ISLAMABAD – A big diplomatic success for Pakistan against India has beenreported from the United States.
The US Senate has called on Indian government to lift the lockdown andcurfew in Indian Occupied Kashmir (IOK), fully restore telecommunicationsand internet services and release individual detainees while approvingforeign assistance for India in Department of State, Foreign Operations andRelated Programmes Appropriations Bill 2020.
This puts India under the US Senate watch and exposes its assistance toreview under a number of human rights acts like Global Magnitsky HumanRights Accountability Act, Human Rights Vetting and other proceduresapproved by US Congress. The US Senate passed the said bill by 31-0.
This is the strongest bi-partisan condemnation of Indian clampdown afterAug 5 in US Senate led by President Trump’s Republication Party. Already,over 50 members of US Congress have expressed grave concern on the humanrights violations in Kashmir.
Alice Wells, Acting Assistant Secretary, SCA, South and Central AsianAffairs on September 26 had called on the Indian government to liftrestrictions in Kashmir and resume dialogue with Pakistan.
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The US Senate has approved total appropriations of over $55 billion for USState Department operations and US assistance worldwide for the financialyear that started Oct 1. The approvals include assistance of $120 millionfor India and $91 million for Pakistan.
Indian allocation is stated to secure American national security interestsin Indo Pacific region under the new American Indo Pacific Strategy besidesother reasons. Pakistan gets its funds under economic support and narcoticscontrol and law enforcement.
