Free will, including the ability of a nation to govern itself, is known as free-determination.
The principle of self-determination refers to the fact that people, based on respect for the principle of equal rights and fair equality of opportunity, are entitled to freely choose their sovereignty and international political status with no interference. The principle does not state how the decision is to be made, nor what the outcome should be, whether it be independence, federation, protection, some form of autonomy or full assimilation.