CITIZENSHIP AMENDMENT BILL 2019

CITIZENSHIP ACT 1955 [Act no. 57 of 1955]

This act provided the citizenship of India to the people at the time India received freedom and got its own constitution . The citizenship of India could have been acquired in 5 ways at that time according to Act no. 57 of 1955.

1.Citizenship at the commencement of the Constitution of India
2.Citizenship by birth
3.Citizenship by Descent
4.Citizenship by registration
5.Citizenship by naturalization

AMENDMENTS SINCE THEN

After the bill was introduced in 1955 it has been amended 8 times. 

The major amendment being made in 2016 when the period of naturalization was reduced from 12 years to 6 years. Which means that a person to become a citizen of India naturally he/she has to reside in India for a period of 6 years which was previously 12 years.

Now the bill is being amended another time and the changes being made this time are:

1. The amendment bill 2019 states that a person who is refugee of Afghanistan, Pakistan           and Bangladesh can get the citizenship of India.

2. Provided he/she is a Hindu, Parsi, Sikh,Christian,Buddhists other than Muslim and Tamil      refugee from Sri lanka.

3.The Bill also proposes to incorporate a sub-section (d) to Section 7, providing for                   cancellation of Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) registration where the OCI card-holder           has violated any provision of the Citizenship Act or any other law in force.

THE IDEA OF AMENDING IT

The bill was election promise made by BJP during 2014 and 2019 election rallies . The bill is aimed to contain the basic Hindutva ideology of the nation that shows Sarva Dharma Sambhav spirit of India.

WHAT IS CAB 2019 FINALLY??

• The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2019, that seeks to give Indian nationality to non-Muslim refugees from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan was passed in the Lok Sabha on 9 August. 

• The bill seeks to address the historical wrongdoings of religious persecution on Non-Muslim refugees from the three states by providing them Indian citizenship. 

• The proposed legislation amends the Citizenship Act, 1955 to make Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Christians and Parsis who got into India from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan eligible for India.

Who is eligible?

• The proposed legislation applies to those who were “forced or compelled to seek shelter in India due to persecution on the ground of religion”.It aims to protect such people from proceedings of illegal migration. 
• The cut-off date for citizenship is December 31, 2014 which means the applicant should have entered India on or before that date.

Any exceptions to the Bill?

• CAB won't apply to areas under the sixth schedule of the Constitution – which deals with autonomous tribal-dominated regions in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram. 

• The bill will also not apply to states that have the inner-line permit regime like Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Mizoram.

Why is there such a hue and cry?

The opposition says the Bill violates Article 14 of the Constitution — the Right to Equality. They claim that citizenship cannot be given on the basis of religion.

HIDDEN AGENDA OF OPPOSITION

The bill has drawn criticism over the fact that it violates the Article 14 stating Right to equality. The opposition is holding protest with dead spirits as they are lacking numbers to stop the passing of bill in Lok sabha and Rajya sabha. The only thing they want to make out from here is Politics in face of opposing it with none really concerned with refugees and only using them as a prop for their votes. By spreading misinformation that the bill bring changes in the culture and demographics of the north eastern states they just want to destabilize the government there. Without paying attention to the facts that most of the north eastern states fall under exception category where bill is not applicable.

MY VIEWS OVER SITUATION

The situation appears to be normal to people but the real problem is in north eastern states where false information is being spread in the name of the bill to incite the people against the government for mere politics. If the information is not channelized properly in North eastern states then it may lead to mass protests. 

But  the question is - Is the bill fair or not??  Will lead to different answers if thought with different ideologies. Therefore I leave the choice whether the decision is right or not on the reader by analyzing the facts and points given in this article.

Hope you all reach answers:)

JAI HIND JAI BHARAT

The Afghan Peace Talks

Taliban are a Sunni Islamic fundamentalist political movement and military organization in Afghanistan currently waging war (an insurgency, or jihad) within Afghanistan. Taliban was Founder by Mohammed Omar in 1994.

How Was Taliban Formed?

