Morocco Normalises Relations with Israel

Why in News

Recently, Morocco and Israel have agreed to normalise relations in a deal brokered by the USA.

• It makes Morocco the fourth Arab country, after the UAE, Bahrain (Abraham Accords) and Sudan, to set aside hostilities with Israel in the past four months.

Key Points

• Highlights of the Deal:
  
  • Morocco will establish full diplomatic relations and resume official contacts with Israel, reopen their liaison offices in Rabat (capital of Morocco) and Tel Aviv (a city in Israel) immediately with the intention to open embassies and promote economic cooperation between Israeli and Moroccan companies.
  • Morocco intends to facilitate direct flights for Israeli tourists to and from Morocco.
  • The USA has changed its longstanding policy and recognised Morocco's sovereignty over Western Sahara.
    
    • Since 2007, the UN Security Council, of which the USA is a veto-capable permanent member, has called on Morocco and the Polisario to engage in negotiations without preconditions to reach a “mutually acceptable political solution, which will provide for the self-determination of the people of Western Sahara.”
• Significance:
  
  • The USA is putting in efforts to present a united front against Iran and minimise Tehran’s regional influence.
  • This step is considered as a sovereign move and will contribute to strengthening the common quest for stability, prosperity and lasting peace in the region.
  • The deal would deepen Morocco’s engagement with the West and will also boost Israel’s motive which has made it a priority to forge ties with formerly hostile countries in Africa and the Arab world in the absence of any progress with the Palestinians.
• Reactions:
  
  • Palestinians have been critical of the normalisation deals, saying Arab countries have set back the cause of peace by abandoning a longstanding demand of Israel giving up land for a Palestinian state before it can receive recognition.
  • Egypt and the UAE have welcomed Morocco’s decision.
    
    • Egypt and Israel signed a peace treaty in 1979.
  • The Polisario Front “highly regrets” the change in USA’s policy, which it called “strange but not surprising.” It holds that the deal will not change an inch of the reality of the conflict and the right of the people of Western Sahara to self-determination.

Western Sahara

• Western Sahara is a desert region, a former Spanish colony and was annexed by Morocco in 1975.
• Since then, it has been the subject of a long-running territorial dispute between Morocco and its indigenous Saharawi people, led by the pro-independence Polisario Front.
• Morocco says it has always been part of its territory, while the African Union recognises it as an independent state.
• A 16-year-long insurgency ended with an UN-brokered truce in 1991 and the promise of a referendum on independence, which has yet to take place.
  
  • The USA supported the ceasefire between Morocco and the Polisario Front.
• In November 2020, after a border incident, the Polisario pulled out of that deal and announced a return to armed struggle.
• The USA’s backing of Morocco's claim to sovereignty over Western Sahara is a big deal because it diminishes the hope of a people who have aspired for the independence of that territory for decades.

Way Forward

• President-elect Joe Biden will face a decision whether to accept the USA deal on the Western Sahara, which no other Western nation has done till now.
• While Biden is expected to move the USA’s foreign policy away from the “America First” posture, he will continue the pursuit of “the Abraham Accords” between Israel and Arab and Muslim nations.

Source: IE

ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting Plus

Why in News

Recently, India’s defence minister attended the 14^th ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting (ADMM) Plus organized online at Hanoi, Vietnam.

• It marked the 10^th anniversary of ADMM Plus.
• The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is a regional organization which was established to promote political and social stability amid rising tensions among the Asia-Pacific’s post-colonial states.

Key Points

• About ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting Plus:
  
  • Creation: The 2^nd ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting (ADMM) in 2007 at Singapore adopted a resolution to establish the ADMM-Plus.
    
    • The first ADMM-Plus was convened at Hanoi, Vietnam in 2010.
  • Objective: The ADMM-Plus is a platform for ASEAN (The Association of Southeast Asian Nations) and it’s eight Dialogue Partners to strengthen security and defence cooperation for peace, stability, and development in the region.
  • Membership: The ADMM-Plus countries include ten ASEAN Member States and eight Plus countries, namely Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, Republic of Korea, Russian Federation, and the United States.
  • Chairman: The chairmanship of the ADMM-Plus follows the chairmanship of the ADMM.
    
    • This year it was chaired by Vietnam.
  • Aim: It aims to promote mutual trust and confidence between defence establishments through greater dialogue and transparency.
  • Areas of cooperation: Maritime security, counter-terrorism, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, peacekeeping operations and military medicine.
• The current meet comes at the time when India and China remain engaged in a military standoff along the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh, and tensions continue to mount in the South China Sea.
• India’s Stand at the Meet:
  
  • Future: The future of the South East Asian Countries will be defined by their ability to collectively respond to challenges in the region, based on the fundamentals of freedom, inclusivity and openness.
  • Covid-19: The response to the pandemic needs to be collective and collaborative.
  • Challenges: Threats to the rules-based order, maritime security, cyber-related crimes and terrorism.
    
    • Challenges are becoming increasingly trans-boundary in character which requires closer military-to-military interactions and cooperation amongst the ADMM-Plus countries.
  • Tools for Cooperation: The conduct of field training exercises and table-top exercises amongst the ADMM-Plus countries are important tools to understand each other, cooperate to enhance security and maintain peace in the region.
    
