[ad_1]
New Delhi: India will be faced with yet another geopolitical challenge later this month when the Regional Committee of the World Health Organisation (WHO) South-East Asia Region will vote to nominate the next Regional Director in a closed meeting from October 30 to November 2, in New Delhi. The voting, which will witness the selection of any one of the two candidates fielded by Bangladesh and Nepal, remains strategically crucial for India even as Dhaka and Kathmandu engage in a bitter war of words.
The names of the candidates – Saima Wazed, nominated by Bangladesh, and Shambhu Prasad Acharya, nominated by Nepal – for the coveted post were sent by WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus to member states on August 18. Wazed is chairperson of Bangladesh’s National Advisory Committee on Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders, while Acharya is a top official of the WHO.
However, the contest this time has taken a political colour of sorts as Wazed is the daughter of Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina, who shares a friendly relationship with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. As a result, Nepal believes that their candidate Acharya, a public health specialist, will not get the favourable support from New Delhi, diplomatic sources told ABP LIVE.
“This will be yet another litmus test for India’s Neighbourhood First policy,” said another source, who is involved in the matter. India is one of the 11 countries that will vote to elect the next Regional Director of SEAR. The remaining 10 countries are: Bangladesh, Bhutan, North Korea, Indonesia, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Timor-Leste.
According to sources, Wazed will be more favoured by India due to the strategic closeness between New Delhi and Dhaka. On the other hand, Kathmandu has activated all its diplomatic channels to ensure that India’s vote goes to its candidate.
ALSO READ | WHO SEARO Leadership: Politics Should Not Trump People’s Health
New Regional Director To Take Office From Feb 1
The South East Asian Regional Organisation (SEARO), which is headquartered in New Delhi, is one of the six regions of the WHO. The newly appointed Regional Director will take office on February 1, 2024 for a five-year term and be eligible for reappointment once.
According to diplomatic sources, it is not India but the US that has put its weight behind Wazed, who Washington believes has made a significant contribution to updating the public health related rules and regulations of Bangladesh, said another diplomatic source, requesting anonymity.
The issue was discussed during a meeting between Prime Minister Hasina and US President Joe Biden when they met in New Delhi on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in September, in which Wazed was also present, sources said.
While the contest will be a tightly fought one, the commentary that has come in from Nepal has been “disturbing and in poor taste”, said one source, who refused to be identified. The primary accusation that has been hurled at Wazed is that of “nepotism” for being the daughter of Bangladesh’s PM while there have been personal attacks against her. Meanwhile, Acharya has been subjected to charges of encouraging “sexism”.
Meanwhile, Acharya has left no stone unturned to ensure that his candidacy is given preference over Wazed’s.
“My gratitude to public health leaders & professionals from the region and beyond for overwhelming support to my candidacy I continue to receive thru media & my travel to member countries. The entire country is behind me. I am peoples’ candidate,” he said on X recently.
Waded, on the other hand, wrote an Oped where she said, “While I accept it is inevitable that there will be greater scrutiny of me due to my mother’s position, what is unfortunate is the erasure of my years of work, study and accomplishments.”
“As countless women around the world will attest, we are sadly used to differing standards when being compared professionally to men. The overt and intentional erasure of my experience, and the attendant reduction of me to being simply my mother’s daughter, is sexism and must be called out as such,” she wrote.
Subscribe And Follow ABP Live On Telegram: https://t.me/officialabplive
[ad_2]
Source link