Current Affair 1:

What benefits were denied due to lack of legal recognition of same-sex marriages?

 

The absence of legal recognition of same-sex marriage denies certain statutory and non-statutory rights to same-sex couples. On the non-statutory aspect, the absence of legalization means a lack of societal acceptance and validation, and the ability to live together without any prejudices. It also denies them the right to celebrate their relationship in public without being labelled. Between the individuals, it denies them a sense of fulfilment.

On the statutory part, the below chart (not exhaustive) provides the rights denied to same-sex couples. Each statute will be explored in detail.

As seen above, the statutory benefits that are associated with legal recognition of marriage cover both financial and non-financial aspects of life.

Non-financial statutory benefits denied:

In addition to societal sanctity, married couples enjoy robust legal rights that emanate from the legal recognition of marriage. However, same-sex couples are deprived of such rights, recognition, and protection by law. These rights include choices of health decisions, adoption, procreation, and financial benefits such as joint ownership, succession, maintenance, and alimony among others.

A few key non-financial benefits that are denied to same-sex couples are as below.

Current Affair 2:

UN Forum on Forests

 

News:

On 27 April 2017, the UN General Assembly adopted the first ever UN Strategic Plan for Forests 2017-2030. The Strategic Plan provides a global framework for actions at all levels to sustainably manage all types of forests and trees outside forests and halt deforestation and forest degradation.

Current Affair 3:

6th Indian Ocean Conference (IOC)

 

The sixth international Indian Ocean Conference is set to begin in Bangladesh capital city Dhaka from May 12 which will be attended by about 150 delegates, including high-level representatives from 25 countries.

The theme of this year’s conference is ‘Peace, Prosperity and Partnership for a Resilient Future’ due to the post-Covid situation and the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.

The Indian Ocean Conference (IOC) was started in 2016 and in the last six years it has emerged as the “flagship consultative forum” for countries in the region on regional affairs.

Strategic Significance of 6th Indian Ocean Conference: This is important. Do read.

However, the 6th Indian Ocean Conference in Bangladesh, most importantly, is taking place at a time when the Bangladesh government has recently set an ‘Indo-Pacific Outlook’ officially. The overarching goal of Bangladesh’s recent Indo-Pacific Outlook is to enhance the country’s ties with the USA and West, India for engagement in this region, accelerate economic growth, and address common issues shared by the other nations.

Despite Indo-Pacific Strategy’s widespread support, some countries have claimed that it’s only likely to serve to escalate regional instability, slow China’s growth and Bangladesh’s lean towards the US. In this way, India-US-Bangladesh relations would reach a new level. Bangladesh could gain trust from the Indian government because India is an active member of the Indo-Pacific alliance.

The world has dramatically changed in the past few years. When the block was formed, the regional and global political landscape was relatively peaceful and harmonious. China, USA, India, Russia and the European Union had minimal conflict of interests. It was a time when multipolarity enjoyed a positive vibe in international relations despite their underlying competition. Today, the world has gradually become polarized and divided on issues of power, resources, and hegemony. The Quad-China confrontation and Ukraine War has been the ultimate test of strategic visions that the West has against China and Russia.

Against this backdrop, India has been promoting the idea of ‘net security provider’ in South Asia and the Indian Ocean region.

Again, the geopolitics of Indian Ocean region is now brewing through new strategic and security initiatives such as the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) of China, Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (QUAD), Indo-Pacific Strategy (IPS), Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) and Australia, UK and US (AUKUS) let by the USA and its allies. Besides, India also announced SAGAR vision (Security and Growth for all in the Region, India and its Neighborhood).

 

Current Affair 4:

Who decides international poverty line?

 

The World Bank sets the international poverty line at periodic intervals as the cost of living for basic food, clothing, and shelter around the world changes.

The World Bank updated the global poverty lines in September 2022. The new extreme poverty line of $2.15 per person per day, which replaces the $1.90 poverty line, is based on 2017 PPPs.

This means that anyone living on less than $2.15 a day is considered to be living in extreme poverty. About 648 million people globally were in this situation in 2019.

Why did the World Bank decide to update the International Poverty Line?

As differences in price levels across the world evolve, the global poverty line has to be periodically updated to reflect these changes. That’s why in September 2022 the international poverty line is being updated from $1.90 to $2.15 per person per day.

Why raise the poverty line? What was wrong with the $1.90 a day line that we are all used to?

The international poverty line is periodically updated to reflect changes in prices across the world. The rise in the international poverty line reflects an increase in the costs of basic food, clothing, and shelter needs in low-income countries between 2011 and 2017, relative to the rest of the world. In other words, the real value of $2.15 in 2017 prices is the same as $1.90 was in 2011 prices.

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