United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

Security Council Resolution A United Nations Security Council resolution is a United Nations resolution adopted by the fifteen members of the United Nations Security Council, Security Council (UNSC); the United Nations (UN) body charged with "primary responsibility for the ...

216 was adopted by the

United Nations Security Council The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the Organs of the United Nations, six principal organs of the United Nations (UN) and is charged with ensuring international security, international peace and security, recommending the admi ...

on 12 November 1965, the day after the British Dependency of

Southern Rhodesia Southern Rhodesia was a landlocked self-governing British Crown colony in southern Africa, established in 1923 and consisting of British South Africa Company (BSAC) territories lying south of the Zambezi River. The region was informally kn ...

Unilateral Declaration of Independence A unilateral declaration of independence (UDI) is a formal process leading to the establishment of a new state by a subnational entity which declares itself independent and sovereign without a formal agreement with the state which it is secedi ...

from the

British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts esta ...

as the state of

Rhodesia Rhodesia (, ), officially from 1970 the Republic of Rhodesia, was an unrecognised state in Southern Africa from 1965 to 1979, equivalent in territory to modern Zimbabwe. Rhodesia was the ''de facto'' successor state to the British colony of S ...

. The vote was ten to none, with one member,

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, abstaining. In the resolution's two operative paragraphs, the Security Council: #Condemned the

unilateral declaration of independence A unilateral declaration of independence (UDI) is a formal process leading to the establishment of a new state by a subnational entity which declares itself independent and sovereign without a formal agreement with the state which it is secedi ...

"made by a

racist Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one race over another. It may also mean prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism ...

minority" in Southern Rhodesia. #Called upon all states to refuse the "illegal racist minority régime" in Southern Rhodesia recognition and to refrain from rendering any assistance to it. Resolution 216 was followed on 20 November by

United Nations Security Council Resolution 217 United Nations Security Council Resolution 217, adopted unanimously on November 20, 1965, determined that the situation resulting from the Unilateral Declaration of Independence was extremely grave and that the Government of the United Kingdom s ...

, in which the Security Council further elaborated on its condemnation of the UDI government and proposed steps to be taken to address the crisis.

References

Text of the Resolution at undocs.org
{{UNSCR 1965 0216 0216 1965 in Rhodesia November 1965 events

See also

References