https://www.businessinsider.com/imran-khan-pakistan-wont-criticize-china-on-uighurs-2020-1
Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan has been a vocal critic of the mistreatment of Muslims globally, but has been silent on the Chinese persecution of Uighurs.
Questioned about it by a reporter at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Khan first claimed to not "know much about" the scale of the abuse. He then acknowledged that his government is indebted to Beijing because "they came to help us when we were at rock bottom."
Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has been vocal about the mistreatment of Muslims around the world, so his silence on the Chinese persecution of millions of Uighurs has been particularly noticeable.
At the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Wednesday, Khan was asked about this apparent lack of criticism and at first replied that he didn't "know much about" the scale of Uighur mistreatment.
But after being pushed on the issue by a reporter, Khan acknowledged that Pakistan's special relationship with China played a part in his response to the Uighur crisis.
"China has helped us," Khan said. "They came to help us when we were at rock bottom, and so we are really grateful to the Chinese government."
This situation was mirrored in Pakistan in September when Noor-ul-Haq Qadri, the country's religious affairs minister, slammed Beijing for battering Uighurs in the name of counterterrorism — only to have Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi attack the media for "trying to sensationalize" the goings-on in Xinjiang. Instead of going public with any concerns, Khan said his government has decided to deal privately with issues that may arise with Chinese leaders.
He then compared Uighur persecution to that of India's retraction of Kashmir's semi-autonomous status. China's campaign against the Uighurs is "nothing compared to what's happening in India, in Kashmir. You cannot compare the scale," Khan said.
"Of course, Pakistan is the affected party because it is a disputed territory, which is why I'm more vocal about it," Khan said.