel Movement) is a political party in Vanuatu. History The party was established in January 1966 at a meeting of chiefs in Espiritu Santo convened by Chief B ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Active Separatist Movements In Oceania, List Of Separatist Movements, Active Separatist Movements In Oceania, Active

Separatist Movements In Oceania, Active

Australia

Chile

Federated States of Micronesia

France

Indonesia

New Zealand

Papua New Guinea

Solomon Islands

United States

Vanuatu

See also

References