EXPLAIN MODES OF ACQUISITION AND LOSS OF TERRITORIAL

SOVEREIGNTY.
International law is based on the concept of the state. The state in its turn lies
upon the foundation of sovereignty, which expresses internally the supremacy of
the governmental institutions and externally the supremacy of the state as a
legal person. But sovereignty itself, with its retinue of legal rights and duties, is
founded upon the fact of territory. Without territory
a legal person cannot be a state. It is undoubtedly the basic characteristic of a
state and the one most widely accepted and understood.

Modes of Acquiring territory: -

Under the International law, a state may acquire territory through the following
modes: -
(1) Occupation-
Occupation is the act of appropriation by a state by which it intentionally
acquires sovereignty over such territory as it is at the time not under the
sovereignty of another state. It is therefore an original mode of sovereignty as
in that it is not derived from another state.
The two essential elements that constitute an effective occupation: -
(a) Possession
(b) Administration

Norway-Denmark Dispute Over Eastern Greenland and Ruling of PCIJ: -

A Dispute arose on the legal status of Eastern Greenland with both Norway and
Denmark claiming sovereign rights over the territory. The permanent court of
international justice (PCIJ) lay down that occupation to be effective should be
accompanied by two elements; animus and
corpus.
Animus: - Animus means intention on the part of the state to appropriate the
territory and to establish sovereignty over it. The intention to treat it as a part of
its territory permanently to the exclusion of other states is essential.
Corpus: -The state acquiring territory should take the corpus i.e., possession.
The occupation of territory requires steps to exercise its authority on the
occupied state. Generally, possession of a part of the territory is regarded as the
possession of all the territory.

(2) Prescription: -
Yet another mode of acquiring territory is prescription. If a state exercises
control and establishes occupation over a particular territory for a long
time and of thus exercises defacto sovereignty over it, then the territory is
concerned becomes a part of that state “title by prescription is the result of the
peaceable exercise of de facto sovereignty for a very long period over a
territory subject to the sovereignty of another, and this may be as the
consequence of immemorial exercise of such sovereignty or is the result of
lengthy adverse possession only.” However, international law does not
prescribe any fixed period for prescription. A state may acquire some territory
by prescription only when some of the conditions are fulfilled. These conditions
are: -
A state may acquire some territory by prescription only when it has not accepted
the sovereignty of any other states over the said territory.
(ii) Possession should be peaceful and uninterrupted
(iii)Possession should be in public and possession should be for a definite
period.

(3) Accretion: -
A territory may also be acquired through accretion. Accretion is the name for
the increase of land through new formations which may be artificial or natural.
If they are because of the human work, they are artificial. On the other hand, if
they are because of the operation of nature, they are natural. Further, it is a
customary rule of international law that “enlargement of territory, if any, created
through new formation, takes ipso facto by the accretion, without the state
concerned taking any special step for the purpose of extending its sovereignty.”

(4) Custom: -
When a state transfers its territory to another state, acquisition by cession takes
place in Favors of such later state. The cession of territory maybe voluntary or
maybe under compulsion because of war. The act of cession maybe even in the
nature of a gift, sale, exchange, or lease. Cession is the transfer of territory
usually by treaty from one state to another. E.g. France
cession of Louisiana to U.S in 1803. Cession of Alaska, Purchases of Alaska by
U.S (from Russia in 1867). Transfer of sovereignty over state territory by
the owner state to another state. The state acquiring the territory is called
acquiring state and the state which transfers the territory is called ceding state.
However, ceding as well as acquiring states must be states and the transfer must
be through a legal agreement between the two parties.

