FO rejects US lawmakers' call for Imran's release

ISLAMABAD:

The Foreign Office on Thursday termed a move by around 60 US lawmakers urging President Joe Biden to put pressure on Pakistan to ensure the release of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan "counterproductive".

"Pakistan values its bilateral relations with the United States. We believe in constructive dialogue and engagement to address any concern. However, comments on Pakistan's domestic affairs are contrary to inter-state conduct and diplomatic norms," Foreign Office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch told reporters at her weekly briefing.

"We believe such letters and statements are counterproductive and not in line with positive dynamics of Pakistan-US bilateral relations. These letters are also based on incorrect understanding of the political situation in Pakistan," the spokesperson added.

She said: "We hope that the US Congress will play a supportive role in strengthening Pakistan-US ties and focus on avenues of mutual collaboration that benefit both our peoples and countries."

The Foreign Office reaction came after around 60 Democratic lawmakers from the US House of Representatives wrote to President Joe Biden, urging him to pressure Pakistan into releasing Imran Khan, the jailed founding chairman of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).

"We write today to urge you to use the United States' substantial leverage with Pakistan's government to secure the release of political prisoners including former Prime Minister Khan and curtail widespread human rights abuses," the lawmakers wrote in a letter on Wednesday.

US Representative Greg Casar, who led the letter, said it marked the first such collective call from multiple members of the US Congress for the release of Imran, who otherwise has had testy relations with Washington as a long standing critic of US foreign policy.

Imran has been in jail since August 2023 and has faced dozens of cases after he was removed from the prime minister's position in April 2022 through a parliamentary vote of no confidence. His party said that the more than 200 cases are politically motivated.

He has been acquitted or granted bails in most of the cases filed against him. The pending cases against him mostly pertain to the May 9 violence. He denied responsibility and has been acquitted or granted bail in many of those cases.

He also faced the £190 million Al Qadir varsity land corruption case. The case alleges that Imran and Bushra obtained billions of rupees and land worth hundreds of kanals for legalising Rs50 billion – at that time £190 million – that was identified and returned to the country by the UK during the PTI government in 2019.

Meanwhile, a UN official from Geneva also spoke about the detention of Imran Khan and other political prisoners in Pakistan.

The Foreign Office rejected the assertion, saying the statement by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights was based on "misinformation and inaccurate understanding of the developments in Pakistan."

"It has made unwarranted and misplaced conclusions. These communications are based on media reports, social media posts and speculative analysis of manifestly political nature. We, therefore, reject baseless insinuations and advise the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to focus on actual and grave situation of human rights violations where either the international human rights law has been rendered ineffective or draconian laws have been enacted to oppress the illegally occupied peoples," she added.

Meanwhile, the spokesperson confirmed that Pakistan was not invited to the BRICS meeting held recently in Russia.

"Pakistan is not a member of BRICS. Pakistan, as a developing country and an ardent supporter of inclusive multilateralism, believes that it can make important contributions in this grouping," she said.

"That is why Pakistan applied for membership of BRICS. We believe by joining BRICS Pakistan can play an important role in furthering international cooperation and revitalization of inclusive multilateralism. We therefore hope that BRICS will move forward on Pakistan's request in line with its commitment to inclusive multilateralism," the spokesperson maintained.