Qureshi heads to Geneva to raise Kashmir issue at UN Human Rights Council
Pakistan's UN ambassador says Kashmiris need action, not mere words, from world leaders
Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi. PHOTO: RADIO PAKISTAN
ISLAMABAD:
Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has left for Switzerland on a three-day visit to represent Pakistan at the 42nd session of the United Nations Human Rights Council beginning in Geneva on Monday.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet will open the session on Monday and update the council on the situation of human rights worldwide.
During the session running from September 9 to September 27, the council will examine over 90 reports on a wide range of issues presented by 25 human rights experts, groups, and mechanisms.
FM Qureshi is expected to address the session and present the case of Kashmiris facing India's brutalities in the occupied region.
He will raise India's unilateral and illegal actions in occupied Kashmir and highlight the threat posed to the region and the world due to New Delhi's aggressive actions.
The foreign minister will also hold meetings with leaders of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and World Health Organisation (WHO) in Geneva.
He will also interact with local and international media representatives and present Pakistan's point of view on various regional and international issues.
Pakistan to take up IOK at UN fully prepared: Qureshi
The human rights situations in Myanmar, Yemen, Ukraine, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Central African Republic and Georgia will also be on the agenda during the session.
Prime Minister Imran Khan is also set to address the 74th UN General Assembly session to highlight Indian atrocities in occupied Kashmir, with reports suggesting his speech will be on September 27.
'Kashmir needs action more than words'
In an interview with Consortium News, an independent American current affairs television channel, Pakistan's Ambassador to the United Nations Maleeha Lodhi called for action to end the humanitarian crisis in IOK.
Speaking from New York at the Pakistani mission, Lodhi urged the UN to implement its security council resolutions for the right of self-determination of Kashmiris to decide their future.
She dismissed the possibility of a nuclear confrontation between the two states saying that Pakistan is a responsible nuclear weapon state and does not wish to see any kind of conflict.
"What has happened in occupied Kashmir is certainly a flashpoint," said Ambassador Lodhi, while noting that the UN secretary-general and other officials have issued statements on the matter.
"But we need action. We just don't need words. We need action," she said emphatically. "There are already tensions which are at a peak between India and Pakistan and the situation can snowball into a much bigger crisis," the Pakistani envoy warned. "So, I think, the UN certainly has long-standing obligations, and it also has immediate obligations, including ending the human rights violations that are going on."
Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has left for Switzerland on a three-day visit to represent Pakistan at the 42nd session of the United Nations Human Rights Council beginning in Geneva on Monday.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet will open the session on Monday and update the council on the situation of human rights worldwide.
During the session running from September 9 to September 27, the council will examine over 90 reports on a wide range of issues presented by 25 human rights experts, groups, and mechanisms.
FM Qureshi is expected to address the session and present the case of Kashmiris facing India's brutalities in the occupied region.
He will raise India's unilateral and illegal actions in occupied Kashmir and highlight the threat posed to the region and the world due to New Delhi's aggressive actions.
The foreign minister will also hold meetings with leaders of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and World Health Organisation (WHO) in Geneva.
He will also interact with local and international media representatives and present Pakistan's point of view on various regional and international issues.
Pakistan to take up IOK at UN fully prepared: Qureshi
The human rights situations in Myanmar, Yemen, Ukraine, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Central African Republic and Georgia will also be on the agenda during the session.
Prime Minister Imran Khan is also set to address the 74th UN General Assembly session to highlight Indian atrocities in occupied Kashmir, with reports suggesting his speech will be on September 27.
'Kashmir needs action more than words'
In an interview with Consortium News, an independent American current affairs television channel, Pakistan's Ambassador to the United Nations Maleeha Lodhi called for action to end the humanitarian crisis in IOK.
Speaking from New York at the Pakistani mission, Lodhi urged the UN to implement its security council resolutions for the right of self-determination of Kashmiris to decide their future.
She dismissed the possibility of a nuclear confrontation between the two states saying that Pakistan is a responsible nuclear weapon state and does not wish to see any kind of conflict.
"What has happened in occupied Kashmir is certainly a flashpoint," said Ambassador Lodhi, while noting that the UN secretary-general and other officials have issued statements on the matter.
"But we need action. We just don't need words. We need action," she said emphatically. "There are already tensions which are at a peak between India and Pakistan and the situation can snowball into a much bigger crisis," the Pakistani envoy warned. "So, I think, the UN certainly has long-standing obligations, and it also has immediate obligations, including ending the human rights violations that are going on."