Published 23:11 IST, September 25th 2020
Pakistan PM Imran Khan fearmongers over Kashmir's domicile law at UNGA; India walks out
Continuing to fearmonger over India's UT of Jammu-Kashmir, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan On Friday, repeated his claims about India's revocation of Art 370
Continuing to fearmonger over India's UT of Jammu-Kashmir, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan On Friday, repeated his claims about India's revocation of Article 370 and 35 A - terming them illegal, in his UN General Assembly (UNGA) address. Repeating his claims on 'RSS' Hindutva', Khan commented on India's new domicile law for Kashmir - calling it a 'war crime'. As Khan began his speech, Indian delegate Mijito Vinito walked out of the hall in New York.
Imran Khan: 'India destroyed Kashmir neighbourhoods'
Terming India as a country sponsoring 'Islamophobia', he claimed that India had regarded Muslims as 'propellers of COVID-19 virus' and alleged that they were denied medical attention. Commenting on Assam's NRC, he fearmongered that 2 million Muslims had been 'stripped off their citizenship'. India's Permanent Representative to UN - Tirumurti has vowed a 'befitting right of reply' to Khan's 'litany of vicious falsehood'.
"India has illegally occupied Kashmir against the wishes of Kashmiris, destroying their neighborhoods, followed by a total communications blackout. The few Kashmiri media outlets that still dare to report the ground situation, are being systematically harassed, and all of this is documented by several Human Rights Watch. A recent legislation has also been put in place to alter the demographics of Kashmir, in an attempt to affect the results of a plebiscite in Kashmir. This is a war crime under the 4th Geneva Convention," said Khan.
He added, "In attempts to divert attention from Kashmir, India is playing a dangerous game; it’s upping the military ante against Pakistan in a nuclearized environment. Kashmir is a long-standing issue of South Asia and rightly called a nuclear flashpoint. The UN must ensure a peaceful solution as per past UN resolutions is worked upon regarding Kashmir".
Pakistan implemented 'smart lockdown': Khan
Apart from talking about India, Khan also briefly touched upon the US-Afgan issue, Israel-Palestine's 'two-state solution', and lack of developed countries' efforts to curb money laundering. Talking about Pakistan's efforts in curbing COVID-19, he touted his country's heavily criticized 'smart lockdown' to protect his country's economy. He also appreciated the G20 countries for the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) disbursement of $1.386 billion to Pakistan under the Rapid Financing Instrument to address the economic impact of the Covid-19 shock.
"COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated the need for community. There could have been more people dying of hunger than the virus, in developing countries like ours. We then adopted a Smart Lockdown strategy which was heavily criticized but we successfully protected our society’s vulnerable sections and our economy. We appreciate the G20’s debt relief for the developing world and support from the IMF, World Bank, and other bodies," he said.
UNGA's virtual assembly
This year, for the first time in the UN’s 75-year history, Heads of State and Government will not be travelling to New York for the General Assembly session due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The General Debate, that runs from September 22 to 29, will see 119 Heads of State and 54 Heads of Government speak via pre-recorded video statements for the various summits and sessions that will be played in the iconic General Assembly hall. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the UNGA on Saturday at 6:30 PM.
Updated 23:11 IST, September 25th 2020