    • Example: MAITREE which is an annual training event that is conducted in India and Thailand alternatively, since 2006.

Source:IE

Global Health Estimates 2019: WHO

Why in News

Recently, the World Health Organization’s (WHO) released the 2019 Global Health Estimates.

• The WHO Global Health Estimates provide a comprehensive and comparable assessment of mortality and loss of health due to diseases and injuries for all regions of the world.
• The new data of Global Health Estimates cover the period from 2000 to 2019.
• The Estimates are in consonance with the report Ten Threats to Global Health in 2019 by WHO.

Key Points

• Key Findings of the Global Health Estimates 2019:
  
  • Top Ten Causes of Death: Ischaemic heart disease, Stroke, Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Lower respiratory infections, Neonatal conditions, Trachea, bronchus and lung cancers, Alzheimer disease and other dementias, Diarrhoeal diseases, Diabetes mellitus, Kidney diseases.
  • Non-communicable diseases: Make up 7 of the world’s top 10 causes of death, an increase from 4 of the 10 leading causes in 2000.
    
    • Heart disease : It now represents 16% of total deaths from all causes and the number of deaths from heart disease increased by more than two million since 2000 to nearly 9 million in 2019.
    • Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia: Ranked 3rd in both the Americas and Europe in 2019.
      
      • Women are disproportionately affected: globally, 65% of deaths from Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia are women.
    • Diabetes: Deaths from diabetes increased by 70% globally between 2000 and 2019, with an 80% rise in deaths among males.
      
      • In the Eastern Mediterranean, deaths from diabetes have more than doubled and represent the greatest percentage increase of all WHO regions.
  • Communicable diseases: They still take in low-income countries: 6 of the top 10 causes of death in low-income countries are still communicable diseases, including malaria (6^th), tuberculosis (8^th) and Acquired Immuno Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) (9^th).
    
    • Pneumonia and other lower respiratory infections: These were the deadliest group of communicable diseases and together ranked as the fourth leading cause of death.
      
      • However, compared to 2000, lower respiratory infections were claiming fewer lives than in the past, with the global number of deaths decreasing by nearly half a million.
      • The reduction is in line with a general global decline in the percentage of deaths caused by communicable diseases.
    • AIDS : It dropped from the 8^th leading cause of death in 2000 to the 19^th in 2019, reflecting the success of efforts to prevent infection, test for the virus and treat the disease over the last two decades.
      
      • It remains the fourth leading cause of death in Africa, the number of deaths has dropped by more than half, falling from over 1 million in 2000 to 435 000 in 2019 in Africa.
    • Tuberculosis : It is no longer in the global top 10, falling from 7^th place in 2000 to 13^th in 2019, with a 30% reduction in global deaths.
      
      • However, it remains among the top 10 causes of deaths in the African and South-East Asian regions, where it is the 8^th and 5^th leading cause respectively.
  • More non-communicable diseases are now causing deaths worldwide, there has been a global decline in deaths from communicable diseases, which however still remain a major challenge in low- and middle-income countries.
  • Longevity: The estimates confirm the growing trend for longevity as in 2019, people were living more than 6 years longer than in 2000.
    
    • Global average of longevity was 73 years in 2019 compared to nearly 67 in 2000.
    • The new projections state that people are living longer but with more disability.
      
      • Disability, however, is on the rise.
• Suggestions:
  
  • There is a need for an intensified global focus on preventing and treating cardiovascular diseases, cancer, diabetes and chronic respiratory diseases, as well as tackling injuries, in all regions of the world, as set out in the agenda for the Sustainable Development Goals.
  • The world needs to rapidly step up prevention, diagnosis and treatment of non-communicable diseases.
  • There is an urgency to improve primary health care equitably and holistically.
    
    • Strong primary health care is clearly the foundation on which everything rests, from combating non-communicable diseases to managing a global pandemic.
  • Governments and stakeholders need to urgently invest in data and health information systems to support timely and effective decision-making.
• Indian Initiatives to Improve Health sector:
  
  • Ayushman Bharat: It is a flagship initiative that attempts to move away from the sectoral and segmented approach of service delivery to a comprehensive need-based health care service.
    
    • Aim: It has been launched by the government with an aim to move towards a provision of universal healthcare in the country.
  • POSHAN Abhiyaan: It aims to ensure service delivery and interventions by use of technology, behavioural change through convergence and lays-down specific targets to be achieved across different monitoring parameters.
  • National Digital Health Mission: It is a complete digital health ecosystem. The digital platform will be launched with four key features — health ID, personal health records, Digi Doctor and health facility registry.

Source:IE

Human Rights Day

Why in News

Human Rights Day is observed every year on 10^th December - the day the United Nations General Assembly adopted, in 1948, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR).

• The UDHR established a set of common basic values both with regard to the view of human beings and to the relationship between the state and the individual.
• 2020 Theme: Recover Better - Stand Up for Human Rights.