After the Soviet Union intervened in Afghanistan in 1979, Islamic mujahedeen fighters engaged in war with those Soviet forces. Some of those Islamic fighters would later transform into the Taliban according to Professor Carole Hillenbrand who stated: "The West helped the Taliban to fight the Soviet takeover of Afghanistan"

Although there isn't any evidence that the CIA directly supported the Taliban or Al Qaeda, some basis for military support of the Taliban was provided when, in the early 1980s, the CIA and the ISI provided arms to Afghans resisting the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, and the ISI assisted the process of gathering radical Muslims from around the world to fight against the Soviets. Osama Bin Laden was one of the key players in organizing training camps for the foreign Arab volunteers, although his organization, Maktab al-Khidamat, was exclusively Saudi funded.

A power vacuum created by After the withdrawal of Soviet troop from Afghanistan in 1989. the country was torn apart by warring mujahedeen groups and the ISI of Pakistan grasped the chance to wield power in the region by fostering a previously unknown Kandahari student movement. They continued to support the Taliban, as Pakistani allies, in their push to conquer Afghanistan in the 1990s.

USA In Picture.

Marines In Afghanistan

The USA has been fighting it's longest war in Afghanistan since 2001 with no concrete results. This came at a cost of thousands of civilian as well as military lives and billions of dollars to the US exchequer. The Taliban have been refusing talks for the last 17 years with the government, in the hopes of recapturing Kabul. This hasn't been the case so far as the institutions in the country have become stronger than before, with a strong Afghan army and police along with foreign troops. Even though they have been able to conduct many high profile attacks in the country, they are yet to establish a proper base in the major cities. There is not a single provincial capital over which they have complete control.

After the US Army overthrew the Taliban in 2001 and established a legitimate government, the country has taken rapid strides in societal reforms. The enrollment of girls in schools has increased, and there is a significant proportion of female politicians in both the lower and upper houses of the parliament. The withdrawal of NATO troops in 2014 also discredited the Afghan cause for war as it is now seen as perpetuating the war. All this led to very low support for the Taliban from the Afghan population. now seen as perpetuating the war. All this led to very low support for the Taliban from the Afghan population.

Why Is USA Talking Now?

Who Controls What?

The US has been fighting the Taliban in Afghanistan since 2001. According to a Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report published in October 2007, the US wars in Iraq and Afghanistan could cost $3 trillion by 2018. 

Things are getting out of control for US. The only thing US government is doing is, wasting its capital in Afghanistan. So now they have started withdrawing their forces. And after the a proper agreement with Taliban US will completely withdraw the forces.

Peace Talks

• The US and Taliban have reached an in principal agreement on a framework for complete withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan, according to America official. The US representative said that the Taliban would prevent its territory from being used for terrorism.

• The American withdrawal from the region could lead to the destabilization of the Afghani government, the Taliban has refused to acknowledge the government of Ashraf Ghani.

• The Americans have been pressurizing the Taliban to talk to the government directly, but the Taliban has insisted on finalizing a date of troop withdrawal before beginning negotiation with the Afghan Government.

• The US withdrawal also concerns Pakistan as it may lead to a strengthening of the Taliban. The Pakistani Taliban, who took refuge in Afghanistan, killed 132 children in an army school in Peshawar in 2014.

• India also has a presence in the country after the construction of strategic Chabahar port in Iran ond the highway that link it ti Kabul. The bilateral trade between the nation is poised to cross $2 billion by 2020.

The Rights Of Prisoners Of War?

Recent Talks

Indian Air Force’s Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman was captured by Pakistan after his MiG-21 fighter aircraft was shot down during close combat with Pakistani fighter jets in February. According to the Geneva Conventions, the pilot had to be treated according to the norms of international humanitarian law and the Geneva Conventions. In a video recording, he was heard saying that he was being treated well. He returned to India on March 01. 

Past Activities

During the 1999 Kargil War, Flight Lieutenant K Nachiketa crashed and fell into PoK. He was in Pakistan’s custody for eight days. He was repatriated after intense diplomatic efforts by then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and by International Committee For Red Cross And Red Crescent (ICRC).

During the 1971 Indo-Pak war, at least 54 soldiers, pilots and officers of the Indian Army and Air Force were said to be “missing in action” or “killed in action”, but many believe that the “missing 54” are alive and imprisoned in various Pakistani jails.

