QUESTION : Chinese aggression towards India is not new. Since past 200 years Chinese have been deploying expansionist policy in south western frontier. Comment
WHAT ?
J&K issue and China
WHY IN NEWS ?
- Following the abrogation of Article 370 and reorganization of the Indian Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K), a China-Pakistan tandem has emerged to internationalize the issue, including in the UN Security Council.
- While Pakistan continues to train and fund separatists and terrorists in Kashmir area, China’s support for Pakistan is motivated by a desire to perpetuate its own territorial grab in the trans-Karakoram Shaksgam Tract of Kashmir.
CHINA’S VIEW ON J&K ISSUE :
- China treats the J&K issue as a “bilateral dispute left” that should be resolved by India and Pakistan themselves.
- Recently, Pakistan announced that it will make Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) as the fifth province of Pakistan.
- China did not oppose this move of Pakistan. However, China questioned the establishment of the Union Territory of Ladakh when India scraped Article 370. This shows that China’s inclined behavior towards Pakistan.
PARTS OF TERRITORY OCCUPIED BY CHINA AND PAKISTAN :
- The Shaksgam valley in the trans-Karakoram tract, part of PoK, was handed over by Pakistan to China through an illegal border agreement on March 2, 1963. China transferred 750 sqm in Hunza to Pakistan.
- India rejected the Agreement, claiming the entire territory belonged to India. Also, the continuing Chinese occupation of Kashmir’s territory does not find adequate mention in the contemporary discourse surrounding this issue.
- China occupies 5180 square kilometres in the Shaksgam Valley in addition to approximately 38,000 square kilometres in Aksai Chin.
- China and Pakistan brazenly promote the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) which runs through parts of Indian territory under their respective occupation.
BACKGROUND :
- China played an insidious role in changing the frontiers of Jammu and Kashmir through fictitious claims and unscrupulous alliances with local chieftains.
- China exploited the ‘Great Game’ between British India and Russia in the late 19th century.
o It pitched territorial claims far beyond the traditional frontiers of Xinjiang (a Chinese autonomous region).
o It gradually crept into areas in the Taghdumbash Pamirs and the Karakorams, south of its frontier along the Kun Lun mountains.
Sino-Pakistan agreement :
- After the Partition of the Indian subcontinent, from 1953, Chinese troops actively started transgressing the frontier in eastern Hunza.
- In October 1959, they rustled some livestock from the area, with initially angry response, Pakistan spotted an opportunity in the rapidly deteriorating India-China ties in the late 1950s, and decided to pander to the Chinese.
- Pakistan deliberately chose to downgrade the historical claims of the Mir of Hunza and eventually signed away the Shaksgam valley to China in 1963.
The Pakistan connection:
- Under the Sino-Pakistan Agreement of 1963, Pakistan gave the administration of Kun Lun mountains border to china.
o This enabled China to extrapolate a claim line eastwards along the Karakoram Range in Ladakh. In other words, China claim the whole of Aksai Chin in which it had no historical presence.
CHINA : AS PARTY TO THE DISPUTE
- The provisional nature of the territorial settlement between China and Pakistan is evident in Article 6 of the 1963 agreement.
o The two Parties have agreed that after the settlement of the Kashmir dispute between Pakistan and India, the sovereign authority concerned will reopen negotiations with the China to sign a formal Boundary Treaty to replace the present agreement.
- In effect, this agreement has established China as a party to the dispute. It has a vested interest in legitimising its illegitimate gains in the trans-Karakoram tract.
CONCLUSION :
- The one option never tried before is a peace initiative by China, India and Pakistan to resolve their common border disputes through resolution of the Kashmir issue.
- India’s significant current military deployment to counter Chinese mobilisation may yet help persuade China to step back, there is no escaping the longer-term trend.
- If India can’t redress the growing military imbalance and as Pakistan becomes even more dependent on China, China will loom larger than ever on the entire Kashmir region.
QUESTION : Terrorism is emerging as a competitive industry over the last few decades.” Analyse the above statement.
WHAT ?
Terror Attacks in Vienna
WHY IN NEWS ?
The attack in Vienna that killed four people on Monday night highlights the transnational threat European countries face from Islamist terrorists.
The attack follows the beheading of a schoolteacher in a Paris suburb and a knife attack in Nice that took three lives.
WHAT IS TERRORISM ?
- Terrorism is the act of intimidating people by using organized and systematic violence done by an individual or group to achieve their political, religious, and cultural objectives.
TYPES OF TERRORISM IN INDIA :
- Ethnic terrorism
- Religious terrorism
- Ideological terrorism
Ethnic Terrorism:
- Terrorism based on an identity crisis, resource crisis and cultural imperialism among various ethnic groups is called ethnic terrorism. It is spread in the northeast region of India.
