This triumvirate of evil has turned its sights on Kashmir

Russian revolutionary leader Lenin once said, “Show me who your friends are, and I will tell you what you are.” If we apply this to Narendra Modi and India, we can see that the Prime Minister of the world’s largest democracy counts among his closest allies both Israel and Myanmar. That speaks volumes, and does nothing for his carefully nurtured uncle-ji image.

It cannot be lost on anyone that Israel and Myanmar have appalling records for riding roughshod over international human rights and UN sanctions whilst enforcing brutal occupations, committing war crimes and carrying out ethnic cleansing. That’s why the world should not be too surprised that India has delivered a dream scenario to the extremist Hindu nationalists in its ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) by stripping Indian-controlled Kashmir of its decades-old special status which gave the Muslim-majority state unique levels of autonomy.

However, the disputed land of Jammu and Kashmir appears to be in danger of being ethnically cleansed by Modi, who has repeatedly demonised the region and its people by labelling it as a hotbed of religious extremism and terrorism. That’s the well-worn terminology used by various tyrants around the world when they want to crush and oppress ordinary people.

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Egypt to establish UAE-style ‘Ministry of Happiness’

An Egyptian minister has claimed that Egypt is to establish a “Ministry of Happiness” in light of the country’s soaring prices of basic commodities and the continued repression and imprisonment of thousands of opposition figures.

... He added that this cooperation “marks the beginning of the formation of the Ministry of Happiness in Egypt in the near future,” stressing that “the government is interested in enhancing the citizens’ trust in various service facilities and raising the quality of services”.

...This comes amid the worst levels of oppression under the rule of President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi, according to a recent report by Amnesty International.

Human Rights Watch (HRW)’s data confirms that there are 60,000 political prisoners in Egypt as a result of this ongoing oppression, which began with the July 2013 coup against the late President Mohamed Morsi.

..... In April, the UAE announced the creation of a new ministry under the name “Not Impossible”, which aimed to be “the first ministry ever that has no minister and its members are from the cabinet, working on important national files and developing new government regimes for the future.”

However, arbitrary measures against prisoners in the country have transformed the UAE into a “repressive and a low-reputation state,” according to human rights activists, who have pointed out the contradiction between these policies and the stated aims of the Ministry of Happiness.

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