Right of Reply by India under General Debate on Agenda Item 4 at the 45th Session of the Human Rights Council (14 September – 07 October 2020) delivered by Mr. Pawankumar Badhe, First Secretary, Permanent Mission of India (Geneva, 28 September 2020)
Madam Vice-President,
We exercise our right of reply to the statement made by Pakistan under this agenda. It should be matter of concern for the Council that Pakistan has been continuously misusing this august forum for malicious propaganda against my country.
2. None of Pakistan’s vile accusations against India could stifle the voice of the minorities and the people under its subjugation. The fate of religious and ethnic minorities is well known when beheading is the only option in Pakistan in exchange for freedom of religion. Various international organizations have termed Pakistan as the killing field for minorities. The Ahmadis remains the most persecuted community in Pakistan under the aegis of the so-called Constitution of Pakistan. Hundreds of Christians are persecuted every year while maximum of them are subjected to violent deaths in Pakistan.
Madam Vice-President,
3. It’s deplorable that Pakistan has institutionalized enforced disappearance as a tool of subjugation against dissent and criticism not just against individuals but against the entire society. Children as young as 12 years old in Baluchistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh are normally abducted and trained to be suicide bombers. In a chilling reminder to what Pakistan is capable of, Ministers of Pakistan proudly call for another full-scale genocide against Baluchis to resolve the political crisis in Baluchistan.
Madam Vice-President,
4. Unfortunately, the statistics and data from international organizations has demonstrated that Pakistan is also a minefield for journalists and human rights defenders. Murder, harassment, assault are the wages for independent journalists in Pakistan’s so-called democracy.
Madam Vice-President,
5. Pakistan’s deceit and hypocrisy is best demonstrated when it orchestrated mass influx to Pakistan Occupied parts of Indian Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh through discriminatory domicile laws. Its baffling that there are 3 outsiders for every 4 in the Pakistan Occupied parts of Indian Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh. While civil, political and constitutional rights are non-existent in Pakistan Occupied parts of Indian Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh, deliberate economic policies have also subjugated them to a life of extreme poverty. A simple demand of land rights could lead to imprisonment for 40 years as has been the fate for political activists such as Baba Jan and others.
6. In contrast, full scale training camps and launchpads of terrorists are being escalated in Pakistan Occupied parts of Indian Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh at great expense for sustaining cross border terrorism against India. It’s not without reason that Pakistan remains a safe harbour for terrorists. While the world is busy combatting Covid-19 pandemic, Pakistan hoodwinks the world to allow delisting more than 4000 proscribed terrorists to sustain its terror ecosystem.
Madam Vice-President,
6. Nothing can change the fact that the entire territory of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh is an integral part of India. I advise Pakistan to see the reality and stop coveting territories of other countries.
Thank you Madam Vice-President.
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