People in many countries are either calling for independence or autonomy, and over the past few years, pro-democracy movements have emerged in several places with citizens rallying for their rights and freedom. Below are a few recent examples:
Scotland
The Scottish National Party won the 2011 Scottish parliamentary election by a landslide, giving it the mandate to set up a vote for independence. The Scottish parliament then passed the Independence Referendum Bill in 2013, setting the stage for last month's historic public referendum on breaking away from Great Britain. All European Union or Commonwealth citizens residing in Scotland aged 16 or over were eligible to vote. But the "no" votes won with 55 per cent. Two key reasons were oil and currency.
Crimea
In the face of bloody clashes, the Crimean status referendum was held in March by the legislature of Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the local government of Sevastopol - both subdivisions of Ukraine at the time.
The referendum asked the people of Crimea if they wanted to join Russia as a federal subject, or if they wanted to restore the 1992 Crimean constitution and restore its status as part of Ukraine.
The referendum showed that 95.5 per cent of the voters wanted to join Russia.
Hong Kong
The Occupy Central civil disobedience movement in Hong Kong kicked off on September 28. Also known as the Umbrella Revolution, the movement called on citizens to block roads and paralyse the city's financial district if Beijing did not grant "universal suffrage in line with international standards" for the Legislative Council election in 2016 and the chief executive election in 2017.
The movement was initiated by Benny Tai Yiu-ting, an associate law professor at the University of Hong Kong, in January 2013, when he published an article in the Hong Kong Economic Journal proposing an act of civil disobedience to put pressure on the government. Hong Kong was handed to China in 1997 after more than 150 years under Britain, following a 1984 agreement between the two countries.
China agreed to govern Hong Kong under the principle of "one country, two
systems", where the city-state would enjoy "a high degree of autonomy, except in foreign and defence affairs" for 50 years.
As a result, Hong Kong has its own legal system, and people's rights including freedom of assembly and free speech are protected.
Catalonia
Catalans will be voting on a non-binding referendum or in "popular consultation" on independence from Spain on November 9, and will be asked to answer a two-part question: "Do you want Catalonia to be a state?" and if so "Do you want it to be an independent state?"
Though Spain's constitutional court suspended the official referendum on Catalonia's independence last month, the people will go ahead with an unofficial poll in a move to skirt the restrictions imposed by the Spanish courts.
The poll will be open to all Catalans aged 16 and above, and will be organised by volunteers.