Geneva Convention

• A combatant who is captured by an adverse party during the course of an international armed conflict is a prisoner of war (POW). Prisoners of war are protected under humanitarian laws.

• The Geneva Convention and their Additional Protocols are a set of international treaties that contains various rules for limiting brutality during war.

• The Third Geneva Convention Applies to prisoners of war. It defines their rights and calls for their humane treatment and eventual release.

• It states that the POWs must be treated humanely- the detaining power is as responsible for ensuring this as the individual who captured the POW.

• Article 14 of the third Geneva Convention States that POWs must not be subjected to physical or mental torture or any other form of coercion to provide information. They must not be punished for refusing to answer questions.

• It also prohibits the use of POWs as hostages or human Shields. They should be provided access to health facilities, prayer, recreation and exercises.

• The detaining power must enable correspondence between the POW and their families without significant  delays. POWs are also entitled to receive books or care packages .

• Any unlawful act or omission by the detaining power that results in death or endangers the health of the POW in its custody is forbidden, and is considered a grave breach.

• Parties involved in the conflict must repatriate POWs, regardless of their rank-even those who are seriously wounded or sick. They must be cared for until they are fit to travel.

• Each party must designate states that are not involved in the conflict as their Protecting Powers, who have to ensure that the provision of the convention are being follower by the parties in the conflicts. The international committee of the red cross usually takes up this responsibility. 

Kashmir - A Wrangle Since Its Birth

Kashmir  - Article 370, Militants ,Armed Forces , Patharbaaz , Algawadi netas......and so much more comes to one's mind as soon as the word Kashmir is heard.

Where did its beauty ,lakes, mountains, culture vanish amidst of all the violence. Remember once we called it heaven on earth. How blessed India is to have a heaven in its country....but wait in today's scenario no one want's to visit this heaven.

SO WHAT LED TO THIS SITUATION???

For knowing this we need to go back a little in history.

Maharaja hari singh, Sheikh Abdullah 

and Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru- all prominent 

personalities in one frame

Indian state was declared independent and also Pakistan was formed now the princely states in India were given a choice to join either India or Pakistan. Most of them opted for India except the few. Kashmir's then king Maharaja HARI SINGH...........................

Signed the instrument of accession to the Indian PM Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru on 26th October 1947. But the Pakistani borne pathan terrorists attacked Kashmir taking the area as much as possible till Indian troops arriving in region presently  known as POK (Pakistan occupied Kashmir).  These terrorists attacked because people of J&K wanted to join Pakistan . After this the undeclared war continued for two years . The issue was taken to UN which stated that the public plebiscite would be held on deciding over the issue. 

The conditions were:

1.Pakistan to remove its forces from PoK

2.India should remove its forces

3.A public plebiscite to be held

As the first condition never occurred so the 2nd couldn't take place and similarly the 3rd.

The present map of J&K

In all this a special law was passed  In Parliament known as article 370 and also supporting it article 35A.

Article 370 of the Indian constitution is an article that gives autonomous status to the state of Jammu and Kashmir. The article is drafted in Part XXI of the Constitution: Temporary, Transitional and Special Provisions.

Article 35A of the Indian Constitution is an article that empowers the Jammu and Kashmir state's legislature to define “permanent resident” of the state and provide special rights and privileges to those permanent residents which are excluded for non-permanent residents.

Further part of kashmir went to china during Indo-China war .

MY VIEWS OVER PRESENT  SITUATION

People in kashmir have given different parties chance to solve their issues,but none of them really gave a thought to it everyone have mentioned kashmir issue as a political agenda in order to gain votes and win elections over the years without addressing the main issues. 

All these somewhere struck the sentiments of young kashmiris who saw lack pf opportunities and facilities in their region and anti national leaders saw this as an opportunity to convert these young individuals towards guns by showing the failures of government as failure of indian state towards KASHMIR. 

But recently  steps taken by our government, armed forces , journalists towards the issues of kashmir have turned somewhat fruitful. Some of the steps taken are:

• Banning of JeM , JKLF type parties which are against the development of state 
• Action of armed forces against militiant
• Various developmental projects in recent days started in kashmir 

motivates to think that this issue will be solved within next few years to come as the situation has reached its CLIMAX MODE and everyone related to it are ready to take FULL AND FINAL ACTION!!!

