On Monday, India’s presidency of the G20 group was marred by embarrassment as it began a tourism meeting in Srinagar amid a boycott by China and Saudi Arabia and low-level participation from many other Pakistani friends.
China has already expressed opposition to the May 22-24 Working Group on Tourism meeting in the internationally recognized disputed territory, while other key members such as Turkiye, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Mexico have also avoided full participation in the event.
The three-day gathering is being held in Srinagar at a secure complex on the shores of Dal Lake. New Delhi hoped to project an image of normalcy in the disputed territory with the meeting.
The meeting began amid a curfew in sensitive areas of the summer capital of Indian-occupied Kashmir (IIOJK).
Also Read: India’s Congress gains crucial foothold with state elections win
Soldiers and armoured vehicles were stationed throughout Srinagar.
Former IIOJK chief minister Mehbooba Mufti claimed that India had turned the region into an equivalent of the Guantánamo Bay prison in order to hold a tourism conference.
She accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of using the G20 to promote itself.
The G20 is a group of 19 wealthy nations plus the European Union. India is the grouping’s presidency for 2023, and several events are being held across the country, culminating in the G20 summit in New Delhi later this year.
This was the first major international event in IIOJK since the BJP government revoked the region’s special status on August 5, 2019.
Wang Wenbin, a spokesperson for China’s Foreign Ministry, stated last week that his country opposes the G20 meetings on the disputed territory.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia and Mexico are said to have chosen low-level representation. Turkiye, Egypt (a special invitee), and several other countries did not confirm their official delegations’ participation until last night.
Meanwhile, in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), protest rallies were held in various cities to condemn the Srinagar meeting.
The All Parties Hurriyat Conference AJK held a rally in Islamabad and handed over a memorandum to the UN mission.
Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari addressed the AJK Legislative Assembly in Muzaffarabad, the state’s capital.
He described the G20 summit as illegal and an attempt by India to gain legitimacy over its control of the disputed region.
“India is abusing its position as G20 chair,” he said, urging the international community to take note of New Delhi’s gross human rights violations since the region’s independence was revoked in August 2019 and annexed as part of its territory.
Bilawal stated that holding the G20 meeting in Srinagar was a flagrant violation of UN resolutions on Kashmir, and that the people of IIOJK had been denied their fundamental right to self-determination for decades.
He claimed that as a result of Indian atrocities in the occupied region, the IIOJK had become an open-air “prison” while Kashmiris’ lands were occupied.
He emphasised that state terrorism in India could not change the reality of Kashmir.
A delegation of IIOJK refugees also met with Bilawal and informed him of their concerns about the G20 summit. The delegation praised the foreign minister’s role in supporting the Kashmir independence movement.
Mushaal Hussein Mullick, Chairperson of the Peace and Culture Organisation, addressed a rally in Islamabad and praised China for boycotting the meeting.
She also welcomed reports that other countries would boycott the Srinagar event.
