Activists, politicians slam Pakistan’s joining “Board of Peace”

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (MNTV) — Prominent opposition figures, analysts, activists and former diplomats sharply criticized Pakistan for joining U.S. President Donald Trump’s “Board of Peace,” questioning the board’s mandate and warning it could undermine Palestinian self-determination and the United Nations.

Author and journalist Zahid Hussain said Pakistan acted hastily and risked becoming a party to what he described as a parallel structure to the UN.

“Pakistan jumped the gun,” he told Dawn, adding that the initiative appeared designed to advance U.S. interests while excluding Palestinian representation.

Opposition Leader in Senate Allama Raja Nasir Abbas called the move “morally incorrect and indefensible,” arguing the project places Gaza’s governance, security and reconstruction in the hands of external actors.

Such arrangements, he said in a post on X, bear “the unmistakable imprint of a neo-colonial enterprise” and threaten Palestinians’ right to self-determination.

Former ambassador to the U.S., U.K. and UN Maleeha Lodhi said joining the board was “unwise,” warning that Trump was seeking international legitimacy for unilateral actions and that the forum’s remit extends well beyond Gaza.

Tehreek-i-Tahafuz-i-Ayeen-i-Pakistan leader Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar also criticized the lack of parliamentary debate, calling the board a “colonial enterprise” with sweeping powers concentrated in the chairmanship.

He cited provisions allowing the chair to appoint or remove members and set the agenda, calling it a “rich men’s club.”

Some voices defended the decision. Former information minister Fawad Chaudhry said Pakistan should play a role in shaping Palestine’s future.

Activists and writers were more scathing. Ammar Ali Jan called the move a “shameful betrayal,” while author Fatima Bhutto said Pakistan would be “sitting with Israel” on the forum, calling it “a disgrace.”

The Foreign Office did not respond to questions about whether Pakistan’s participation could entail security deployments or how the board would operate alongside existing UN mechanisms.