Pakistan Foreign Minister Qureshi says OIC should gather foreign ministers to raise effective voice against new Indian citizenship law
Islamuddin Sajid
ISLAMABAD (AA) — Pakistan’s foreign minister on Sunday urged the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to bring together its foreign ministers to help defend Indian Muslims.
“We hope the OIC will convene its foreign ministers meeting in Islamabad and jointly raise their voices for Indian Muslims,” Qureshi told reporters in his hometown Multan, a city in the northeastern Punjab province.
On the India citizenship law, Qureshi said India appears to be divided into secularists and the “Hindutva Supremacy,” as minorities and educated Hindus are also protesting the controversial law.
Citing the lockdown in Indian-administered Kashmir that began on Aug. 5, he added: “The Indian government put the Kashmiri people in open prison for the last five months after an imposed curfew there, but all of India cannot be put under curfew, and the world saw the real face of India.”
On Dec. 11, India’s parliament passed a controversial citizenship law offering citizenship rights to Hindu, Buddhist, Christian, Parsi, and Jain communities migrating from Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan. The law, however, excluded Muslims, triggering mass protests across the country that have so far claimed 26 lives.
On December 24, the OIC’s Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission strongly condemned the violence and loss of life during ongoing peaceful protests in the country against the citizenship law, urging the international community and the UN to pressure the Indian government to repeal the discriminatory clauses of the new law and abide by relevant international norms and standards in dealing with the ongoing peaceful protests and ensure the protection of all human rights.
Saudi Arabia plans OIC meet on J&K
According to Pakistani media report, Saudi Arabia plans to convene a meeting of the foreign ministers of member states of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) for a discussion on the situation in Kashmir.
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan conveyed this to his Pakistani counterpart Shah Mehmood Qureshi during a meeting with him at the Foreign Office on Thursday, Dawn reported, quoting a diplomatic source.
Prince Faisal was on a day-long visit to Pakistan to convey the Saudi leadership’s gratitude for not participating in the recently held Kuala Lumpur summit of Muslim nations in view of the Gulf Kingdom’s reservations, the paper reported.
“The two Foreign Ministers discussed OIC’s role in the advancement of the cause of Kashmir,” the report quoted a statement issued by Pakistan foreign office.
During the meet Qureshi also “highlighted the Indian Government’s actions with regard to CAA (Citizenship Amendment Act 2019) and NRC (National Register of Citizens) and the systematic targeting of minorities in India, particularly Muslims,” Pakistan Foreign Office said.
In a brief statement, the OIC last week said it was “closely following recent developments affecting Muslim minority in India.”
(With media inputs)
