UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Wednesday that people will take India’s voice seriously on the world stage only when the country takes human rights within India seriously.
Guterres is on an official tour of India and he said this at IIT Bombay. At a time when the Narendra Modi government is claiming India’s important role in global leadership, this statement of the UN chief is being seen as a setback.
Speaking on the topic “India@75: UN India Partnership South-South Cooperation” at IIT Bombay, Guterres said, “When India shows the strong commitment to an inclusive system and human rights at home, only then will its voice be heard and taken seriously on the global stage.
Read More: Abuse of Muslims on rising in India under Modi’s Hindu nationalist government
Antonio Guterres said, “India is an elected member of the Human Rights Council and it has a responsibility to guide global human rights and protect the human rights of all individuals, including minorities. The model of pluralism in India is very simple but its understanding is very deep. Diversity is a kind of richness and it makes your country strong. Birthright is with all Indians but it is not guaranteed. It needs to be strengthened every day and in every society. Following the values of Gandhi, everyone’s rights and human dignity should be respected. Especially those who are living in a difficult situation. An inclusive, multicultural, multi-religious and multi-racial society must be protected.
“As an elected member of the Human Rights Council, India has a responsibility to shape global human rights, and to protect and promote the rights of all individuals, including members of minority communities,” Guterres said in a speech in Mumbai.https://t.co/f3qFMTWTjM
— Dawn.com (@dawn_com) October 19, 2022
The Modi government has been accused of not protecting the rights and dignity of minorities. Serious questions are also being raised about the release of 11 convicts of the gang-rape with Bilkis Bano and the murder of 14 members of her family. The three-year-old daughter of Bilkis Bano was also among the 14 killed.
Global Media reaction to Antonio Guterres remarks
Turkey’s TRT World wrote, “Hatred against minorities has increased since Modi came to power in 2014. Especially against 200 million Muslims of India. Even the hatred of Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru, who were the heroes of India’s freedom movement, has increased within the BJP.
The Pakistani newspaper Dawn has written that the UN chief reprimanded India on the issue of human rights. The newspaper has also written quoting human rights activists that since Narendra Modi came to power, hate statements against minorities, especially Muslims, have increased.
Inappropriate of UNSG to publicly lecture India on human rights. He is spurring the UN system & NGOs to impugn India on HRs. Is disrespecting our democracy. In contrast he is publicly silent on Uighur issue. UNSG shouldn’t have double standards. https://t.co/9tbE0ijBfH
— Kanwal Sibal (@KanwalSibal) October 19, 2022
After the arrival of the Modi government, the report related to the freedom of the press has also been negative. Media rights group Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has placed India at number 142 in the Index of Press Freedom. It has been said in this report that the Hindu nationalist government is engaged in controlling the media.
India has been slipping down in this index continuously for the last four years, it has reached 136th in the year 2017, 138th in the year 2018, 140th in the year 2019 and 142nd last year.