Can India Electrify The Automobile Industry?

India has been a member of the Paris Climate Treaty and has shown commitment towards bringing down its CO₂ emission levels which are among the highest in the world. To facilitate its targets, the government planned for full electrification of its vehicles.

Even though the plans may seem ambitious, there hasn't been a concrete policy step towards this direction. Despite India showing bright prospects for an EV market with the automobile manufacturers also showing interest, the government's flip flop on policy has been slowing down this adoption to EVs in the country. 

However, many Indian states have taken up charge in setting up such policies. Most of the listed large states, in their policies, primarily focused on the establishment of manufacturing and ancillary industries associated with the electric vehicle ecosystem while others focused on the regulatory framework necessary to ease the operation of electric vehicles, including electricity supply.

• The National Electric Mobility mission 2020 was launched in 2013 with the aim of achieving national fuel security by promoting hybrid and electric Vehicles (EV) in the country.

• Piyush Goyal, the minister of coal and railways, said in 2017 that a group of ministers had been charged to ‘lead the initiative and make sure that by 2030 most, if not all, vehicles in India are powered by electricity’.

• If successful, the shift to shared, electric and connected mobility could help India save up to $300bn in oil import and nearly 1 gigatonne of CO₂ emission by 2030, as per a recent report by FICCI and Rocky Mountain Institution.

• However, after consultation with NITI Aayog, the target was scaled down to 30% electrification by 2030. Lack of charging in infrastructure was cited as the biggest reason for the scaling down.

• The country still doesn’t allow companies to set up charging stations as only power distributor are allowed to sell power. Even with this permission, India would have to depend heavily on lithium imports to fulfill the batteries demand.

• Given this background, the Indian government decided against formulating an electric vehicle policy.

• The lack of clarity has also deterred foreign automaker from entering the Indian EV market. Currently, Mahindra Reva is the only major electric car maker in the nation.

• Many of the Indian states such as Karnataka, Telangana, Maharashtra, and Delhi, have instituted guidelines to ensure faster adoption of EVs. Karnataka became the first Indian state to roll out a dedicated EV policy in 2017.

• The Maharashtra government also approved EV policy in 2018, aimed at creating infrastructure for the production of up to 500,000 electric vehicles in the state within the next five years. It also working on setting up charging stations in the state with provisions to offer a maximum subsidy of rupees 1,00,000 per station.

The Slow Down In China And Its Global Impact

Whats Actually Happening?

China is expected to account for almost 19 percent of global economic activity at the end of this year. This, coupled with the fact that it is the second largest economy in the world, makes the world more vulnerable to a slowdown. Many people point out the outgoing trade war between china and the US for its downturn. But there are many other reasons behind the phenomenon. This downward trend can be attributed to the diminishing effectiveness of several key contributors such as the rising quantity and quality of the labour force, the more efficient allocation of resources and investment capital, the rapid upgrading of technology, as well as sustained high export growth, which fueled the country’s spectacular growth in the past three decades.

China’s overall debt also jumped to 300 per cent of GDP by 2018, up from 164 per cent in 2008 in order to shift the economy from that of investment based to aconsumption based one. This increases the exposure to bas loans fuelled by the shadow banking system. The real estate market also has shown sign of a slowdown due to the huge supply-demand gap. All of these factors could spell trouble for the country which has been assimilated so deeply into the global economic system that any potential signs of deceleration could spell trouble for the whole world.

• China recorded a GDP growth rate of 6.6 per cent for the year 2018, its lowest since 1990.
• China's slowdown makes its trade partner vulnerable as well. China is a prominent market for export from South Korea, japan, and the ASEAN nation.
• Countries dependent on commodity export, such as Australia, Brazil, Canada, and Indonesia, could also be impacted.
• Softening demand in china is also being felt by companies around the world. Slowing sales of goods from iPhones to automobiles have promote warning from the likes of Apple and Jaguar Rover PLC.
• China is the world’s biggest automotive market, but sales have fallen for the first time.
• Half of all the world’s steel, coal, copper, and cement is imported by china. A fall in demand is likely to impact global commodity prices.
• For India, its exports of raw material to chin could suffer. A weakening Yuan could also make the Chinese import even cheaper, potentially leading to the dumping of Chinese goods in country.

