India’s attempts to muster support for its widely condemned actions in occupied Kashmir in August 2019 in the form of G20 summit in the territory saw a blow due to Pakistan’s successful diplomatic strategy.
G20’s full members that boycotted the summit convened in occupied Kashmir included Turkey, China, and Saudi Arabia, while the permanent guests Egypt and Indonesia also stood away from participating.
The resistance of these countries from participating in the meeting is a testament to the fact that they do not endorse India’s stance of “tourism summit” in the disputed territory.
“China firmly opposes holding any form of G20 meeting in disputed territory and will not attend such meetings,” foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told reporters.
Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari pointed out that India wanted to show Kashmir as undisputed territory by holding the session of G20 in the occupied territory.
He said that – as he was addressing in the Kashmir Assembly – Kashmir was recognized as disputed territory worldwide while India trying to pretend otherwise.
He also took a dig at India’s notion of promoting tourism in the region saying that he could not find a single news report quoting tourism as India’s main agenda. “They all cited disputed territory in their reports,” he added.
“They’re abusing their presidency of the G20 to push their colonial agenda, but if they think that by holding one event in occupied Kashmir they can silence the voice of the Kashmiri people, then I believe that they are truly mistaken,” he was quotes as saying in an interview to AFP.
Over the past week, residents have chafed under stepped-up security measures. Hundreds have been detained in police stations and thousands including shopkeepers have received calls from officials warning them against any “signs of protest or trouble”.
The UN Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues, Fernand de Varennes, had said New Delhi was seeking to use the G20 meeting to “portray an international seal of approval” on a situation that “should be decried and condemned”. India rejected those comments.
