Amid the ongoing war between Israel and the Palestinian militant group, Hamas, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday asserted that terrorism anywhere in the world, for any reason, is against humanity.
Addressing the inaugural session of the Ninth G20 Parliamentary Speakers’ Summit (P20), Mr Modi pointed out that there is no consensus on the definition of terrorism even in the United Nations (U.N.) and “enemies of humanity take advantage of this”.
‘Time for peace’
Noting that a divided world cannot provide solutions to global challenges, the Prime Minister said “this is time for peace and brotherhood” and called for an end to the “crisis in global trust and move forward with a human-centric approach”.
“Everyone is aware of what is happening in various parts of the world. The world is grappling with conflicts and confrontations, such a world full of conflicts and confrontations is not in anyone’s interest,” Mr. Modi said without directly referring to conflict between Israel and Hamas.
The event, held at the newly built Yashobhoomi convention centre in Delhi’s Dwarka area, is being attended by Speakers of Parliaments of G-20 members and invitee countries. However, amid the diplomatic freeze between India and Canada, Speaker of the Canadian Senate, Raymonde Gagne, dropped out last minute. While Canada had accused Indian agents of killing one of their citizens, Khalistani separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar, India has been vocal about Canada being a “safe haven” for terrorists.
Calling for a “tough approach” against terrorism, Mr. Modi pointed out how India has been a victim of cross-border terrorism for decades. He recalled how terrorists had targeted the old Parliament building when it was in session. “Terrorists wanted to take hostage, kill MPs. India has dealt with numerous such terror incidents. Now the world is also realising how big a challenge terrorism is for the world. Terrorism, wherever it may be, for whatever reason, in whatever form, is against humanity,” he said.
Mr. Modi lamented that even now there is no consensus on the definition of terrorism. “Even today, the International Convention on Combating Terrorism is waiting for consensus in the United Nations. The enemies of humanity are taking advantage of this attitude of the world,” he said.
Invite to witness polls
Referring to the democracy in India, the Prime Minister observed that the general elections in the country are considered the biggest festival and next year, 100 crore voters will be eligible to exercise their mandate. He said the use of electronic voting machines (EVMs) had increased transparency as well as efficiency while conducting elections. “I extend an advance invitation to all the delegates of the P20 Summit to come and watch the general elections to be held next year,” he said.
Mr. Modi said the democratic traditions in India go as far back as the 5,000-year-old Vedic texts and mentioned how ninth-century stone inscriptions in Tamil Nadu had rules and codes of village legislative bodies. He said the belief in parliamentary democracy had been strengthened by the flow of information and freedom of speech that can be seen by the proliferation of TV channels and newspapers.
“I have always believed that governments are formed by majority, but the country is run by consensus,” he said.
The themes in different sessions of the P20 Summit will focus on transformation in people’s lives through public digital platforms, women-led development, accelerating sustainable development goals (SDGs) and sustainable energy transition. For the first time, the Pan-African Parliament will take part in the P20 Summit after the African Union became a member of G-20 at the New Delhi G-20 Leaders’ Summit this September.