Latest Updates

The on going Trade War between US and China as already cost US economy $7.8Bn. Over the past year, The US and China has placed tariffs on billions of dollars of one another's goods  - a trade war that has contributed to the slowdown of the global economy.

Reports say that Washington official will make a visit to Beijing next weak and have a face to face conversation with the Chines related to the topic.

Manohar Parrikar-The Man Who Made A Difference

What Just Happened?

17^th March 2018, Goa’s 4 time prime minister and our former Defense Minister Manohar Gopalakrishna Prabhu Parrikar died at the age of 63 in Goa due to pancreatic cancer.

Manohar Gopalakrishna Prabhu Parrikar

An Overview

Manohar Parrikar born in a small village named Parra in Mapusa, Goa on 13 december 1955. He completed his high school from Loyola High School, Margao. He then completed his graduation from IIT Bombay in 1978. He was the first IIT alumina who served as an MLA in State. He was awarded the Distinguished Alumnus Award by the IIT Bombay in 2001.

He joined Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) at a very young age and became a mukhya shikshak (chief instructor) during his final year of schooling. After getting graduated from IIT he resumed RSS work in Mapusa.He was a an active member of RSS north Goa unit, and played a very important role in Ram Janmabhoomi Movement.

He was then seconded by RSS to the BJP to fight against the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party. As a member of the BJP Parrikar was elected to the legislative assembly of Goa in 1994. 

He successfully contested the election to become Chief Minister of Goa for the first time on 24 October 2000. In 2001, the Parrikar government had turned over fifty-one government primary schools in rural areas to Vidya Bharati, the educational wing of the Hindu nationalist group Sangh Parivar, inviting criticism from certain educationists.

He was the reason behind the success of BJP in Goa.

In November 2014, Parrikar was chosen as the Minister of Defence, he replaced Arun Jaitley. Manohar Parrikar, while serving as Minister of Defence of India, raised a question about why India should bind itself to the no first use policy.

On March 14, 2017, Parrikar became the Chief Minister of Goa for the fourth time. He was so loved and liked by the Goa people that the Goa Forward Party led by Vijai Sardesai, one of the parties who allied with BJP in Goa after election results were announced, had said that it would extend support to the BJP only if Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar was brought back to the state as Chief Minister.

Here is a remarkable parable written by our former Defence Minister Sri Manohar Parikkar

He was a politician without hatters.A man known for his honesty. The face behind the successful surgical strike.

Now What?

Goa Assembly has a strength of 40 members but currently, there are 36 MLAs following the death of BJP legislators, Manohar Parrikar and Francis D'Souza, and the resignation of two congress lawmakers. The congress is trhe largest single party with 14 MLAs.

The former assembly speaker Promod Sawant is now the Chief Minister of Goa.

The Mosques Mass Shooting

What Just Happened?

15 March 2019, 49 people were killed in two mosques in Christchurch,New Zealand by a gunman, identified as an Australian extremist whose name was Brenton Tarrant.

An Overview

• Fraser Anning a far-right Australian senator blamed the violent act on Muslim immigration.

• Before the attack the gunman did live streaming and in one of his line said to subscribe PewDiePie, a YouTube channel which has always been in controversies for its views towards growing Muslim immigration.

• Bangladesh's tour of New Zealand has been cancelled due to the mosques attack.

• Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison condemn and said that people like Fraser Anning has no place in Australian Parliament.

What Did Fraser Anning Said?

In a statement shared by an Australian journalist on Twitter, the Queensland senator also wrote: “As always, left-wing politicians and the media will rush to claim that the causes of today’s shootings lie with gun laws or those who hold nationalist views, but this is all cliched nonsense.

“The real cause of bloodshed on New Zealand streets today is the immigration program which allowed Muslim fanatics to migrate to New Zealand in the first place.”

The remarks were denounced by the UK home secretary, Sajid Javid, who accused the senator of stoking extremism.

“At a time for grieving and reflection, this Australian senator … fans the flames of violence and extremism,” he tweeted.

“Australians will be utterly ashamed of this racist man. In no way does he represent our Australian friends.”

