WEEKLY NEWS AND ANALYSIS (4TH -10TH JUNE) INTERNATIONAL NEWS India, Belarus agree on road map for stronger ties India and Belarus decided to work together on defence and security issues as President Pranab Mukherjee met his Belarusian counterpart and agreed on a 17-point road map aimed at strengthening mutual trust and confidence. During the talks, the President discussed a host of issues, including increasing trade ties, besides boosting co- operation in mining, education and heavy machinery. Later, the two Presidents witnessed signing of several agreements and Memorandums of Understandings, including agreements between the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) and the Ministry of Finance, the Bureau of Indian Standards as well as between the Prasar Bharati and the National State Television. The agreements included the road map for strengthening mutual trust and having a strong commitment to develop multifaceted and long term co-operation. The two countries will work for full implementation of the MoU on defence-related technical cooperation and to develop a legal framework for security cooperation Under the agreement, the two countries will enhance coordination in science and technology, energy sector, metals and mining, potash fertilizers, give boost to raw material in textile sector, extend cooperation by Belarus in modernisation of public electric transport system in India, agriculture and agro processing. Exchange of students and promotion of tourism also figured in the agreements. Going to The Hague: India and ICJ, the big picture What is the International Court of Justice (ICJ)? Based in The Hague in Netherlands, this 15-judge court was established in 1945 by the United Nations Charter. All members of the UN are automatic parties to the statute, but this does not automatically give ICJ jurisdiction over disputes involving them. The ICJ gets jurisdiction only on the basis of consent of both parties. Where does India stand vis-a-vis dispute resolution at ICJ? In September 1974, India declared the matters over which it accepts the jurisdiction of the ICJ. This declaration revoked and replaced the previous declaration made in September 1959. Among the matters over which India does not accept ICJ jurisdiction are: “disputes with the government of any State which is or has been a Member of the Commonwealth of Nations”, and “disputes relating to or connected with facts or situations of hostilities, armed conflicts, individual or collective actions taken in self-defence…”. The declaration, which includes other exceptions as well, has been ratified by Parliament. Has India ever taken as case to the ICJ? Yes, once — even though it has been a party to a total five cases, three of them with Pakistan, at the ICJ. In 1971, India filed a case against the jurisdiction of International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) to decide on Pakistan’s demand that India could not deny it overflight and landing rights. India had withdrawn Pakistan’s overflight rights after the January 1971 hijacking of an Indian Airlines flight to Lahore, and the gutting of the aircraft by the hijackers. The ICJ ruled against India, saying that ICAO had jurisdiction in this case. In 1954, Portugal had filed a case against India over denial of passage to what were then the Portugese territories of Dadra and Nagar Haveli. ICJ decided in India’s favour in 1960, saying India’s refusal of passage was covered by its power of regulation and control of the right of passage of Portugal. In 1973, Pakistan filed a case to stop the repatriation to Bangladesh of 195 Pakistani nationals in Indian custody after the 1971 War, to face trial on charges of genocide, but withdrew the case the next year. After 1974, Pakistan, a Commonwealth nation, can no longer take India to the ICJ. Didn’t Pakistan also take India to the ICJ in 1999? Yes, after India shot down a Breguet Atlantique patrol plane of the Pakistan Navy in Indian air space over the Rann of Kutch. India contested the case, and the ICJ upheld India’s position that the Court had no jurisdiction to entertain Pakistan’s claim. What is the Capt Saurabh Kalia case? Captain Saurabh Kalia was the first Indian Army officer to observe and report largescale Pakistani intrusion on the Indian side of LoC in Kargil. His patrol, comprising five other soldiers, was captured by the Pakistan army on May 15, 1999. Their bodies were handed over on June 9, 1999. Post mortem examinations showed evidence of brutal torture: the men had been burnt with cigarettes, their ear drums pierced with hot rods, their eyes punctured before being removed, their skulls fractured, and their limbs and private parts chopped off before they were shot dead. India has raised the issue with Pakistan as a violation of the rights of PoWs under the Geneva Convention, but to no avail. Weekly News and Analysis Byju’s Classes-9873643487 1 2015CA_004,005,006,007,008,009,010 Kalia’s father filed a PIL in the