Munich. The matter of Pakistan Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir being stopped for security check during a conference organized in Germany is in discussion. Munir, who had come to attend the conference held between 13 and 15 February, was asked by the security personnel posted at the entrance of the venue to show his identity card. In the video, the security personnel is heard stopping him and saying, “Wait… where is your ID? Please show the ID card.”
According to media reports, this action was taken under the standard security protocol implemented in the conference. The Munich Security Conference is attended by a large number of global leaders, defense officials, diplomats and policy experts, so stringent identity checks are considered a normal procedure. However, after the video of this incident surfaced, strong reactions are being seen on social media. Many users linked this to Pakistan’s diplomatic discomfort, while others said that the same security rules apply to all participants in high-level international events.
Former Pakistani military officer and commentator also reacted to the incident saying that identity verification at international forums is a normal process and there is nothing unusual in it. Meanwhile, Germany-based Sindhi political organization Jye Sindh Muttahida Mahaj protested against Munir’s participation outside the conference venue. The organization’s president Shafi Burfat, in a statement addressed to the United Nations, the European Union and the German government, expressed objection to inviting Pakistan’s military leadership.
In its statement, the organization referred to the events of 1971 and the Bangladesh Liberation War and accused Pakistan’s military system of human rights violations and political interference. Pakistan has been rejecting these allegations earlier also. The Munich Security Conference is considered a major forum for discussion on global security challenges every year. This time too, top military and political representatives of various countries attended the conference, where issues like security, geopolitics and global stability were discussed.
