UNSC open debate: India for action on terror groups

United Nations: Asserting that non-state terrorist groups "cannot act in a vacuum," India has told the UN Security Council to act "robustly" and make nations take actions against such outfits.

"Accountability of member states faces a specific challenge with regard to non-state actors, especially terrorist groups, who act beyond the pale of law with impunity," India's Ambassador to UN Asoke Mukerji said at the Security Council open debate on 'Protection of Journalists in Conflict Situations' here on Wednesday.

He said the international community has witnessed acts committed by non-state terrorist groups against journalists in the recent past.

In the context of peacekeeping missions, Mukerji said India concurs with the view that a particular focus should be given to the protection of journalists as a distinct category of civilians to be protected in terms of implementing the mandates.

"...It is also true that the threat faced by the journalists, as is the case with civilians in armed conflict situations, has undergone a significant change in recent years, especially due to the change in the nature and rising number of the armed conflicts.

"These often put journalists at specific risks. This situation calls for concerted efforts by all States and parties to ensure the safety vvof journalists in conflict situations," he said. "It is pertinent therefore to reiterate that protection of journalists in all situations is the foremost responsibility of every State, and States should do everything possible in their reach in fulfilling this obligation," he added.

On the issue of best practices for protecting journalists in conflict situations, he said journalists should function within the relevant domestic laws of the countries concerned, seek access in a legal manner and maintain strict neutrality and impartiality and not become a party to the conflict.

The 15-nation Council expressed deep concern over the frequency of acts of violence in many parts of the world against media professionals in armed conflict and adopted a resolution condemning all violations and abuses committed against journalists and strongly deploring impunity for such acts.

In an impassioned address, Mariane Pearl, the widow of Daniel Pearl, a reporter for The Wall Street Journal who was kidnapped and killed in Pakistan in 2002, said this is "a troubled time" for journalism, noting the extent of killings of journalists, with 25 killed around the world in just the first five months of 2015.

"In 2014, impunity in journalism murder cases reached a staggering 96 per cent and the remaining four per cent obtained only partial justice," she said.