Supreme Court last year, asking the Indian government to take the case to the ICJ. The government filed an affidavit in December saying the ICJ had no jurisdiction over disputes between India and Pakistan, and that a PIL could not seek action against a foreign country, as foreign policy is a government function. What has the government said now? Earlier this week, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said that if the Supreme Court gave permission, the government would approach the ICJ. What does this position imply? It is India’s own law, ratified by Parliament, which denies the ICJ jurisdiction over this matter. Even if the Supreme Court asks the government to move the ICJ, it is highly unlikely that Pakistan will accept the Court’s jurisdiction in this case. Also, going to the ICJ can theoretically open up all cases between India and Pakistan to multilateral jurisdiction, thus weakening New Delhi’s consistent stand that all issues with Islamabad would be resolved bilaterally. Once India has accepted ICJ’s jurisdiction over bilateral issues, Pakistan could well demand that the ICJ arbitrate on alleged human rights violations in Jammu and Kashmir, or military operations on the Line of Control, or any other issue. Knowledge network to be open to all SAARC nations India is in the process of extending its National Knowledge Network to all members of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) to allow students unimpeded access to digital libraries and network resources, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said. At the groundbreaking ceremony of South Asian University (SAU), Ms. Swaraj said the Ministry was carrying out the instructions of the Prime Minister to have the university connect with at least one university in every SAARC nation. At the 13th SAARC summit in Dhaka, India offered to host the SAU. The university, mooted as one dedicated to the region, has had its share of teething troubles, mainly on account of financial constraints. Pak. yet to pay share: While India has offered to pay the capital cost of $198 million for its establishment, apart from providing close to 40 hectares for the campus, Pakistan is yet to pay its share. In 2014, a Parliamentary Standing Committee asked the Ministry to expedite the process of seeking funds from Pakistan. Its report said the neighbouring nation owed $7.8 million towards the project since 2010. India signs pact on automatic exchange of tax information In keeping with what was decided at the G20 Finance Ministers meeting in 2014, India joined the Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement (MCAA) on Automatic Exchange of Financial Account Information. The declaration to comply with the provisions of the agreement was signed in Paris by the Indian ambassador to France, Mohan Kumar. Prior to this, 54 countries had joined the MCAA. India is among six countries that joined this pact in Paris, taking the number to 60. The target is to reach 94 countries by 2017. The new system, dubbed the Common Reporting Standards (CRS) on Automatic Exchange of Information (AEOI), is very wide in scope and obliges the treaty partners to exchange a wide range of financial information, including that about the ultimate controlling persons and beneficial owners of entities. To be able to comply with the new system, amendments have been made to section 285BA of the Income Tax Act, 1961. Necessary rules and guidelines are being formulated in consultation with financial institutions. Previously, information was exchanged between countries on the basis of specific requests relating to cases of tax evasion and other financial crimes. AEOI, when fully implemented, sets up a system wherein bulk taxpayer information will periodically be sent by the source country of income to the country of residence of the taxpayer. India raises with U.S. arms sale to Pak. On a day when the Army Chief of Pakistan described Kashmir as “the unfinished agenda of Partition”, India took up with the visiting U.S. Defence Secretary, Ashton Carter, the issue of arms sale to Islamabad. Mr. Carter signed the 2015 Framework Agreement for India-U.S. Defence cooperation with Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar. The defence agreements are a part of a broader U.S.-India engagement to cement ties. Even as the U.S. sees India as an ally in the Asia-Pacific, Indian leadership raised the issue of military hardware support to Islamabad with Mr. Carter. The U.S. has given multimillion dollar military hardware, including F-16 fighter planes, to Pakistan and pitched as a means of capacity-building to fight terrorists on Islamabad border. U.S. President Barack Obama’s proposal to give over $1 billion in civilian and military aid to Pakistan — a six-fold increase in foreign military financing — for fighting terror, economic development, safety of nuclear installations and improving ties with India, among other objectives, was followed closely by New Delhi.