Government defends citizenship Act in Geneva

Syllabus subtopic: Important International institutions, agencies and fora, their structure, mandate.

Prelims and Mains focus: about the first global refugee forum and its significance; the refugee crisis around the world and its consequences, about UNHCR

News: Stressing that India has welcomed refugees from all over the world, the government on Wednesday defended the Citizenship (Amendment) Act in Geneva and said it is dealing with the problem through ``democracy and due proces``.

Remarks made by the Permanent Representative of India to UN

In a statement at the First Global Refugee Forum by Permanent Representative of India to the UN, Geneva, Rajiv K Chander said Pakistan is a self-proclaimed champion of human rights that has shrunk the size of its own minority community from 23 per cent in 1947 to 3 per cent by subjecting them to draconian blasphemy laws, systemic persecution, blatant abuse and forced conversions.

Throughout history, India has welcomed refugees from all over the world. The Zoroastrians who had sought refuge in India from 7th century onwards, now known as the Parsis, are a vibrant and important community in our democratic polity. The Jews who were persecuted in the 16th century had sought refuge in Cochin in South India where the synagogue they built exists to date.

Closer to our times, thousands and thousands have sought refuge in India from some of our neighbouring countries, including more than 10 million in 1971 from erstwhile East Pakistan, after which Bangladesh was born.

About the First Global Refugee Forum

The forum is organized by the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the Govt. of Switzerland in Geneva with the aim of generating new approaches and commitments from a variety of actors to assist and respond to refugee needs more effectively.

Being conducted for the first time with the participation of representatives from the states, U.N. Agencies, nongovernmental organizations and many other international actors, the forum, in its words, "comes at the end of a tumultuous decade," which has been marked by various refugee crises.

While host countries such as Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon contributed large amounts of their resources for the refugee communities, the West had a disappointing record of refusing to tackle the problem. Still, the Global Refugee Forum kicked off with the hope of coming up with substantial, concrete solutions to the issue.

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees

It is a UN Refugee Agency and a global organization dedicated to saving lives, protecting the rights and building a better future for refugees, forcibly displaced communities and stateless people.

It was created in 1950 to help millions of Europeans who had fled or lost their homes.

It is headquartered at Geneva, Switzerland.

Source: Indian Express

Join Our Telegram

World bank logistic performance index 2023

World bank logistic performance index 2023

28 Apr, 23
SHARE

India is now ranked 38th out of 139 nations in the Logistic Performance Index (LPI) 2023 of the World Bank. From its previous rankings of 44th in 2018 and 54th in 2014, this is a notable improvement. Earlier, the Logistics Ease Across Different States (LEADS) Report 2022 was published by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. About Logi

Smuggling of Gold

28 Apr, 23
SHARE

Airports discovered more than 63% of this illegal gold. The Department of Revenue Intelligence recently conducted the Golden Dawn Operation across India, seizing 101.7 kg of illegal gold valued at Rs 51 crore. Despite the fact that India receives a legal import of about 800-1,000 tonnes of gold each year, the illicit market is thought to be

India-Thailand Relations

27 Apr, 23
SHARE

Both parties expressed satisfaction with the ongoing bilateral defence cooperation at the 8th India-Thailand Defence Dialogue, which was held in Bangkok, Thailand. Cultural ties and mutual cooperation that have been shaped by thousands of years of lasting historical and cultural ties characterise India and Thailand relations. Highlight

Translocation of Elephants

27 Apr, 23
SHARE

The Kerala government's appeal of the order of the Kerala High Court is rejected by the Supreme Court. The Kerala government's appeal against the Kerala High Court's directive to move Arikomban (Wild Elephant), the "rice tusker" of Munnar, to the Parambikulam tiger reserve was recently dismissed by the Supreme Court.

Global Buddhist Summit

26 Apr, 23
SHARE

Global Buddhist Summit In order to improve diplomatic and cultural ties with other nations, the Ministry of Culture recently organised the First Global Buddhist Summit 2023 in collaboration with the International Buddhist Confederation (IBC). About the summit "Responses to Contemporary Challenges: Philosophy to Praxis" is