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Government stands firm on UNGA abstention
The Resolution submitted by Jordan on behalf of the Arab League was overwhelming passed at the UNGA
It was only to be expected that the political opposition in India would be taking serious exception to the government’s abstention on the Palestinian vote at the United Nations General Assembly, on a Resolution that overwhelmingly passed. The Resolution that was submitted by Jordan on behalf of the Arab League cleared with 120 voting in favour, 14 opposed to it and 45 abstaining.
Naturally, Israel and the United States voted against the Resolution along with a small clutch of nations in the Pacific and elsewhere but Australia, Canada, Germany, Japan, Ukraine and the United Kingdom joined India in staying away and for differing reasons.
New Delhi has been saying from the time of the vote that the attack on Israel on October 7 should have been mentioned and terrorism condemned as this would have conveyed a clear message. And in line with its past voting record in the United States, India refused to go along with any one-sided resolution.
Among nations of the West, France went along with the Resolution stressing that while it regretted the missing condemnation of the Hamas terror attack on Israel, nothing justified the suffering of civilians. India maintained that while it is “deeply concerned” at the worsening security situation and the “astounding loss” of civilian lives the “world should not buy into any justification” for acts of terror.
Attempts by nations like Canada to include language to name Hamas’ attack on Israel failed leaving New Delhi to abstain from the vote. “Violence as a means to achieve political objectives, damages indiscriminately, and does not pave the way for any durable solutions”, India’s representative maintained making the point that the Resolution should send a message on violence and terrorism on the one hand even while addressing the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza on the other.
The symbolic General Assembly Resolution came after the Security Council failed to pass a Gaza statement four times having been vetoed by Russia and the United States, not including Resolutions that failed to muster the minimum of nine votes for consideration. Unlike the Council, the General Assembly has no powers to enforce.
Ever since the October 7 attack on Israel, the political opposition in India has been hammering away at the Government for moving away from established positions on Palestine from time immemorial and has been expressing “shock” at the government’s stance against the backdrop of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
The government, on the other hand, has been saying that there has been no dilution in India’s stand on Palestine but that New Delhi will stand firm on the issue of terrorism. India, it is being pointed out, has been one of the first in the international community to send humanitarian and other relief assistance to Gaza.
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