AFSPA Act: A raging debate : Daily Current Affairs

GS-3: Challenges to internal security through communication networks, role of media and social networking sites in internal security challenges, basics of cyber security; money-laundering and its prevention.

Key phrases :AFSPA, Nagaland

Why in news-

Army kills 14 civilians in Nagaland due to intelligence failure

Analysis:

What is AFSPA?

Armed Forces (Special Powers) Bill was passed by both the Houses of Parliament and it was approved by the President on September 11, 1958.
Act came into force in the context of increasing violence in the North-eastern States decades ago, which the State governments found difficult to control.
AFSPA gives armed forces the power to maintain public order in “disturbed areas”. They have the authority to prohibit a gathering of five or more persons in an area, can use force or even open fire after giving due warning if they feel a person is in contravention of the law.
Legal action cannot be taken against the armed forces even in case of any wrongful action.

Need of AFSPA:

Army is of the opinion that the AFSPA is absolutely essential to combat insurgency in the country and protect the borders.
Effective Counter-insurgency: A strict law is needed to tackle the insurgent elements inside the country particularly in the Kashmir and northeastern region.
In disturbed areas the involvement of proxy group is also there so, in order to break that nexus extra-ordinary powers are required. Extra-ordinary powers are also necessary as the armed forces face asymmetric warfare involving raids, ambushes, mines and explosive devices.
Protection of member of armed forces – It is crucial to empower members of armed forces who constantly face threat to their lives at the hands of insurgents and militants. Its withdrawal would result in poor morale.
There are adequate safeguards provided by the Act and the Army’s guidelines as follows - Section 5 of the Act mandates that arrested civilians should be handed to the nearest police station with a ‘least possible delay’ in addition to a ‘report of circumstances that led to the arrest’.

Why is there a controversy?

AFSPA violates the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), and the Convention against Torture (India is a signatory, but it has not ratified it).
The act has failed to contain terrorism and restore normalcy in disturbed areas, as the number of armed groups has gone up after the act was established. Many even hold it responsible for the spiraling violence in areas it is in force.
Why are states not capable of handling the situation- resources can rather be put in upgrading states capability as that would be more democratic way.
BP Jeevan Reddy Committee examining it in relation to the Northeast in 2005, and the Veerappa Moily Report of the Second Administrative Reforms Commission of 2007, recommended that the Act be repealed.
Reports of the Justice Verma Committee (2013) and the Justice Hegde Commission (2013) supported need to address the abuses committed under the AFSPA and end the effective impunity enjoyed by security force.
Supreme Court appointed Hegde Commission (2013) found that all seven deaths in the six cases it investigated were extrajudicial executions, and also said that the AFSPA was widely abused by security forces in Manipur.
Colonial-era law: AFSPA is generally compared to the Rowlatt Act of the British regime because just like the Rowlatt Act, any suspicious person can be arrested only based on doubt in the AFSPA also.

Current status in India:

Currently, AFSPA is enforced in J&K, Assam, Nagaland, and parts of Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur.
The law has been repealed where insurgencies have decreased and when governments have attained confidence in managing the region using their own police force. The centre had removed AFSPA from Tripura and Meghalaya in 2015 and 2018 respectively.
In a landmark ruling, the Supreme Court of India ended the immunity of the armed forces from prosecution under AFSPA under given conditions like if excessive force has been used, and criminal courts can have jurisdiction.

Way ahead:

The Army should view human rights violations as the biggest threat to its credibility and its stellar record in fighting insurgencies over the last 62 years. It must re-establish the credibility of its legal system to deal with the problem.
The Army should put in public domain details of all court-martials held with respect to human rights violations. It must sincerely carry out fresh investigations into all alleged cases of human rights violations in Manipur and elsewhere.
Government should try to resolve the long running insurgency in North-eastern states through dialogue with insurgent groups.
Development deficit in North-east region is also said to be major reason for insurgency, Government thus should take urgent steps to create new avenues of growth through Industrialization and Infrastructural development.
Protection for the armed forces must be accompanied by provisions that ensure responsibility and accountability, within the parameters of law. It is for this reason that robust safeguards need to be incorporated in the existing or any new law. Supreme Court’s judgement should be followed in letter and spirit.

Insurgency in Nagaland:

Nagas are a hill people who are estimated to number about 2.5 million (1.8 million in Nagaland, 0.6 million in Manipur and 0.1 million in Arunachal states).
Nagas are not a single tribe, but an ethnic community that comprises several tribes who live in the state of Nagaland and its neighbourhood.
Under the leadership of Angami Zapu Phizo, the NNC declared Nagaland as an independent State on 14th August, 1947 and has led to insurgency since then.

Why insurgency?

Key demand of Naga groups has been a Greater Nagalim (sovereign statehood) i.e redrawing of boundaries to bring all Naga-inhabited areas in the Northeast under one administrative umbrella.
The demand also includes the separate Naga Yezabo (Constitution) and Naga national flag.
Feeling of alienation and lack of progressive development in the region makes them feel they are given step motherly treatment.
AFSPA is further fuelling a cycle of violence.

Way ahead:

The government should not rush into a solution by declaring deadlines. It should involve all stakeholders from within and outside the state of Nagaland
Other sections’ sensitivities also will have to be kept in mind. For example, Kukis, a tribe engaged in tussle with the Nagas in the Manipur hills
People-to-people contacts need to be built up so that real problems of the people can be voiced on a larger platform. There is a need for more cultural contact between mainstream and northeast
Greater autonomy for the Naga inhabited areas in these states can be provided which would encompass separate budget allocations for the Naga inhabited areas with regard to their culture and development issues.
Some demands that need ironing out include one for a bicameral Assembly with at least 40 nominated members representing different tribes; absorption of cadres as local armed forces or in the Indian paramilitary.

Source: The Hindu

Mains question

Q. The reports of misuse of AFSPA provisions calls for a comprehensive mechanism to declare an area as ‘disturbed’, wherein there is little or no room for discretion. Critically comment. (10 Marks, 150 Words)