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Martial law is the system of rules that takes effect when the military takes control of the normal administration of justice. Usually martial law reduces some of the personal rights ordinarily granted to the citizen, limits the length of the trial processes, and prescribes more severe penalties than ordinary law. In many states martial law prescribes the Death Penalty for certain crimes, even if ordinary law does not contain that crime or punishment in its system. Originally martial law was imposed during War s or Occupations to let the government control population more effectively in spite of heightened unrest. Nowadays it is most commonly used by authoritarian governments to enforce their rule, for example after a Coup D'état ( Thailand 2006 ), when threatened by popular protests ( PRC 1989), or to crack down on the opposition ( Poland 1981 ). Martial law can also be declared in cases of major Natural Disaster s, however most countries use a different legal construct like " State Of Emergency ". In many countries martial law imposes particular rules, one of which is Curfew . Often, under this system, the administration of Justice is left to a military Tribunal , called a Court-martial . The suspension of the writ of Habeas Corpus is likely to occur. EXAMPLES IN AND OF VARIOUS COUNTRIES Australia Martial law was first used in Australia from midnight Sunday 4 March , 1804 during the Castle Hill Convict Rebellion , also known as the second Battle of Vinegar Hill, a reference to the Irish engagement of 1798 in which many of the convicts had previously been involved. The militia were called out under the auspices of Posse Comitatus to assist in suppressing the rebelling convicts. Martial law was then lifted. Canada Though the Canadian government has never actually instated martial law, it has come close through a piece of legislation known as the War Measures Act . This act was invoked three times, in both world wars due to riots over conscription (the Conscription Crisis Of 1917 and Conscription Crisis Of 1944 ) and in the October Crisis of 1970. The War Measures Act technically does not invoke martial law, as the military does not take over the administration of justice. A better comparison would be to declaring a State Of Emergency . Indeed, the War Measures Act was later replaced by the Emergencies Act in 1988. During the Canadian Federal Election, 2006 , a military ad that was leaked from the incumbent Liberals' office suggested that their primary opponent, the Conservative Party Of Canada , would invoke martial law if they won; public backlash from this was severe. Martial law was proclaimed and applied on the territory of the Province of Quebec during the American invasion in 1775-1776, and on the territory of Lower Canada during the insurrections of 1837-1838. On December 5, following the events of November 1837, martial law was proclaimed in the district of Montreal by the Parliament of Lower Canada. It was imposed until April 27, 1838. It was proclaimed a second time on November 4, 1838 and this applied until August 24, 1839. Françoise Dubuc, ''La Loi martiale telle qu'imposée au Québec en 1837 et en 1838'' , in Les Patriotes de 1837@1838, May 20, 2000 People's Republic of China (mainland China) The constitution of the People's Republic of China originally granted the National People's Congress the power to declare martial law. In 1989 Premier Li Peng unilaterally invoked the martial law clause to allow the military to stage a crackdown on Tiananmen Square Protest ers. This action proved controversial, and in 2004 the clause was finally weakened into a provision that allowed the government to simply declare a State Of Emergency . Martial law was declared in November 2004 to quell ethnic clashes in Langchenggang, Henan province. Egypt The State Of Emergency in Egypt has been imposed almost continuously since 1967. Due to the assassination of President Anwar El-Sadat in 1981, martial law was declared in Egypt. Egypt has been under martial law ever since - the Parliament has renewed the emergency laws every three years since they were imposed. The legislation was last extended in 2003 and was due to expire at the end of May 2006; plans were in place to replace them with new anti-terrorism laws but after the Dahab Bombings in April martial law was renewed for another two years. [http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=16348 Martial law allows the government to detain anyone deemed to be threatening state security for renewable 45-day periods without court orders and also give military courts the power to try civilians. Public demonstrations are banned under the legislation. India ''Martial law in India is different from rest of the world''. According to the Indian Constitution, during peacetime, governmental and the people's interests are under the control of the Prime Minister, Parliament, and the Supreme Court, but all armed forces (except police, which are under the control of the Home Ministry) are under the direct control of the Department of Defense and the President (who also controls the national guards and paramilitary forces). In case of a non-environmental