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Acquisition of Territorial Sovereignty

Q What are the modes of acquiring territorial sovereignty? Ans Acquisition of Territorial Sovereignty International law generally recognizes five modes of acquiring territorial sovereignty by a state, they are (1) Occupation : When a particular territory is not under the authority of any other state, a state can establish its sovereignty over such territory by occupation. The territory may never have belonged to any state, or it may have been abandoned by the previous sovereign. The PCIJ( permanent court of international justice) held that the occupation to be effective must consist of the following two elements (i) intention to occupy. Such intention must be formally expressed and it must be permanent. (ii) occupation should be peaceful, continuous.        There mere act of discovery by one state is not enough to confer a title by occupation. There are two requirements (i) the territory subject to claim must not be under the sovereignty of nay state ( terra nullius) (ii) the state mus

Modes of acquisition of nationality

Q What are the methods for acquiring nationality? Ans According to Oppenheim" Nationality of an individual is the quality of being a subject of a certain state and therefore its citizens" Nationality can be both acquired or lost through different methods. Sometimes there can be double citizenship and sometimes statelessness. Modes of acquisition of Nationality: (1) By Birth:- The first and most important mode of acquiring nationality is by birth. The vast majority of mankind acquires nationality by birth. It may be according to jus soli (right of soil), that the citizenship of a child is determined by the place of birth. It may be according to jus sanguinis (right of blood), that nationality is determined by having one or both parents who are citizens of the nation.  e.g a child born  in U.S of French parents has American nationality.  (2) Naturalization : The most important mode of acquiring nationality besides by birth is that of naturalization. When a person living in a f

State Succession

Q What is Succession? Discuss two kinds of succession. Ans Succession is merger or absorbtion of one state by another state or states. State succession is distinguished from govt. succession. When succession takes place then a state loses itself fully or a part of its territory while in case of govt. succession only the organization of a govt or constitutional structure changes.         The rule of state succession was incorporated from the Roman Law by Grotius. In Roman law when a person dies his rights and duties are succeeded by his successor. A state may lose part of its territory, or it may lose all of it. Loss of territory may result in the enlargement of one  or more states. When a succession situation arises, the point of chief legal interest is the effect, on the international rights and obligations of the state or states concerned. Kinds of Succession .  State succession are of two types (1) Universal Succession (2) Partial Succession ( 1) Universal Succession:  If the legal

Recognition, De-facto and De-jure recognition

Q What is  recognition. Differentiate between De-facto and De-jure recognition. Ans Recognition of a state is the act by which another state acknowledges that the political entity recognized possesses the attributes of statehood. Fenwick also subscribes to the view that through recognition the members of the international community acknowledge that a new state has acquired international personality. According to kelsen, a state to be recognized must have (1) The community must be politically organized (2) It should have control over a definite territory. (3) The community must be independent. Mode of recognition: Recognition may be either expressed or implied. Express recognition takes place by formal indication or declaration. Implied recognition without directly expressing it. Recognition is more a question of policy rather than law e.g Recognition of Israel and P.R.China. The great powers recognized Israel while its boundaries were not yet fully determined. The Peoples Republic of C

Asylum

Q What is Asylum? Ans Asylum means giving protection to an alien who is accused of committing offences of political nature.  Asylum is the protection given to a person seeking it in a territory of another state. Asylum is the right of a sovereign state to grant shelter and protection to a foreigner and refuse his extradition. Persons genuinely seeking refuge from persecution are often reffered as asylum seekers. Asylum involves the following two elements:- (1) A shelter which is more than a temporary refuge. People who live in fear of being tortured or killed by their govt., often seek asylum as do people who are persecuted for their religious or political beliefs. (2) A degree of active protection: On the part of authorities which have control over the territory of asylum. According to Universal Declaration of Human Rights , "Everyone has a right to seek and enjoy in other countries asylum from protection." Asylum is closely connected with extradition and both are interdepen

Extradition

Q What is meant by Extradition. Who are extraditable persons? Ans  When one state surrenders to another state an accused or convicted person, it is called extradition. According to Oppenheim, extradition is the delivery of an accused or convicted individual to the state on whose territory he is alleged to have committed a crime. If an individual commits a crime which is not political one within his country and flees away to another state and takes refuge there then his home country can ask the other country to extradite the offender.  the surrender of offender is made in compliance with a formal demand through diplomatic agents and in compliance with a treaty of extradition between the two states. It is sometimes said that asylum ends where extradition begins, in other words, a state has a right to grant asylum (refuge) to fugitive criminals unless it is bound by treaty. Law and Practice as to Extradition:- (1) The principle that the offender must be punished by the state of refuge or

Peaceful/Pacific or Amicable settlement of International disputes

Q  What are different modes of pacific settlement of International disputes? Explain. Ans The chief methods for peaceful/pacific or amicable settlement of international disputes are: (1)  Negotiations:-       The term negotiation is used to denote intercourse between states for the purpose of arriving at a settlement of dispute or for relaxation of international tension. Negotiation is the simplest form of settling the disputes. Negotiations can be carried out by the head of states or their agents or the exchange of notes. Examples are Indo-Pak Indus water treaty 1960. Yalta and Potsdam agreement during second world war. (2)  Good Offices:-       When a third party offers its services to remove differences between two states who are not willing to negotiate directly. A friendly third state assists in bringing about an amicable solution to the dispute. These offices may also be offered by International organization or some individual. the U.N security council offered its good offices in