092. Domestic embargo

On 26 March, 2015, U.S. Republican Governor Mike Pence signed Bill 101 into state law after the State Senate approved it by a vote of 40-10. The law, officially titled the “Indiana Religious Freedom Restoration Act” (RFRA), was set to take effect on 1 July, 2015. Bill 101 protects individuals or businesses from government actions that substantially burden their religious beliefs, unless the government demonstrates a “compelling interest” and uses the least restrictive means to enforce the law against those beliefs.

The Naga people have been entrenched in a largely violent struggle with the Indian government since the 19th century in an attempt to unify and secure the independence of areas in northeast India that are primarily populated by members of the Naga community.  The National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN)--the leading Naga rebel group--declared a ceasefire with the Indian government in 1997 in order to begin peace talks, but little progress has been made since that point. 

In December 2009, Palestinians began a boycott of goods coming out of Jewish settlements in the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and other disputed territory. There was already a law established by the Palestinian Authority against buying these goods, effective in 2005, but most local salespeople and consumers did not observe the law because most complex non-food products sold in Palestine were produced in Israel or in the settlements. Likewise, the high-producing settlements depended on Palestinian consumers for economic survival.