crisis, all armed forces, national guards, and paramilitary forces, along with the Department of Defense, comes under the strict orders of the President; while police, home ministry, justice department, and governments comes under strict control of the Prime Minister (without any intervention by Parliament and the Supreme Court). In such a crisis, solving an issue/problem, stabilizing the nation, and defense are considered higher priority then the people's interest. In case of an environmental crisis, the Indian government declares states of emergency, in which the emergency relief forces of the Indian Armed Forces, the National Guard, and the police come under the strict control of the President of India. So far, Indian government declared State of Emergency in the following times:- 1. 1975 - Indira Gandhi declares state of emergency. 2. 1984 December - Gas leak at Union Carbide pesticides plant in Bhopal. Thousands are killed immediately, many more subsequently die or are left disabled. 3. 1999 October - Cyclone devastates eastern state of Orissa, leaving at least 10,000 dead. 4. 2001 January - Massive earthquakes hit the western state of Gujarat, leaving at least 30,000 dead. 5. 2004 December - Thousands are killed when tidal waves, caused by a powerful undersea earthquake off the Indonesian coast, devastate coastal communities in the south and in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. 6. 2005 July - More than 1,000 people are killed in floods and landslides caused by monsoon rains in Mumbai (Bombay) and Maharashtra region. 7. 2005 8 October - An earthquake, with its epicenter in Pakistani-administered Kashmir, kills more than 1,000 people in Indian-administered Kashmir. ''NOTE:- Indian government declares state of emergency during any crisis that is administered as terrorist activity.'' 8. 2003 August - At least 50 people are killed in two simultaneous bomb blasts in Bombay. Also, Bombs kill 62 people in Delhi. 9. 2006 14 people are killed by bomb blasts in the Hindu pilgrimage city of Varanasi. 10. 2006 May - Suspected Islamic militants kill 35 Hindus in the worst attacks in Indian-administered Kashmir for several months. 11. 2006 11 July - More than 180 people are killed in bomb attacks on rush-hour trains in Mumbai. Investigators blame Islamic militants based in Pakistan. 12. 2006 8 September - Explosions outside a mosque in the western town of Malegaon kill at least 31 people. 13. 2007 18 February - 68 passengers, most of them Pakistanis, are killed by bomb blasts and a blaze on a train traveling from New Delhi to the Pakistani city of Lahore. Indian government declared Martial Law:- 1. 1984 - Troops storm Golden Temple - Sikh's most holy shrine - shooting thousands of innocent citizens to death. Indira Gandhi, PM of India assassinated by Sikh bodyguards (to revenge for killings of thousands of innocents at Golden Temple), following which her son, Rajiv, takes over. 2. 1992 - Hindu extremists demolish mosque in Ayodhya, triggering widespread Hindu-Muslim violence, Martial law declared. 3. 2002 February - Inter-religious bloodshed breaks out after 59 Hindu pilgrims returning from Ayodhya are killed in a train fire in Godhra, Gujarat. More than 1,000 people, mainly Muslims, die in subsequent riots. For further reading please browse through BBC Archives in South Asia section, relating to India. BBC News Pakistan Martial law has been declared in Pakistan twice. In the first instance President Iskander Mirza abrogated the Constitution in 1958 and declared Martial Law over the country. The second instance was when General Yahya Khan declared martial law in March, 1969 after Mirza's successor, General Ayub Khan handed over power to him. After several tumultuous years, which witnessed the secession of East Pakistan , politician Zulfikar Ali Bhutto took over in 1971 as the first civilian martial law administrator in recent history, imposing selective martial law in areas hostile to his rule, such as the country's largest province, Balochistan . Following widespread Civil Disorder , General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq overthrew Bhutto and imposed martial law in its totality on July 5, 1977 in a bloodless Coup D'etat . Unstable areas were brought under control through indirect Military Action , such as Balochistan under Martial Law Governor, General Rahimuddin Khan . Civilian government resumed in 1988 following General Zia's death in an Aircraft Crash . On October 12, 1999, the government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was dissolved, and the Army took control once more. But no Martial Law was imposed. General Pervez Musharraf took the title of Chief Executive until the President Rafiq Tarar resigned and General Musharraf became President . Staged elections were held in October 2002 and Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali became Prime Minister . Jamili premiership was followed by Chaudary Shujaat Hussain and Shaukat Aziz . While the government was supposed to be run by the elected Prime Minister , there was a common understanding that important decisions were made by the President General Parvez Musharraf .
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