LONDON: Labour Party parliamentarian Naz Shah has said that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is involved in crimes against humanity and does not deserve the highest civilian award that the United Arab Emirates government plans to give him.
It was reported that the UAE would award Modi the Order of Zayed, the country’s highest civilian award when he visits next week.
Writing to Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Force, the Labour MP from Bradford said that Prime Minister Modi was illegally removing the sovereignty of the Kashmiri people in Indian-occupied Kashmir through the forced removal of article 370 and 35A.
Naz Shah MP said in the letter to the UAE ruler: “It saddened me greatly, after returning from the holy pilgrimage of Hajj, to see the news that Modi, once recognized as the butcher of Gujarat, is being offered the UAE’s highest civilian honor. A title should be in the name of your founding father, Shaykh Zayed.
Shaykh Zayed was a man of great honor, a figure who is remembered in the annals of history as exemplifying decent, charity, and support for oppressed peoples. May God have mercy upon his soul. Granting such recognition to an individual who is oppressing the Kashmiri people in the name of Shaykh Zayed not only questions the value of this previously prestigious title, misrepresents his legacy, and forces the world to debate the nature of your moral consciousness.
“I urge you to reassess this decision and think twice about granting such an award, not only because most of the Kashmiri people share your faith but also because we have a moral obligation to oppose the violation of human rights and injustice.
“If your trade deals prevent you from making a stand, or even speaking up on behalf of the Kashmiri people – at the very least, as a representative of the people of UAE, remain silent and condemn the actions of Prime Minister Modi within your heart. For the people of Kashmir, I ask that you at least show this recognition rather than celebrating and endorsing an oppressor while the cries of the oppressed are blocked out.”
She stated that Modi had turned Kashmir into the most militarized area globally. For the past 15 days, Modi has subjected the people of occupied Jammu and Kashmir to a complete lockdown, cutting off telecommunications, internet access, and other means of communication. There have been accounts of political leaders being placed under house arrest, political activists suffering injuries from pellet guns, impositions of curfews, and a web of razor wire that confines the capital’s inhabitants to an open prison.
After being on a five-day fact-finding mission in occupied Kashmir, Secretary of the All India Progressive Women’s Association, Kavita Krishnan, described the region as being under a military siege and stated, “Frankly, it looked like occupied Iraq or occupied Palestine.”
Naz Shah informed Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed in her letter that the actions of the Indian government have caused significant turmoil in the lives of ordinary people. This has subjected them to unnecessary pain and distress, adding to the years of human rights violations they have already faced.
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