Kanisa George

Sixty years as an independent nation, what a remarkable feat. The vibrancy of our spirit and the creativity in our veins are undoubted only two facets that make us distinct.

Admittedly, while the road ahead is plagued with some uncertainty, the red, white, and black will continue to embody the soul of our nation and that vivacious Trinbagonian soul that can never be put out.

Although August 31, 1962 is unique to our country's fabric, the term independence isn't. Instead, we are merely part of a long list of countries that envisioned a life of freedom, where every race could find an equal place or something like it.

But what does it mean to be an independent state? How do you even become independent, and what rules must be followed?

As recent as 2011, South Sudan was declared the newest internationally recognised country in the world by way of its independence. In an overwhelming vote by way of referendum southern Sudanese voted in a referendum to become an independent nation and quickly became the newest member of the United Nations. But this isn't an everyday phenomenon, and even when the process is underway, it is sometimes rife with political instability and warfare; take Catalonia, for example. There aren't any rules per se concerning a nation becoming independent, yet there are a few entrenched principles generally followed by international law.

The Montevideo Convention of 1934 defined a state as a sovereign unit that could meet four benchmarks - having a permanent population, defined territorial boundaries, a government, and the ability to enter into agreements with other states.

There is no doubt that a permanent population with a concept of and belief in their nationality, and a defined territory are important pieces to the puzzle. Yet some might argue that a stable and effective government with the ability to conduct relations with other states is by far the most important requirement, as a large part of becoming an independent state is recognition by other states.

One of the biggest hindrances to this process is where there is resistance from the country the other wants to secede. In TT, the lowering of the Union Jack with the British Crown's blessings signified freedom, and the end of a long road started in 1924 when rights to vote were granted in our country. But what it also meant was international recognition.

For some nations, however, freedom isn't so easily garnered.

Because there must be clear evidence that a majority of people have freely chosen independence, Scotland could not trigger steps to its independence following a 2014 referendum where the majority voted to remain in union with England and Wales.

Taiwan, a democratic state in spirit since 1947, has functioned as an autonomous state for decades without truly being recognised. Although democracy is the order of the day, China's President Xi JinPing regards Taiwan as a province and has pressured countries to have no diploma