Prime Minister Imran Khan delivered his address to the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) earlier today. He said, “There is only one way to go. We must strengthen and stabilise the current government, for the sake of the people of Afghanistan.”
“Right now the whole international community should think what is the way ahead. There are two paths that we can take. If we neglect Afghanistan right now, according to the UN half the people of Afghanistan are already vulnerable, and by next year almost 90 per cent of the people in Afghanistan will go below the poverty line.”
“If the world community incentivises them, and encourages them to walk this talk, it will be a win-win situation for everyone. Because these are the four conditions that the US-Taliban dialogue in Doha was all about,” PM Imran Khan said.
“You cannot waste time. Help is needed there. Humanitarian assistance has to be given there immediately. The Secretary-General of the United Nations has taken bold steps. I urge you to mobilise the international community, and move in this direction,” he said.
ON ISLAMAPHOBIA
The premier also discussed Islamophobia and said that the UN Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy has recognised as an emerging threat, as it increases the tendency of right-wing, xenophobic, and violent nationalists, extremists, and terrorist groups to target Muslims.
“We hope the Secretary-General’s report will focus on these new threats of terrorism posed by Islamophobes and right-wing extremists,” the prime minister said.
“I call on the Secretary-General to convene a global dialogue on countering the rise of Islamophobia. Our parallel efforts, at the same time, should be to promote interfaith harmony, and they should continue,” he added.
The prime minister went on to underscore how New Delhi has also embarked “on what it ominously calls the ‘final solution’ for the Jammu and Kashmir dispute”.
“Indian actions violate the resolutions of the UN Security Council on Jammu and Kashmir. The resolutions clearly prescribe that the ‘final disposition’ of the disputed territory should be decided by its people, through a free and impartial plebiscite held under the UN auspices,” the premier added.
PM Imran Khan stated for the record that last February, both countries reaffirmed the 2003 ceasefire understanding along the Line of Control.
“The hope was that it would lead to a rethink of the strategy in New Delhi. Sadly, the BJP government has intensified repression in Kashmir and continues to vitiate the environment by these barbaric acts,” the premier said.
He said the onus remains on India to create a conducive environment for meaningful and result-oriented engagement with Pakistan.
ON KASHMIR
PM Imran Khan highlighted the forcible snatching of the mortal remains of the great Kashmiri leader, Syed Ali Shah Geelani, from his family, denying him a proper Islamic funeral and burial, in accordance with his wishes and Muslim traditions, as the most recent example of Indian barbarity.
“Devoid of any legal or moral sanction, this action was even against the basic norms of human decency,” he said, adding: “I call on this General Assembly to demand that Syed Geelani’s mortal remains be allowed to be buried in the Cemetery of Martyrs with the appropriate Islamic rites.”
The prime minister also warned of another conflict between Pakistan in India, which he said is essential to prevent. “India’s military build-up, development of advanced nuclear weapons, and acquisition of destabilising conventional capabilities can erode mutual deterrence between the two countries,” he said.
ON CLIMATE CHANGE
Turning his focus to climate change, he termed it one of the “primary existential threats” that the world faces today.
ON COVID-19
“The world is facing the triple challenge of Covid-19, the accompanying economic crisis and the threats posed by climate change.”