Key Points

• Human Rights:
  
  • These are rights inherent to all human beings, regardless of race, sex, nationality, ethnicity, language, religion, or any other status.
  • These include the right to life and liberty, freedom from slavery and torture, freedom of opinion and expression, the right to work and education, and many more.
  • Nelson Mandela had stated ‘To deny people their human rights is to challenge their very humanity’.
• International Human Rights Conventions and Bodies:
  
  • Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR):
    
    • The 30 rights and freedoms include civil and political rights, like the right to life, liberty, free speech and privacy and economic, social and cultural rights, like the right to social security, health and education, etc.
      
      • India took active part in drafting of the UDHR.
    • The UDHR is not a treaty, so it does not directly create legal obligations for countries.
    • The UDHR, together with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and its two Optional Protocols (on the complaints procedure and on the death penalty) and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and its Optional Protocol, form the so-called International Bill of Human Rights.
  • Other Conventions:
    
    • These include the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (1948), the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (1965), the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (1979), the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989) and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (2006), among others.
      
      • India is a party to all these Conventions.
  • Human Rights Council:
    
    • The Human Rights Council is an inter-governmental body within the United Nations system responsible for strengthening the promotion and protection of human rights. It is made up of 47 United Nations Member States which are elected by the UN General Assembly.
    • The most innovative feature of the Human Rights Council is the Universal Periodic Review. This unique mechanism involves a review of the human rights records of all 192 UN member states once every four years.
    • The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) serves as the secretariat for the Human Rights Council.
  • Amnesty International:
    
    • An international organisation of volunteers who campaign for human rights. This organisation brings out independent reports on the violation of human rights all over the world.

Human Rights in India

• Enunciated in the Constitution:
  
  • Since inception, the Indian Constitution incorporated most of the rights enumerated in the Universal Declaration in two parts, the Fundamental Rights and the Directive Principles of State Policy.
    
    • Fundamental Rights: Articles 12 to 35 of the Constitution. These include the Right to Equality, Right to Freedom, Right Against Exploitation, Right to Freedom of Religion, Cultural & Educational Rights, Saving of Certain Laws and Right to Constitutional Remedies.
    • Directive Principles of State Policy: Article 36 to 51 of the Constitution. These include 'right to social security, right to work, to free choice of employment, and protection against unemployment, right to equal pay for equal work, right to existence worthy of human dignity, right to free & compulsory education, equal justice & free legal aid and the principles of policy to be followed by the State.'
• Statutory Provisions:
  
  • Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993 (as amended in 2019) provided for the constitution of a National Human Rights Commission at the Union level, which steers State Human Rights Commission in States and Human Rights Courts for better protection of Human Rights and for matters connected there with or incidental thereto.
• Recent Events:
  
  • The human rights situation in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) following the dilution of Article 370 and the passage of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) have brought renewed international focus on India’s human rights practice.
  • Since 2014, the government has cancelled the registration of more than 14,000 NGOs under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA). It has also mainly targeted its own critics.
  • Scores of hate crimes against Muslims and other religious groups, ethnic groups, including Dalits and Adivasi (an indigenous tribal people), as well as caste and gender-based crimes, took place across the country in 2019.
  • The Freedom in the World 2020 report ranked India at the 83^rd position, along with Timor-Leste and Senegal. India’s score fell by four points to 71, the worst decline among the world’s 25 largest democracies this year.
  • Measures Taken by Government during the Pandemic:
    
    • During the Corona pandemic, the government ensured the right to food of every person through the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana, so that no one would go hungry.
    • Apart from this, wages have been increased under MGNREGA for the empowerment of workers in rural areas. The government directly transferred money to the accounts of migrant labourers affected by Covid-19, to ensure the protection of their rights.

Way Forward

• Human rights are at the heart of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), as in the absence of human dignity one cannot hope to drive sustainable development.
• The Covid-19 crisis has been fuelled by deepening poverty, rising inequalities, structural and entrenched discrimination and other gaps in human rights protection. Only measures to close these gaps and advance human rights can ensure that people fully recover and build back a world that is better, more resilient, just, and sustainable.

Source: PIB

United Nations Population Award 2020

Why in News

Recently, HelpAge India has been presented the UN Population Award for 2020 in the institutional category.

• Bhutan’s Queen Mother Gyalyum Sangay Choden Wangchuck has been awarded the United Nations Population Award in the individual category for 2020 for her work on sexual health and ending gender violence.

Key Points

• United Nations Population Award:
  
  • Each year, the Committee for the United Nations Population Award honours an individual and/or institution in recognition of outstanding contributions to population and reproductive health issues and solutions.
  • The Award was established by the General Assembly in 1981, and was first presented in 1983. It consists of a gold medal, a diploma and a monetary prize.
  • The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) serves as its secretariat.
• HelpAge India:
  
  • It is a leading charity in India working with and for disadvantaged elderly for nearly 4 decades. It was set up in 1978 and is registered under the Societies’ Registration Act of 1860.
  • For the first time in the history of the UN Population Award, the honour is being conferred on an Indian institution.
    
    • Only two Indians have been awarded in the past four decades since the award was established in 1981: former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1983 and industrialist-philanthropist J.R.D.Tata in 1992.