Once again, the Pakistani government has decided to show just how petty it is. Instead of respecting Mukhtar Mai’s courage, or even just looking the other way while she goes about her business, it has gone out of its way once again to block Mukhtar Mai from speaking.
Ms. Mai had long been scheduled to make an appearance called “An Interview With Mukhtar Mai: The Bravest Woman on Earth” in the United Nations television studios, sponsored by the office for nongovernmental organizations, the Virtue Foundation and the Asian-American Network Against Abuse of Human Rights.But on Thursday night the organizers were informed that the program would have to be postponed because of Pakistan’s objections.
Ms. Mai is leaving New York on Saturday so the effect was to cancel her appearence [Link]
The basic limitation of the UN is that it tries to achieve consensus amongst sovereign member nations. As a result, member countries can often block the organization from doing very reasonable things, like interviewing Mukhtar Mai in the UN TV studios. What’s particularly annoying is the bureaucratic way in which this was done – diplomats are too genteel to cancel her appearence, so they merely postponed it until such time as she was unable to make it. Shame on the Pakistani government, shame on the UN, and shame on Shashi Tharoor.
Asked why the United Nations bowed to the Pakistani protest, Shashi Tharoor, the under secretary general for communications, said he could not comment on this specific case. But, he said: “As a general principle, indeed there are written instructions guiding the holding of any event on United Nations premises in which we are obliged to take into account views formally expressed by member states. This is a building and an organization that belongs to the member states.”Recounting the 11th-hour nature of the decision, Joseph Salim, the executive director of the Virtue Foundation, a New York-based human rights charity, said, “Yesterday, as we were going about a walk-through, getting our ID badges, they suddenly told us that because this event was considered by the Pakistan government as embarrassing to them, they were going to block it.” [Link]
As usual, Mukhtar Mai handled the Pakistani government’s infantile behavior with her grace and style:
In an interview, Ms. Mai said: “I feel disappointed. I was not going to say anything bad about Pakistan. I was just going to talk about my work and what people are doing.” [Link]
Previous posts: Too many to list individually
Some hilarious Mushisms courtesy Dailytimes
“(After October 12, 1999) Pakistan is a democracy.”
“Elections will be held and I will be the president.”
“My uniform brought real democracy in the country.”
“I will take my uniform off by December 31, 2004.”
“I will keep the uniform and the presidency till 2007. Opposition stand is undemocratic.”
“(About uniform) We will see in 2007.”
“I am changing the clause… of the Constitution…”
“The army has to be kept in to keep it out.”
“Some (women) are said to have made it a business to get raped and get a visa for US or Canada…” followed by “I never said that.”
“(In our conversation) President Bush has not mentioned my uniform even once.”
“Those who oppose my policies are enemies of Pakistan.”
That stretches the point dude. It sounds somewhat strident at this point. Not too cool.
Are the lady cops behind Mukhtar are wearing Hijab ? If so then Mai seems more “liberated” than her custodians.
Yikes, don’t think I want to see that…
Phew, oh ok…
Why? He’s the Under-Secretary General for Communications for the UN. Why should I criticize the UN and not the man in charge of this policy? He’s the apologist for this, and he should be ashamed.
I’m not a UN rejector, but Tharoor is pretty baldfaced in his excuses for UN failures, even when they could have been remedied at the time. He’s got this old school diplomatic chumminess about him that sets my teeth on edge.
Ennis, I think you pretty much answered your question in the post itself.
The UN needs to maintain those diplomatic ties among sovreign nations and the organization as a whole sets policy in such matters. That old school chumminess is what precisely permits the UN to apply pressure on Pakistan along several other directions too. Think of it as diplomatic capital. The UN decided not to squander its diplomatic capital over one TV appearance — the question is how many would have watched it? Hence the genteel rescheduling.
Pakistan was definitely infantile in its appeal to the UN. Musharraf should be ashamed of applying diplomatic pressure to an international organization to cover up domestic misdeeds. Not Shashi Tharoor.
Someone needs to tell Mushie that his continual involvement in Muktar’s matters are WAY more embarrasing to the country than anything she has to say.
And if what she has to say is so fucking embarrasing then either change your ways or continue to be seen as backwards. Pakistani leadership should stop acting like children and realize those are the only 2 choices.