National News

'Exercise Maximum Restraint in Ongoing Farmers Protests': UN Human Rights Body Tells India

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights said the rights to peaceful assembly and expression should be protected.

Sentinel Digital Desk

NEW DELHI: The UN Human Rights office on February 5 told the Indian government to exercise maximum restraint in the ongoing Farmers Protests.

Taking to the micro-blogging site- Twitter, The UN Human Rights wrote, "#India: We call on the authorities and protesters to exercise maximum restraint in ongoing #FarmersProtests. The rights to peaceful assembly & expression should be protected both offline & online. It's crucial to find equitable solutions with due respect to #HumanRights for all."

It may be mentioned here that post the protest of the farmers along the Singhu border near Delhi grabbed the international attention post celebrities like Rihanna and climate activist, Greta Thunberg's tweet with regards to the solidarity to the farmers when viral.

Notably, post the tweet series of retweets also took place which inflated to a war of words on the microblogging site.

As such to clarify the myth around the farmers' episode of protest and agitation at the borders of Delhi, the Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India has issued a statement on the recent tweets of foreign celebrities regarding farmers protest in India.

Further, the Ministry of External Affairs issued a statement warning against the "temptation of sensationalist social media hashtags and comments" about the government's new agricultural laws.

The ministry said that the comments were "neither accurate nor responsible", adding that the protests were by "a very small section of farmers" in parts of India.

"We would like to emphasise that these protests must be seen in the context of India's democratic ethos and polity, and the efforts of the Government and the concerned farmer groups to resolve the impasse," the statement added. "Before rushing to comment on such matters, we would urge that the facts be ascertained, and a proper understanding of the issues at hand be undertaken."

Notably, till the filing of this report, the tweet from the Ministry of External Affairs has garnered 18.4K Retweets 3,563 Quote Tweets and 43K Likes along with #IndiaAgainstPropaganda highly trending on the timeline.

Meanwhile, the actors and celebrities in India did not fail to support the trending hashtag and retweeted the government's post in a positive way.