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Friday March 29, 2024

UN’s burden on nuclear flashpoint

India has been making claims that Pakistan no longer enjoys global support on the Kashmir issue and cannot also get backing for a referendum in the disputed region from the UN Security Council. Similar thoughts have also been creeping out of a former Pakistani envoy who exactly in line with

By Muhammad Saeed
October 07, 2015
India has been making claims that Pakistan no longer enjoys global support on the Kashmir issue and cannot also get backing for a referendum in the disputed region from the UN Security Council. Similar thoughts have also been creeping out of a former Pakistani envoy who exactly in line with the India claims has recently maintained that “Kashmir is an emotive issue in Pakistan because of the failure of its leaders to inform their people that Pakistan no longer enjoys international support on the matter”. His latest article was quickly picked up by Indian media since it was also posted on the website of the US-based think tank Hudson Institute of which he is an integral part. According to the envoy, “What most Pakistanis do not know is that the last UN Security Council resolution on Kashmir was passed in 1957 and Pakistan could not win support for a referendum in Kashmir today if it asked for a new vote at the UN,.” If this is the correct judgment of the former envoy and India about the ensuing state of affairs with world community and the UN itself then both India and the former envoy ought to have the audacity to ask UN to bring Kashmir issue into fore so that Pakistan must be acquainted with the real response from the members to prove him and his other friends right.
Pakistan and India are unendingly daggers drawn with each other purely due to this geopolitical dispute that requires serious attention from the UN and world community to ward off a nuclear standoff as publicized frequently. India’s founding fathers like Nehru had the requisite nerves to accept legality of the issue hence he promised Kashmiris who are primary stakeholders, to resolve the dispute at the UN in accordance with the aspirations and human rights of people of Kashmir. Resolution of such dangerous issues, as declared repeatedly by the global powers, becomes prime responsibility of the UN which is chartered to do so. UN maintains its ambassadorial as well as variety of other representatives including military and peace keepers across the globe including Pakistan and India for the purpose of mitigating issue and making this world peaceful. Ironically UN so far has failed to fulfill its principal responsibility in many areas particularly in the context of increased nuclear volatility in this region. UNGS has been making certain frivolous efforts like granting observer status to D-8 countries primarily to achieve the UN’s Millennium Development Goals.
In other words UN wants D-8 to achieve certain goals that promote global economy as well as creation of new opportunities in trade relations and above all improvement of standard of living of its people. But these goals would hardly be a priority for developing countries that are drawn out with existentional threats under internationally recognized illegal foreign occupation.
In order to synergise objectives of developing countries with the objectives of United Nation’s socioeconomic and sustainable development objectives, there is a need to empower subjugated populations like Kashmiris, first under UN charter.
Unresolved disputes cast devastating effects on the objectives and goals of individual countries as well as the UN goals. Current refugee crisis that has engulfed both developed and underdeveloped countries is the best example and end result of ineffectiveness of apex global forum, UN. It is highly disappointing that UN human rights experts are hired merely to either show concerns against Indian atrocities in Kashmir or over the US decisions to not charge the white American police officers who relentlessly kill many unarmed black men in separate incidents in different cities of the USA.
Similarly UN anti-torture panel can only request the US to ease indefinite detention without charge, whereas Kashmiris are being treated inhumanly and meted degraded treatment for the last 70 years.
Global powers on the other are not only concerned about the fluctuating tension between two nuclear powers but also pressuring Pakistan to sign FMCT and similar protocols without binding India on similar accounts as well as on its stubborn behaviour on Kashmir dispute which the core issue between two countries.
If at all UN is concerned about the nuclear flashpoint in south east Asia, then it must come out of Indian and American influence and bring Kashmir issue to UN table at least for the satisfaction of Pakistani renegades like the former envoy and India.