Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad who was heavily criticised for calling India an occupying force in Kashmir has now stated that he cannot criticise China over the mistreatment of Uighur Muslims as it is too powerful, South China Morning Post has reported.
This statement came following criticism of Mahathir for being selective after accusing Israel, Myanmar and India of mistreating Muslims but at the same time maintaining a complete silence with regards to Uighurs in China.
China has been accused of illegally detaining thousands of Uighur Muslims in its volatile Xinjiang province and putting them through re-education centres.
In his statement defending his silence, Mahathir also claimed that China was beneficial to his country, “You don’t just try and do something which would any way fail, so it is better to find some other less violent ways not to antagonise China too much, because China is beneficial for us”.
Malaysia recently unveiled a new policy framework whose central focus is to “foster cooperation in the Muslim world” and play a prominent role in the the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation.