ISLAMABAD: Pakistan claimed on Thursday that US congressmen had given Secretary of State Antony Binken “distorted facts,” and that all actions related to the events of May 9 were constitutional.
Blinken had been requested to put pressure on the Pakistani government to address the country’s human rights situation by more than 60 members of the US Congress. Following the tragic events of May 9 when protesters attacked military and governmental facilities, 65 additional lawmakers signed the letter, which was co-authored by Congresswoman Elissa Slotkin and Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick. They stated that they were “deeply troubled by the democratic backsliding and human rights abuses” in Pakistan.
The deadly protests triggered by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan’s arrest, took the lives of at least 10 people and injured several others, with the authorities not only arresting the party leaders but thousands of party workers as well.
“The letter sent by the US congressmen to Antony Blinken contained distorted facts,” Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zehra Baloch said, and added that the rights and properties of all citizens are being protected in Pakistan.
“All actions regarding the events of May 9 are being taken in accordance with the Constitution and laws.”
Speaking about the G20 Tourism Working Group meeting in the Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), Baloch said that Pakistan hasn’t sent any letter to its missions regarding the moot.
She said that Pakistan categorically rejects all propaganda such as New Delhi’s move to politicise an international forum.
However, Pakistan will keep raising the Kashmir issue at every global forum and continue to support the struggle of Kashmiris for their rights, she added.
“Jammu and Kashmir is an internationally recognised disputed territory. The dispute has remained on the agenda of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) for over seven decades,” the FO spokesperson said.
She added that holding the G20 meeting in a disputed territory was a betrayal.
“Tourism and development cannot be promoted by holding the local population hostage and denying them their rights and freedoms. By holding the G20 meeting in Srinagar, India cannot hide the reality of its illegal occupation of IIOJK and oppression of the Kashmiri people,” it added.
