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CATEGORY: INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
Loya Jirga: Grand Assembly of Afghanistan
Why in News
Recently, a three-day Loya Jirga-grand assembly has been called in Afghanistan to decide on freeing about 400 Taliban fighters convicted for serious crimes including murder and abductions.
Loya Jirga
- It is a mass national gathering that brings together representatives from the various ethnic, religious, and tribal communities in Afghanistan.
- It is a highly respected centuries-old consultative body that has been convened at times of national crisis or to settle national issues.
- According to the Afghan Constitution, a Loya Jirga is considered the highest expression of the Afghan people.
- It is not an official decision-making body and its decisions are not legally binding.
- However, the Loya Jirga’s decision is seen as final, with the president and parliament expected to respect the ruling.
Key Points
Need for Convening Loya Jirga:
- The Loya Jirga has been convened after the Afghanistan President refused to release the Taliban prisoners. This threatened the derailment of intra- Afghan talks, tentatively scheduled for 10 August 2020 in Doha.
- The Taliban has also threatened of more bloodshed if the prisoners are not released.
- The USA believes that the talks between the Afghanistan government and Taliban will lead to reduction of violence and direct talks, resulting in a peace agreement and an end to the war in Afghanistan.
Background:
- The prisoner exchanges are part of the agreements signed by the USA and Taliban and the USA and Afghanistan government in February 2020.
- However, these were delayed for several months, and the intra-Afghan talks that were scheduled on 10 March had to be put off.
- Few argue that the current Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani is deliberately delaying peace talks with the Taliban to retain power because it is speculated that negotiations could seek a neutral interim government that may cost Mr.Ghani his post.
India’s Interests in Afghanistan:
- India has a major stake in the stability of Afghanistan. India has invested considerable resources in Afghanistan’s development. g. the Afghan Parliament, the Zaranj-Delaram Highway, Afghanistan-India Friendship Dam (Salma Dam) among others.
- India favours the continuation of the current Afghanistan government in power, which it considers a strategic asset vis-à-vis Pakistan.
- An increased political and military role for the Taliban and the expansion of its territorial control should be of great concern to India since the
- Taliban is widely believed to be a protégé of Pakistan.
- Afghanistan is the gateway to Central Asia.
- Withdrawal of US troops could result in the breeding of the fertile ground for various anti-India terrorist outfits like Lashkar-e-Taiba or Jaish-e-Mohammed.
Way Forward
- India should support any genuine peace process in Afghanistan. However, the peace process in Afghanistan is one-sided and pushed by the U.S.A. and Pakistan.
- India should not recognise or publicly engage the Taliban until it recognises the Afghanistan government.
CATEGORY: GOVERNANCE
Report on Future of News in India: Vidhi
Why in News
Recently, the Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy (Delhi based independent think-tank) released a report examining the future of news in India.
Key Points
Findings:
- The worsening economic health of print journalism threatens its ability to credibly inform the public and act as an institutional check upon power.
- The environment of digital news operates in a vacuum of regulation. The emergence of a post-truth paradigm in public communications and the widespread proliferation of misinformation are barriers to realising the benefits of digital news distribution.
- Post-truth includes circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief.
Recommendations:
- The report has drawn a roadmap of legal reforms to facilitate the transition of high-quality print journalism into the era of digital communications in a manner that benefits the public good.
Checking the Dominance of Online Advertising Platforms:
- The advertisement-revenue model for digital news may be displaying indications of market failure.
- In an advertising-revenue model, the online companies publish free content that drives hundreds, thousands or millions of visitors to the site on a monthly basis.
- Advertisers pay the online companies to get in front of these visitors, this helps Businesses generate their revenue from the fees advertisers pay for this access.
- To orient the market for digital news towards the public good, the role and practices of online advertising platforms must be systematically studied by a specialised authority.
- The report has recommended the Competition Commission of India to investigate the dominance of online advertising platforms.
Enacting Comprehensive Measures to Address Misinformation:
- It suggests a range of legislative, co-regulatory and voluntary measures which provide an integrated framework to prevent the spread of misinformation and enhance reader literacy. Example:
- Development of industry standards to identify misinformation. Use of analytics to identify patterns of misinformation, etc.
Appropriate Responsibilities on Digital News Entities:
- The report calls to fill the legal vacuum for digital news in a manner which is sensitive to the nuances of online discourse.
- It recommends granting limited powers to the Press Council of India, in conjunction with a voluntary registration procedure and the development of a brief, accessible code of conduct as a mechanism for the imposition of editorial responsibility.
- The role of online platforms in the distribution of news should be addressed through targeted interventions based on the design aspects of such platforms.
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