FOREIGN Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has issued a hard-hitting statement against the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation’s (OIC) lukewarm response to Pakistan’s repeated requests for convening an OIC meeting on the Kashmir issue.

The statement was also against the OIC’s inaction on the annexation of occupied Kashmir and the citizenship issues meant only to target Kashmiri Muslims in particular and Muslims across India in general.

The very next day our foreign office endorsed our foreign minister’s statement as a policy statement. We have to analyse this in the light of the events taking place since Imran Khan took over office.

Saudi Arabia, as everybody knows, dominates the OIC and when the prime minister went to the kingdom, seeking financial help, as usual, the kingdom helped him in the shape of $1bn deposit to bail Pakistan out of the financial crisis. The deposit was mark-up based.

Imran Khan floated the idea of establishing an organisation outside the OIC of like-minded Muslim countries. The idea was to provide Muslims a better and strong platform to send the world a message that member countries would not keep mum anymore and would take action against countries where Muslims were abused and targeted. This idea cropped up owing to the fact that the OIC appeared to be dormant.

The Modi government was constantly imposing the RSS agenda, and Muslims were the main target. Now Hindutva fanatics often lynch Muslims merely on suspicion of transporting or eating beef. They desecrate mosques and treat Kashmiri Muslims brutally. Since August last India-occupied Kashmir has been under lockdown.

At the UNGA session, Imran Khan put the Kashmir issue before the member countries and at one stage warned the UN to stop India from persecuting Muslims, particularly Kashmiris. He warned that if the UN would not intervene and take action against India immediately, the situation could aggravate and lead to a bigger conflict.

After the UNGA event, Pakistan constantly asked the OIC to act, but owing to many OIC countries’ economic relationship with India, Pakistan’s request was ignored. The Saudi king also asked Imran Khan not to take part in a tripartite meeting between Pakistan, Turkey and Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur, and, as reported, even a thinly veiled threat was given to our prime minister of the consequences if Pakistan participated in the mini summit.

Imran Khan has been playing smartly and that day does not seem far off when Muslim countries will start boycotting trade with India and raise their voice in favour of the Kashmiri people.

Asif Ali Khan
Karachi

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KASHMIR has been the victim of the Indian army barbarism for decades. Thousands of Kashmiris have sacrificed their lives for freedom, like freedom fighter Burhan Wani.

There are several stories about Indian brutality in international media. The recent images of an innocent man killed by Indian security forces, with his grandson sitting on his body, have outraged the world.

The whole world was in a state of shock after watching these images. Indian forces are destroying the homes of Kashmiris, putting their lives in danger and giving domiciles to non-Kashmiris.

The Indian media has also been under pressure from authorities in India-occupied Kashmir. What is happening in Kashmir is heart-wrenching. It is sad to see the Muslim ummah is divided.

Mulazim Hussain Yasir
D.I. Khan

Published in Dawn, August 13th, 2020