Daily Times

To a surprise for many, India – the political pandemic of Asia somehow managed to win a nonpermanent seat of Asia-Pacific in the United Nations Security Council last Wednesday. India has been trying unsuccessfully to win a permanent seat in an expanded Security Council but elected unopposed to win 184 votes out of the 192 countries that participated in the election. It is said that the result meant that India would now have a seat at the same table as China, just days after the two nations disputed their Himalayan border, trading blame for a brawl that left at least 20 Indian soldiers dead.

India’s winning the Asia-Pacific seat unopposed is simply indigestible. How it could be done that a geopolitically notorious and extreme violator of human rights in its country and its occupied Kashmir could be elected unopposed? If all other 46 countries were sleeping or they intentionally opted to have a political pandemic to represent them – the world’s 60 per cent population?

This is indeed shameful and a big stain on the face of Asia-Pacific that no country could dare to stand up against India to compete for the Asia-Pacific seat in the UN Security Council. Many are the human rights champions in Asia-Pacific. Strangely they could not oppose the inhuman face to represent them for two years. If it would not be burden on the conscience of 182 countries that voted in favour of India?

Supporting a political and human rights pandemic in Asia-Pacific shows the paucity[M1] of statesmanship of those who voted for India. They have no right to be known as the champions of human right or the supporters of harmony and peace in the region or on the globe. A crucial question is would rest of the world be able to condemn and stop India’s atrocities within its territory and in the Indian Occupied Kashmir (IOK) after casting vote in its favour. It seems the human values are compromised on the political interests of the nations. No one will cry for the others until have any geopolitical, economic or strategic interest.

India’s winning the Asia-Pacific seat unopposed is simply indigestible. How it could be done that a geopolitically notorious and extreme violator of human rights in its country and its occupied Kashmir could be elected unopposed?

This is extremely embarrassing for Pakistan in particular that country’s ministry of foreign affairs totally failed to play its role in realizing the nations in the continent that a political pandemic could not represent them. I hope it is the only failure of Pakistan’s diplomacy though it does not look like as the case is being presented.

It is not merely a common diplomacy failure that could be ignored so easily. The parliament of Pakistan should debate on it, side by side the budget. A parliamentary commission should urgently formed to probe deep into the sequence of the processes Pakistan’s foreign office adopted to challenge India’s contest for the non-permanent seat in the UNSC.

Pakistan’s foreign office is now beating the dust after India’s win saying “Pakistan has refused to congratulate India on its election as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) for a two-year term starting from January next year.”

The question is whether it would make any difference to India if Pakistan does not congratulate India on its win? Another insane eyewash for the people of Pakistan. Does it really matter now if Islamabad has raised questions on the credentials of India, calling it out as a country involved in gross human rights violations, and its disregard for UN resolutions on the Kashmir dispute. No, it would not.

Pakistan’s Human Rights minister Dr Shireen Mazari has already criticized their own foreign office for this sheer negligence. It is said that perhaps the minister was unaware of the processes involved in the UNSC election. In 2013, India had announced its candidature for the 2021-22 seat from the Asia Pacific region. Its candidature was endorsed in June 2019 by the Asia Pacific region when PTI was in power. Pakistan is part of the group that endorsed Indian nomination.

An officer from the Pakistan’s Foreign Office explained that India was a sole candidate so the question of endorsement was a mere formality. Pakistan has also received such endorsements from the group in the past.

Same is also endorsed by the Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi saying in the Senate session on Friday last if Pakistan stopped India to become non-permanent member of United Nations Security Council (UNSC), Pakistan’s own likelihood to get same position in 2026 would be diminished.

So, let the Asia’s political pandemic enjoy two years in the UNSC with all the gratitude of Pakistan. It shows that Pakistan’s foreign office lacks any lobbying capacity to provoke any country to stand up against our arch rivals where we could extend all our support to ensure the diplomatic and strategic defeat of our enemies and rivals.

The writer is the Director Devcom-Pakistan, an Islamabad-based policy advocacy and outreach think tank. Email: devcom.pakistan@gmail.com, Twitter: @EmmayeSyed