Pakistan elections: UN chief urges political leaders to refrain from violence

In the wake of the general elections in Pakistan, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is following the situation in the country “very closely” and has urged the authorities and political leaders to refrain from violence and avoid actions that could increase tensions.

Stephane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General, made these remarks at the daily press briefing here on Monday.

“On the elections in Pakistan, I can tell you that he is indeed following the situation very closely and continuing to monitor the situation following the general elections,” Dujarric said while responding to a question on the Secretary-General’s reaction to the outcome of last week’s election in Pakistan.

Guterres calls for resolving all issues and disputes through the established legal frameworks and for human rights and the rule of law to be fully respected in the interest of the people of Pakistan.

“The Secretary-General urges the authorities, and political leaders to maintain a calm atmosphere and to reject and refrain from all forms of violence and avoid any actions that could increase or enflame tensions,” Dujarric said.

Pakistan’s general elections were held last week, but there was an unusual delay in the announcement of results which led to allegations of vote rigging at many constituencies across the country.

While both jailed former prime minister Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party and ex-premier Nawaz Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) have claimed victory, a coalition government appears inevitable as no single party has got the majority in the National Assembly.

Voting was held on 854 national and provincial assembly constituencies. According to the initial results, 348 independents returned successfully.