What Is The Alt-Right Ideology?

It is a Modern term for right-wing. It is an ideological grouping associated with extreme conservative or reactionary viewpoints, characterized by a rejection of mainstream politics and by the use of online media to disseminate deliberately controversial content. Basically these people are scared of becoming minorities in the society and also afraid of the increasing no. of Muslims . The Alt-Right has been said to include elements of white nationalism,white supremacy, antisemitism, right-wing populism,nativism and the neoreactionary movement

Pakistan Wants India Removed From FATF

A LETTER FROM PAKISTAN

On March 9, 2019 Pakistan wrote a letter to the president of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) ,  requesting for the removal of India from one of FATF’s regional sub-divisions responsible for reviewing its progress. FATF has listed Pakistan among the “grey-listed’ countries.

India, which co-chairs the FATF’s Asia-Pacific Joint Group, has long demanded that Pakistan meet certain established standards, especially with regard to terror financing. 

According to a report in Dawn, Pakistani Finance Minister Asad Umar has demanded that India be replaced by any other country as the co-chair of the joint group.

The letter cites “India’s animosity towards Pakistan” is a reasons for its request, especially due to the recent act done by India  “recent violation of Pakistan’s airspace and dropping of bombs” in retaliation of the Pulwama terror attack.

REQUEST TO BAN INDIA FROM FATF

“Given clear Indian motivation to hurt Pakistan’s economic interests, Indian presence among the

evaluators and as co-chair of the Joint Group would undermine the impartiality and spirit of the peer

review process, which lies at the heart of FATF’s methodology and objective assessment,”

WHAT IS FATF?

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) is an inter-governmental body which was established in 1989 by the Ministers of its Member jurisdictions.

The FATF headquarter is in Paris,France.

The objectives of the FATF are to set standards and promote effective implementation of legal, regulatory and operational measures for combating money laundering, terrorist financing and other related threats to the integrity of the international financial system.

 FATF currently have 36 member jurisdictions and 2 regional organisations, representing most major financial centers in all parts of the globe.

PAKISTAN’S GREY LIST ENTRY

The FATF in February 2018 nominated Pakistan for extensive monitoring of its “serious deficiencies” in countering terror financing, under the International Cooperation Review Group (ICRG) commonly known as the grey list. The nominations were supported by the US, the UK, France, Germany and India.

IF A COUNTRY COMES IN THE GREY LIST, IT FACES MANY PROBLEMS LIKE

1. Economic sanctions from international institutions (IMF, World Bank,ADB etc.) and countries.
2. Problem in getting loans from international institutions (IMF, World Bank, ADB etc.) and countries.
3. Overall Reduction in its international trade.
4. International boycott.

WHAT IS THE GREY LIST?

FATF has 2 types of lists- Black list and Grey list.

The countries that are considers as uncooperative tax havens comes under FATF's Black list

The black list countries are also known as Non-Cooperative Countries or Territories (NCCTs).

WILL PAKISTAN ENTER BLACK LIST?

China has become the biggest lender to Pakistan surpassing Japan. Pakistan owes $19 billion (1/5 of its total debt) to China.

The CPEC loans will add $14 billion to Pakistan’s total public debt, raising it to $90 billion by June 2019, abating Pakistan’s economic ability to service huge amount of debt.

China Saves Masood Azhar

WHAT JUST HAPPENED?

China yet again saves Jaish-e-Muhammed (JeM) chief Masood Azhar by putting on hold a proposal at the UN for a ban on Masood Azhar, bringing to a halt a renewed push by France, US and UK to blacklist Masood Azhar the Pakistan-based terrorist after the Pulwama attack.

This is the fourth time China has put the same proposal on a 'technical hold' before finally terminating the proposal. The hold can last up to a maximum of nine months, after which as usual China will again use its veto power to formally block, or terminate, the proposal.

THE PROPOSAL

The proposal to designate Azhar under the 1267 Al Qaeda Sanctions Committee of the UN Security Council was brought by France, the UK and the US on February 27, days after the suicide bomber of the Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) killed 44 CRPF soldiers in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pulwama, leading to a flare-up in tensions between India and Pakistan.