(5) Annexation: -
When a state conquers another state, the former establishes its sovereignty over
the latter. Annexation has two elements; occupation and intention. Intention of
annexation should also be declared by the conquered state, followed by
notification to annex and subsequent recognition by several other powers. In the
absence of indication of intention to annex, the territory acquired is termed as
military occupation. It is a method of powerful states to expand their territories
by occupying and enslaving weaker states. However, after the establishment of
UN, acquisition of territory through conquest has become illegal. Article 2, Para
4 of charter of UN. The “member state shall not use the force against the
territorial integrity or political independence of any state……” Also, UN
Declaration on the Principles of Friendly Relation 1979 provides that territory
of a state shall not be the object of acquisition by another state resulting from
the threat or
use of force.

(6) Lease: - The territory may also be acquired through lease. A state may be its
territory to another state under lease for a certain period. For the said certain
period some rights of sovereignty are transferred to another state. Through
lease although complete sovereignty over the said territory is not transferred.

(7) Pledge: - sometimes there arise certain circumstances under which a state
becomes compelled to pledge a part of its territory in return of some amount of
money for which it is in their name. In this case also, a part of sovereignty over
the territory concerned is transferred. For e.g. in 1768 the Republic of Geneo
had pledged the Island of Corsica to France.

(8) Plebiscite: - Some writers are of the view that through plebiscite also new
territory may be acquired. Although there are no definite rules regards to
acquiring of territory through plebiscite yet modern writers have expressed the
view that through plebiscite also a new territory may be acquired. A recent
example of acquiring territory through plebiscite is that of West Irian. Both
Netherlands and Indonesia claimed the territory of West Irian. Through the
efforts of US, it was decided that a plebiscite in the West Irian may be should be
held and the people of West Irian should be given the freedom to
decide whether they would like to merge with Netherlands or Indonesia.
Consequently, plebiscite was held under the auspices of UN inhabitants of West
Irian’s decided to merge with Indonesia.

(9) Acquisition of territorial sovereignty by a newly emerged state: -

Yet another method of acquiring of territorial sovereignty is that of a newly
emerged state. This is particularly true of those states that are previously the
colonies of some states and later were liberated. After liberation they acquired
territorial sovereignty over that territory in this connection the difficulty is that
the territory which was previously a part of another state can acquire
sovereignty only after becoming independent.

Modes of loss of territory

Territory may be lost through the following modes
(1) Cession: -
As pointed out earlier a territory may be acquired through cession. As one state
acquires the territory through cession, the other state loses it.

(2) Operation of nature: -

Sometimes a state may lose its territory through the operation of nature. For
e.g., by earthquake a coast of the sea or an Island may altogether disappear.
Similarly, the change during river may also result in the loss of territory.

(3) Subjugation: -
As a state may acquire territory through annexation, the other state may lose it
through subjugation. But like annexation there is no more a valid mode. For
e.g., Kuwait loses its territory through subjugation by Iraq who declares it to be
Iraq’s 19th province. The Security Council not only disapproved of Iraq’s
Action but passed a resolution asking all member states of UNO to recognize it.
Subsequently, Security Council acted against Iraq under Chapter VII allowing
states cooperating with Kuwait to use all means to free Kuwait. Thus, Iraq was
forced to withdraw from Kuwait.

(4) Prescription: - when a state occupies a particular territory for a long period
then it is entitled to acquire it through prescription. On the contrary, the state
which had occupation over it earlier may lose it.

(5) Revolt: - when a new state takes birth in consequence of revolution or revolt
then it may be said that the former state has lost its territory. For e.g., In 1579,
through revolution came lost Netherlands. Similarly in 1776, through the war of
independence of America Great Britain lost the territory of America. Recently,
Pakistan lost her territory of East Pakistan a people of the said territory revolted
and formed a new state known as Bangladesh.

(6) Dereliction: - the territory may also be lost by dereliction. It means by

renunciation of a territory that is to say; a state may slacken its occupation over
sovereignty. Such example occurs very seldom in history.

(7) Granting of independence to a colony by Imperialist State: -

Yet another mode of losing territory is granting of independence through a
colony. This newly emerged state acquires territorial sovereignty and the State
which grants independence loses that territory. So will be the case is the colony
itself acquires independence.