Religious terrorism: –
- The systematic violence propagated based on religion is called religious terrorism. The feeling of religious superiority is at the root of this terrorism. Religious terrorism in modern times is considered terrorism.
Ideological terrorism: –
- If the purpose of planned violence is motivated by communist elements, it is called Left Terrorism or Naxalism. But if the origin of violence is inspired by religious and cultural elements then it is called right-wing terrorism.
Dominance of religious terrorism in India
From India’s point of view, there are the following levels of terrorism in the light of religion
- Global terrorism
- Cross-border terrorism
- Domestic terrorism
Global terrorism: –
- This type of terrorism has a global impact. They mainly target the western countries (America, Europe). The first and frightening glimpse of global terrorism was seen during the 9/11 attacks in America. In recent times, the nature of global terrorism has been seen in France and Austria.
Cross-border terrorism: –
- In this mode of terrorism, persons who are not citizens of India, but who are sponsored by any religious purpose or neighboring countries, carry out terrorist incidents in the country. Along with this, they also support separatist movements going on in India. UT of Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir is the most affected by these activities. There was clear evidence of Pakistan sponsored terrorism in incidents like Pulwama, Mumbai 26/11, Pathankot.
Domestic Terrorism: –
- Relative deprivation, identity crisis and increasing extremist feeling of the majority community and the presence of communal elements in society takes the form of domestic terrorism. The society and nation of India are still going through the process of maturity, so communalism becomes an obstacle in this Nation building process.
- Laws like UAPA (Unlawful Activities Prevention Act) have been enacted by the Parliament of India to deal with terrorist activities, communalism,etc.
- India’s security forces are constantly engaged in creating an environment of security in the country.
Changing nature of terrorism: –
- Along with technological advancements, there have also been changes in terrorism. With the revolution in information technology, terrorists are also using technology to brainwash the young minds.deprived, and refugees and carry out terrorist incidents. This form of terror is called cyber terrorism.
FACTORS FAVOURING CROSS-BORDER TERRORISM :
- Porous borders: These indicate borders which are not highly protected. India’s borders with most of her neighbours cannot be physically sealed or wired due to difficult terrain, and other factors. Terror groups take advantage of such porous borders and infiltrate into another country.
- Support from non-state actors: India’s troubled relationship with Pakistan fuels the latter’s support for secessionist groups, which are provided financial support, weapons and training by the establishment in Pakistan.
- Internal support: Many times, terrorists find support from the local population due to varying reasons like ideological or ethnic affinity, fear, monetary lure, etc.
- Corrupt officials: Unfortunately, many officials in the establishment of a country can abet terrorists and allow their illegal entry for terrorist activities purely for financial benefits.
STEPS TO BE TAKEN :
Security aspects:
- The fact that the person involved in the Vienna incident had been previously convicted in a terrorism case and was still able to slip off the security radar and launch an attack in the capital city at a time when Europe was on high alert poses serious questions on the security apparatus.
- Austria will also have to plug the security loopholes.
- It should clamp down on terror networks, isolate and punish the jihadists.
Social aspects:
- The larger challenge in countering the threat of terrorism is how to address the issue of radicalisation among youth and counter attempts to disrupt the social cohesion.
- Given that jihadists use violence to create social discord, there is a need for unity in the fight against terrorism. While stopping terror, authorities should build on values of pluralism, secularism, democracy and equality to counter the ideology of jihadists.
The Government has taken various steps to combat terror financing in the country, which inter alia, include:-
- i) Strengthening the provisions in the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 to combat terror financing by criminalizing the production or smuggling or circulation of high quality counterfeit Indian currency as a terrorist act and enlarge the scope of proceeds of terrorism to include any property intended to be used for terrorism.
- ii) A Terror Funding and Fake Currency (TFFC) Cell has been constituted in National Investigation Agency (NIA) to conduct focused investigation of terror funding and fake currency cases.
iii) An advisory on terror financing has been issued in April 2018 to States/ Union Territories. Guidelines have also been issued in March, 2019 to States/ Union Territories for investigation of cases of high quality counterfeit Indian currency notes.
- iv) Training programmes are regularly conducted for the State Police personnel on issues relating to combating terrorist financing.
- v) Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN) network is one of the channels of terror financing in India. FICN Coordination Group (FCORD) has been formed by the Ministry of Home Affairs to share intelligence/information among the security agencies of the states/centre to counter the problem of circulation of fake currency notes.
- vi) Intelligence and security agencies of Centre and States work in tandem to keep a close watch on the elements involved in terror funding activities and take action as per law.
हिन्दी