Hard to find greater a 'hypocrite' than Imran Khan: Analysts on Pak PM's silence on Uighur issue

As Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan raised the issue of Islamophobia and attacked French President Emmanuel Macron over his remarks on Islamist radicalism, analysts have questioned Khan's "hypocrisy" and selective outrage over the "hatred against Muslims" as he has remained tight-lipped on Chinese treatment of Muslim minorities in Xinjiang till date.

Imran Khan, recently, wrote a letter to leaders of Muslim states, asking them to act collectively to counter the growing Islamophobia in non-Muslim states especially Western states.

The letter comes in the wake of Macron's criticism of radical Islam after a school teacher, was beheaded by an 18-year-old for showing cartoons depicting Prophet Mohammed in class.

The European leader pledged to fight "Islamist separatism", which he said was threatening to take control in some Muslim communities around France.

Macron remarks did not go well with Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, who slammed the French President, saying that he has "chosen to deliberately provoke Muslims.

Khan, many times, has been asked about his views on Chinese brutalising the three million Uighurs. However, he has ignored all the questions and remained silent on the issue that has been condemned by most of the world.

"All of the (undeniable) Islamophobia in the West doesn't come even close to what China is doing to Uighur Muslims in Xinjiang province. China is a close ally of yours, Mr Prime Minister, so maybe write them a letter instead/as well?" political analyst Mehdi Hasan tweeted.

Meanwhile, Washington Post journalist Ishaan Tharoor called the Pakistan Prime Minister a "hypocrite".

"It's really hard to find a greater hypocrite in all this than Imran Khan. He claims to not know enough about what's happening across his border in Xinjiang to speak about it but has no qualms broad-brushing the situation in Europe," he tweeted.

Prime Minister Khan's selective outrage against Islamophobia has time and again has received a lot of criticism.

When it comes to China's treatment of Muslims, Pakistan has been silent and when asked to comment on it, the Pakistan PM tries to brush it aside saying that there is a lot going on in his own country.

The United States had also asked Pakistan to express the "same level" of concern about Muslims detentions in Western China as they do for Kashmir.

China put a million or more Uighurs and other Muslim minorities into detention camps and prisons in Xinjiang over the last three years under President Xi Jinping's directives to "show absolutely no mercy" in the struggle against terrorism, infiltration and separatism", revealed leaked documents released in US media.

However, China regularly denies such mistreatment and says the camps provide vocational training.

People in the internment camps have described being subjected to forced political indoctrination, torture, beatings, and denial of food and medicine, and say they have been prohibited from practising their religion or speaking their language.

( With inputs from ANI )