Topic Of The Day:-“The numbers game — On India’s victory at the ICJ”
The election of Justice Dalveer Bhandari to the International Court of Justice for a second term is a major diplomatic success for India. Five of the 15 judges of the ICJ are elected every three years. This year there were six candidates for five slots. The winning candidates required a majority in both the United Nations General Assembly and the Security Council in simultaneous voting through secret ballot. While four candidates were elected smoothly, Justice Bhandari and Christopher Greenwood of the United Kingdom ended in a dead heat as the former won the UNGA and the latter the UNSC in multiple rounds of voting. The U.K. wanted to end the voting and move to a conference mechanism, which involves selecting a panel of three UNGA members and three UNSC members, who would then elect the judge. This mechanism has never been used before. India opposed the move, and the U.K. could not gather adequate support for its demand in the UNSC. The U.K. then withdrew its candidate, paving the way for Justice Bhandari’s re-election. India and the U.K. had staked considerable diplomatic goodwill in the election, and the outcome is significant politically for both. For the first time, the U.K. will not have a judge on the ICJ. It is also the first time that a permanent member of the UNSC has lost at the ICJ on a vote. For British Prime Minister Theresa May the loss comes at a difficult time as she struggles with the process of leaving the European Union and with her own leadership coming under assault from Conservative MPs. In this context, the loss at the ICJ is being read as confirmation of the U.K.’s diminishing role in global affairs. As America’s inseparable and unquestioning junior partner, the country had asserted its relevance in the post-War order even as its military and economic power eroded. With the U.S. under President Donald Trump less guided by the “special relationship” with the U.K., a post-Brexit U.K. will have to do much more heavy-lifting in multilateral forums. For India, soon after its failure to gain membership to the Nuclear Suppliers Group, the lobbying for the ICJ election has different lessons. With all five permanent members of the UNSC fiercely locking arms to protect their collective interest of dominating the world body, India’s success was built primarily on the support of developing countries, among whom it has nurtured goodwill over the decades. Japan also appeared to align with the P-5. India’s call for a more equitable world order has a better resonance among developing countries than the custodians of the current order. India’s support in the UNGA was expanding with subsequent rounds of voting, a reality the U.K. and the U.S. could not brush aside. For India, the takeaway is clear: to find a louder global voice, it also needs to put more emphasis on ties with countries away from the high table.
MEANINGS AND WORDS
1) Ballot
Meaning: A system of voting secretly and in writing on a particular issue.
Example: “a strike ballot”
Synonyms: Election, Referendum
2) Withdrew
Meaning: Leave or cause to leave a place or situation.
Example: “UN forces withdrew from the province”
Synonyms: Leave, Evacuate
Antonyms: Enter
3) Paving
Meaning: Cover (a piece of ground) with flat stones or bricks; lay paving over.
Example: “the yard at the front was paved with flagstones”
Synonyms: Surface, Finish
4) Staked
Meaning: Mark an area with stakes so as to claim ownership of it.
Example: “the boundary between the two manors was properly staked out”
Synonyms: Demarcate, Define
5) Assault
Meaning: Make a physical attack on.
Example: “he pleaded guilty to assaulting a police officer”
Synonyms: Hit, Strike
6) Diminishing
Meaning: Make or become less.
Example: “the new law is expected to diminish the government’s chances”
Synonyms: Decrease, Decline
Antonyms: Increase
7) Inseparable
Meaning: Unable to be separated or treated separately.
Example: “research and higher education seem inseparable”
Synonyms: Indivisible, Inextricable
8) Unquestioning
Meaning: Accepting something without dissent or doubt.
Example: “an unquestioning acceptance of the traditional curriculum”
Synonyms: Accept something.
9) Asserted
Meaning: State a fact or belief confidently and forcefully.
Example: “the company asserts that the cuts will not affect development”
Synonyms: Declare, Maintain
10) Relevance
Meaning: The quality or state of being closely connected or appropriate.
Example: “this film has contemporary relevance”
11) Eroded
Meaning: Gradually destroy or be gradually destroyed.
Example: “this humiliation has eroded what confidence Jean has”
Synonyms: Abrade, Crumble
12) Lobbying
Meaning: Seek to influence (a legislator) on an issue.
Example: “they insist on their right to lobby Congress”
Synonyms: Influence, Importune
13) Fiercely
Meaning: In a powerful and destructive manner.
Example: “the wind was blowing fiercely”
Synonyms: Powerful way
14) Nurtured
Meaning: Care for and protect (someone or something) while they are growing.
Example: “Jarrett was nurtured by his parents in a close-knit family”
Synonyms: Foster, Rear
Antonyms: Neglect, Hinder
15) Resonance
Meaning: The production of a sound as a result of vibration (= shaking) of another object.
Example: Magnetic resonance.
16) Brush aside
Meaning: To refuse to consider something seriously because you feel that it is not important.
Example: She brushed their objections aside, saying “Leave it to me.”
Synonyms: Unimportant, Deprecate
17) Louder
Meaning: Strong or emphatic in expression.
Example: “there were loud protests from the lumber barons”
Synonyms: Vociferous, Booming
Antonyms: Quiet, Soft
