Who Is Saima Saleem? Pakistan's First Visually Impaired Woman Diplomat

Who is Saima Saleem: While cheers erupted in India for its First Secretary at the UN Sneha Dubey's searing rebuttal to Pakistan at the United Nations General Assembly earlier this month, there was praise on the other side of the border for their representative, Saima Saleem.

As the first Pakistani woman diplomat with visual impairment, Saleem delivered her speech at UNGA using braille - also a first. In what is being held up in her country as a "hard-hitting" response to India, Saleem iterated Pakistan's stand on Kashmir and argued against Dubey's point on terrorism.

"India remains in occupation of an internationally recognised disputed territory whose final disposition needs to be decided in accordance with the democratic principle of a free and impartial plebiscite under UN auspices, as provided for under numerous resolutions of the Security Council," Saleem said.

Exercising her right to reply after Pakistan premier Imran Khan's speech, Dubey in a fiery speech accused his country of backing terrorism, calling it "an arsonist disguised as a firefighter." Read more on her UNGA address.

Get To Know Who Is Saima Saleem And What Her Journey Is

Saleem describes herself as "a diplomat with insight, not sight." Simultaneous to her career as a diplomat, she is also a known disability rights activist in her country and is hailed for speaking for the marginalised. Born in 1984, she holds a degree in international law, with a specialisation in human rights law, as per Geo News. 

She is a counsellor with the Permanent Mission of Pakistan to the United Nations, New York at present.

Saleem's UNGA address has received praise from several of Pakistan's top leaders, including from President Arif Alvi, who tweeted, "Not only I but the nation is very proud of her. Differently abled with visual impairment, making an excellent speech at the UN."

This was the first time a speech was read by 🇵🇰 by Counselor Ms. Saima Saleem in braille at the GA debate.
Pride of Pakistan 🇵🇰 🇺🇳 #Kashmir #RoR @ForeignOfficePk @ImranKhanPTI @GovtofPakistan pic.twitter.com/NkqfWWgLWA

— Permanent Mission of Pakistan to UN, NY (@PakistanUN_NY) September 25, 2021

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