THE whole world was quick to condemn the Russian attack on Ukraine, and imposed sanctions on the aggressor. There can be no second opinion that the sovereignty and independence of all countries must be respected, and killing of people should be condemned in the strongest words.

This latest war was started by the West, the so-called ‘champions’ of democracy, the so-called ‘civilised’ world, the so-called ‘custodians’ of human rights, and the so-called ‘guardians’ of equality and fair play.

The Western media was quick to call the Russian attack on Ukraine an attack on civilisation and broadcast/printed photographs and stories of Ukrainian people fleeing the country to safety.

But the West and its media, which loves to call itself ‘professional’ and ‘unbiased’, was once again exposed for having double standards. While it has been busy reporting about the ‘atrocities’ by Russia against the Ukrainians, it has simply ignored the brutal killings of Palestinians by the Zionist Jews and of Kashmiris by the occupying Indian forces. Attack on Iraq and Afghanistan was a ‘war of liberation’ because that was jointly fought by the West, led by the United States. Was that not an attack on civilisation?

Interestingly, a group of 23 envoys, mostly from European Union countries, found it appropriate to ask Pakistan to condemn Russian actions during a debate in the UN General Assembly, but conveniently forgot that India has opted to be a silent spectator on this attack. Such hypocrisy really takes some doing.

The UN General Assembly very firmly believes in the dictum ‘see no evil, hear no evil’ when it comes to occupied Kashmir and Palestine, and the Western media goes simply blind towards hunger and poverty in Afghanistan after the US decided to freeze its funds worth $7 billion.

This is because for the ‘civilised’ world these places do not fall under the definition of civilisation and humanity. The rules of the game should be the same for all, irrespective of religion, colour, creed or nationality. This is and should be the definition of unbiased and independent journalism.

We, in Pakistan, expect the Western media and the governments, particularly their envoys in the relevant places, to open their eyes to notice the atrocities in occupied Kashmir, Palestine and many other parts of the world.

Aamir Aqil
Lahore

Published in Dawn, March 7th, 2022