— Warns of civil war in Afghanistan if humanitarian concerns not addressed
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan Saturday said the “selective silence” of the West on human rights violations in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) was “deafening” as he called out their “double standards” in highlighting China’s alleged mistreatment of Uighur Muslims in Xinjiang.
“What we find very difficult to swallow in Pakistan is that while they talk about Uighurs, they do not talk much in the West about Kashmir (Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir) because the worst human rights violations are taking place there by India,” the premier said while taking questions during an interview with Chinese journalists here in Islamabad.
“Somehow there is selective silence about human rights in Kashmir where around nine million people are basically living in the worst conditions — [it’s] almost an open prison — by these 800,000 Indian troops. On one side they talk about Xinjiang, but on the other, there is this silence on IIOJK, which is deafening for us.”
The prime minister said that while there was a lot of criticism from the West about the treatment of Uighurs in Xinjiang, Pakistan’s ambassador to China had visited the region and found that “this is actually not true on the ground.”
During a previous interview with Chinese journalists in July 2021, the premier had said that Pakistan accepted Beijing’s version regarding the treatment of Uighurs due to “our extreme proximity and relationship”.
Saturday’s interview with Chinese media comes a few days before the premier’s scheduled visit to China to attend the inaugural session of the Winter Olympics in Beijing. The visit comes amid a boycott of the event by the United States.
While expressing his eagerness to attend the upcoming Winter Olympics during his visit to China, Prime Minister Imran Khan said the time-tested relationship between the two nations has only grown stronger over the decades.
During an interaction with members of the Chinese media, the prime minister said both countries enjoyed bonds of friendship spanning over a period of 70 years, further cemented by the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
He said: “There is a feeling in Pakistan that China always stood with us in times of need and supported us during difficult times. Similarly, Pakistan also always stood with China.”
Khan also referred to the construction of the Karakoram Highway as a vital milestone in the chapter of Pakistan-China friendship. A number of Chinese workers died during the 13-year period of its construction, he recalled.
To a question, he said the most impressive thing about China as acknowledged by the entire world was its success in taking 700 million people out of poverty during the last four decades, adding such a huge achievement is unprecedented in human history.
He said it was such a feast that had impressed the world. “It is this fact which also impressed me as it coincides with my objective of steering my people out of poverty,” he added.
The prime minister while responding to another question maintained Pakistan would like to emulate the steps taken by China to alleviate poverty. “We want to emulate the Chinese model of inclusive growth. The Chinese economy growth witnessed the prosperity of all Chinese people,” he maintained.
He said such inclusive growth excluded the bridge between the rich and the poor. China had been a model for all those countries that wanted inclusive growth, he added.
Such exponential growth, he said, also contributed to wealth creation. “China remained focused on the economy and when it attained growth, its fruits trickled down to all strata of society.”
Responding to the West’s critique of China over its reported treatment of ethnic Uyghurs in the Xinjiang region, the prime minister said Pakistan’s ambassador in China visited the region and concluded that such claims were divorced from reality.
China has faced an outcry from rights groups, foreign governments and United Nations rights experts over what they say are mass detentions and strict surveillance of the mostly Muslim ethnic Uighur minority in Xinjiang.
Beijing has denied accusations, saying it is only cracking down on extremism and “splittism” in the region.
Khan said that on the other hand, the West does not talk about the occupied Jammu and Kashmir where gross rights violations have been committed by the Indian forces.
“There is selective silence over Kashmir,” he observed, adding the disputed region had been turned into an open prison by 800,000 troops, and such silence on Kashmir was deafening which was based upon double standards.
To a query regarding Afghanistan, the prime minister said the nation had suffered for the last 40 years as the outer countries had turned its soil into a battleground.
After 40 years, the war-weary country got a chance at peace, he said, adding the international community did not think of the locals after the foreign troops’ withdrawal. They did not think how these impoverished people would survive.
Khan said when the Soviets left Afghanistan in 1989, there was utter chaos and casualties.
“Now everyone abandoned Afghanistan [after Taliban takeover]. I am talking about 40 million people currently facing worst humanitarian crises,” he said, warning that the same chaos and destruction could return to the soil which occurred after Soviets’ pullout.
He called upon the international community to focus on the welfare of Afghan people immediately who needed help as soon as possible without its likes or dislikes for the Taliban.
About Pakistan’s focus on geo-economics strategy, the prime minister stressed upon strengthening of its economy which according to him had, unfortunately, never been paid attention to in the past.
Regarding the CPEC, the prime minister said its first phase was focused on connectivity and the energy sector, but now they were developing special economic zones and agriculture, seeking Chinese cooperation to help improve their productivity, crops yield and livestock, citing the latest varieties of the cotton crop as developed by China.
He also referred to information and technology as another realm of cooperation as the future of the world hinged over the growth of the sector. He opined that China had made strides in the IT field.
Talking about another field of cooperation between the two countries, he said that they would be learning from the Chinese experience overbuilding the megacities and coping with the problems of air pollution and waste disposal etc.
He said Pakistan had been witnessing urbanisation at the fastest pace and the Chinese model of urban development would be of great help.
Replying to a question, he said his upcoming visit to China in the next week would provide him with an opportunity to witness the winter Olympics.
Despite being a sportsman for about 20 years, he had not witnessed such an event in the past. Being in politics, he did not get time for sports, he added.
Khan said that they would also teach the Chinese nation to play cricket, expressing hope that the Chinese would excel in this game as they had shown excellent performance in the Olympics.
He observed that the Covid-19 pandemic had devastated the world and badly affected sporting events.
The prime minister said they would also promote skiing in Gilgit-Baltistan and some other parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa which had ideal skiing locations, adding that in this regard, they would be looking towards Chinese cooperation and coordination as the country had performed well in the winter sports.
The prime minister also expressed best wishes on his behalf and on behalf of the people of Pakistan to the Chinese government and the people on the advent of the new lunar year.
