The Foreign Office (FO) spokesperson of Pakistan issued a statement showing solidarity with Saudi Arabia in the diplomatic spat with Canada. This statement comes a day after the entire debacle and much rather portrays Pakistan as a third party not trying to neutralise the situation but showing support in a matter which does not require Pakistan's diplomatic stance unless the matter cannot be absolved.
At this point in time, Riyadh's human right violations are out in the open. In fact, recently Yemen was bombed by a Saudi led coalition and a school bus came under attack, resulting in the death of several innocent children. At the same time, Saudi's treatment towards human rights activists and towards anyone showing any dissenting viewpoints has earned it the label of an aggressor. The blatant violation of human rights cannot be ignored and Pakistan standing up to support the country, in a matter which does not require Pakistan backing the Saudi regime, may affect Pakistan's diplomatic ties with Canada.
Pakistan, at such a crucial stage, should be very apt in its diplomatic overtures. It is important to not unnecessarily sideline any countries in the process because a history full of such mistakes has not proven very beneficial for the country. There is no apparent threat to the holy sites, rather just an attempt to highlight the violations of law and such violations can only be reprimanded instead of given support.
While trying to appease Saudi Arabia, it must also not be forgotten that this was the same country that sidelined Pakistan when the United States of America (USA) offered it a permanent FATF membership. This landed Pakistan in hot water and the only Turkey which was not in favour of keeping Pakistan in the greylist was Turkey. The fact that an ally which has been deeply involved in the matters of the state did not stand by Pakistan's stance of playing an active role in the war on terror and losing scores of innocent lives should push us to reconsider how enthusiastic we are about our diplomatic ties, especially when it comes to human right violations.