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Nine Individuals as Designated Terrorists Under Provisions of UAPA Act

IN NEWS

• The Central Government had amended the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 in August 2019, to include the provision of designating an individual as a terrorist. Prior to this amendment, only organizations could be designated as terrorist organizations.

ABOUT

• Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act is aimed at effective prevention of unlawful activities associations in India.
• The National Integration Council appointed a Committee on National Integration and Regionalization to look into, the aspect of putting reasonable restrictions in the interests of the sovereignty and integrity of India. UAPA was passed in 1967.
• Unlawful activity as amended refers to any action taken by an individual or association intended to disrupt the territorial integrity and sovereignty of India.
• Under UAPA, both Indian and foreign nationals can be charged. It will be applicable to the offenders in the same manner, even if crime is committed on a foreign land, outside India. It has death penalty and life imprisonment as highest punishments.

CONCERNS

• The Act assigns absolute power to the central government, by way of which if the Centre deems an activity as unlawful then it may, by way of an Official Gazette, declare it so.
• An individual cannot be called a ‘terrorist’ prior to conviction in a court of law, It subverts the principle of “innocent until proven guilty. A wrongful designation will cause irreparable damage to a person’s reputation, career and livelihood.

CONCLUSION

• While none will question the need for stringent laws that show ‘zero tolerance’ towards terrorism, the government should be mindful of its obligations to preserve fundamental rights while enacting legislation on the subject. It has death penalty and life imprisonment as highest punishments.

West Bank and West Asia Peace Plan

IN NEWS

• Israel’s coalition agreement authorized Netanyahu to start taking action on July 1 to extend sovereignty over territory the Palestinians claim for a future state.

What is the Israeli-Palestinian conflict about?

• The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is rooted in a century-long territorial dispute over the Holy Land, a Middle Eastern region with great religious and historical significance to Christians, Jews, and Muslims.
• A major turning point was the 1967 Six-Day War, which culminated in Israel’s occupation of East Jerusalem, the West Bank, and Gaza.
• In its aftermath, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 242, which called for Israel to withdraw from occupied lands to secure and recognize borders in exchange for peace.

PEACE PLAN

• The Middle East has long been of central importance to the United States as successive administrations pursued a broad set of interrelated goals including securing vital energy resources, staving off Soviet and Iranian influence, ensuring the survival and security of Israel and Arab allies, countering terrorism, promoting democracy, and reducing refugee flows.
• After the 1967 Six-Day War, the United States attempted to mediate the broader Arab-Israeli conflict along with Britain, France, Russia, and the United Nations. However, it was the 1973 war, in which Israel struggled early on to defend itself against invading Egyptian and Syrian forces, that compelled the United States to take the lead in future diplomacy.
• In the 2003 Road Map for Peace plan put forth by the United States, the European Union, Russia, and the United Nations. The Obama administration also tried to advance a two-state solution, but talks collapsed in 2014 over disagreements on settlements, the release of Palestinian prisoners, and other issues. In 2016, Secretary Kerry outlined principles for a two-state solution based on those final status talks.
• Trump’s plan, dubbed Peace to Prosperity , would potentially establish a Palestinian state but give Israel sovereignty over an essentially undivided Jerusalem, including the Old City and the holy sites, relegating the Palestinian capital to a sliver of East Jerusalem.

CONCLUSION

• The outlook for Israeli-Palestinian negotiations is bleak. It’s highly unlikely that the Palestinians will receive a package of concessions from Israel that is more favorable than those that the Palestinians have rejected in the past.
• Some experts have suggested that the two-state solution will become less viable, especially if the Israeli government follows through on plans to annex settlements in the West Bank and the Jordan Valley.

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