Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)

In Context

• India recently criticised the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation’s (OIC) decision to invite Hurriyat leader Mirwaiz Omar Farooq to a meeting being held in Pakistan.
  • India has consistently underlined that J&K is an integral part of India and is a matter strictly internal to India.

Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)

• About:
  • The Organisation of the Islamic Conference was established by the First Islamic Summit Conference held in Morocco in September 1969.
  • It was known as the Organisation of Islamic Conference until 2011.
  • It is the world’s second-largest inter-governmental organization after the UN, with a membership of 57 states, all of which are Islamic countries or Muslim majority members.
• Objective:
  • To safeguard and protect the interests of the Muslim world in the spirit of promoting international peace and harmony among various people of the world.
• Member states:
  • OIC has reserved membership for Muslim-majority countries. Russia, Thailand, and a couple of other small countries have Observer status.

India and OIC

• As a country with the world’s second largest Muslim community, India had been invited to the founding conference at Rabat in 1969, but was humiliatingly ejected at Pakistan’s behest.
• In 2006, as India turned the economic corner and improved ties with the US, Saudi Arabia invited Delhi to join as an observer. 
  • However, India stayed away because of a multiplicity of reasons, as a secular country, it did not want to join an organisation founded on religion. 
  • And, India can come under pressure in a grouping, especially on issues such as Kashmir. 
• At the 45th session of the Foreign Ministers’ Summit in 2018, Bangladesh suggested that India, where more than 10% of the world’s Muslims live, should be given Observer status.
• Changing terms:
  • In 2019, India was invited to the 46th session of the Council of Foreign Ministers of Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), where India was invited as a ‘Guest of Honor’ country by the UAE.

OIC’s stand on Kashmir

• It has been generally supportive of Pakistan’s stand on Kashmir and has issued statements criticizing India.
• After India revoked Article 370 in Kashmir, Pakistan lobbied with the OIC for their condemnation of the move.
• Recenlty, OIC called on the UN Human Rights Council to take “necessary measures” on the issue of Muslim girl students being told not to wear the hijab in Karnataka schools, which India strongly criticised.

Source: IE