POINTS TO NOTE

• The Al Qaeda Sanctions Committee members had 10 working days to raise any objections to the proposal. The no-objection period deadline was scheduled to end at 3PM local time (New York) Wednesday, (12:30 AM IST Thursday). 
• A diplomat at the UN told PTI, Just before the deadline, China put a “technical hold” on the proposal, 
• The diplomat said China has asked for “more time to examine” the case.

“This has prevented action by the international community to designate the leader of Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), a proscribed and active terrorist organization which has claimed responsibility for the terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir on 14 February 2019,” it said in a statement in New Delhi.

POWER OF SANCTIONS

An assets freeze under the Sanctions Committee mans that all states should freeze all the funds and other financial assets or economic resources of designated individuals and entities without an delay. 

The travel ban entails preventing the entry into or transit by all states through their territories by selected individuals. Under the arms embargo, all states are required to prevent the direct or indirect supply, sale and transfer from their territories or by their nationals outside their territories to the designated individuals and entities.

INDIA’S PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE TO UN, SYED AKBARUDDIN

WHAT NOW?

In October 2019 India will have a chance to get Pakistan under The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Black list, till then lets hope for the best . India has faced worse condition than what we see now, there was time when USA and Pakistan were allies and India was not strong enough to fight with them still we survived and grew. And today India is one of the largest economies.

Philippines-US Mutual Defense Treaty Issues

PHILIPPINES WARNS US

Philippines' high defense official have questioned key accord with America over fears that it might drag the country into war within the South China Sea, a day after an American Boeing B-52 bomber performed a flyover of the contested region.

Delfin Lorenzana The Defense Secretary Of Philippines said that the Philippines-US Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT) was ambiguous and vague and risked causing 

"confusion and chaos during a crisis."

PHILIPPINES-US MUTUAL DEFENSE TREATY

The Mutual Defense Accord between the Republic of the Philippines and America was signed on 30th August, 1951, in Washington, D.C. between representatives of  Philippines and  America

The overall accord contained eight articles and dictated that both nations would support one another if either the Philippines or the United States were to be attacked by an external party.

The differences  arised from the actual fact that the United States did not expressly stated whether or not Philippine-claimed disputed territory falls under the provisions of the mutual defense treaty.

TIMELINE

• 1542 - Spanish expedition claimed the islands and named them the Philippines after the heir to the Spanish throne.
• 1896 - People of Philippines campaign for independence from Spanish rule.
• 1898 - Revolutionary forces under Emilio Aguinaldo to proclaim independence.
• 1898 December - During brief Spanish-American War, US Navy destroyed the Spanish fleet in Manila Bay. Spain conceded Philippines to US, which proclaims military rule.

HISTORY

The Philippines became a colony of the United States after the Spanish–American War and the subsequent Philippine–American War. 

In 1935, underneath the terms of the Tydings–McDuffie Act, the Philippines became a self-governing commonwealth, the Philippine Commonwealth, with full independence planned for 10 years later.

PHILIPPINE–AMERICAN DEFENCE

COOPERATION

On 28 April 2014, the two governments executed an Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) aiming to enhance cooperative capacities and efforts in humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.

The EDCA is ment to promote the following between the Philippines the United States:

• Interoperability 
• Capacity building towards AFP modernization 
• Strengthening AFP for external defense  
• Maritime Security Maritime Domain Awareness 
• Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Response (HADR)

USA PROVOCATION

Recently a US Boeing B-52 bomber flew near contested islands in the sea, according to US Pacific Air Forces, which oversees air operations in the region. This was the first flyover involving a nuclear-capable B-52 in a long time.

THE TENSION

A MDT was signed between the US and the Philippines in 1951, during the early years of the Cold War. It states that both countries have to come to the assistance of the other in the event of an "armed attack on the metropolitan territory of either of the parties, or on the island territories under its jurisdiction in the Pacific or on its armed forces, public vessels or aircraft in the Pacific.“ In December 2018, Lorenzana ordered to review whether the treaty was still valid or relevant today.

WHAT USA SAID RECENTLY

"As the South China Sea is part of the Pacific, any armed attack on Philippine forces, aircraft, or public vessels in the South China Sea will trigger mutual defense obligations under Article 4 of our Mutual Defense Treaty," Pompeo