Maldives has thwarted Pakistan’s attempt to single out India at a virtual meet of Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on Islamophobia highlighting the country’s democratic credentials and multicultural society.
Speaking at the OIC United Nations envoys virtual meet, Maldives Permanent Representative in New York Ambassador Thilmeeza Hussain said, “Targetting a specific country will be like side stepping the real issue. In this light, let me state that singling out India, the largest democracy in the world and a multi-cultural society and home to over 200 million Muslims, alleging Islamophobia would be factually incorrect.”
During the meeting Pakistan’s Ambassador to the UN Munir Akram had said India is actively promoting Islamophobic.
Thilmeeza explained, “It would be detrimental to the religious harmony in the South Asian region. Islam has existed in India for centuries and it is the second-largest religion in India, with 14.2 per cent of the country’s population. Isolated statements by motivated people and disinformation campaigns on social media should not be construed as representative of the feelings of 1.3 billion.”
“Maldives cannot support any action within the OIC, that singles-out or targets India,” Thilmeeza added.
In the past few years, ties between India and Maldives have gone from strength to strength. New Delhi has reached out to Male during the current ongoing COVID-19 crisis while the Maldives has reaffirmed “India first” policy many times.
Source: Thanks WIONews.com