Agha Shahi

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Agha Shahi

Agha Shahi (August 25, 1920 in Bangalore – September 6, 2006 in Islamabad) was the foreign minister of Pakistan from 1977 to 1982, during the regime of Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq.

Shahi had a long career as a Pakistani diplomat, beginning in 1951. He served as Pakistan's ambassador to the United Nations, and China and also served in other posts.

Shahi joined the Indian Civil Services (ICS) via All India Competitive Examinations, in 1944 and was assigned to Sindh province. He served in various positions in the province including Constitutional Advisor to Sindh Chief Minister (1947-48) and District Magistrate Thatta (1949-51).

He opted for the Foreign Service of Pakistan in 1951 and played a prominent role in formulation of foreign policy right from the early years of Pakistan's creation. He was part of various delegations to United Nations during the 1950s and 1960s and served with A.S.Bokhari (known as Pitras Bokhari), Sir Zafrullah Khan and Prince Aly Khan (father of Prince Karim Aga Khan and Pakistan's permanent representative to UN).

Shahi served as Counsellor in the Pakistan Embassy in Washington from 1955-58. He was Pakistan's Deputy Permanent Representative to UN from 1958-61 and later served as Permanent Representative to United Nations from 1967-72. During his term as permanent representative to United Nations, he played an important role in enabling China to become member of the United Nations. He became Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1964 and served in that position till 1967.

In 1972 he was appointed Pakistan' Ambassador to China. In 1973, Shahi became Foreign Secretary and served in that position till the fall of Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in 1977. Shahi was appointed Advisor on foreign affairs/foreign minister in 1977 by General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq and resiged from the position of foreign minister in 1982, after developing serious differences with General Zia.

Shahi led various delegations of Pakistan to UN General Assembly, conferences of Non-Aligned Movement and Organization of Islamic Conference. He was a member of various UN commissions and was also elected Chairman of the UN Commission on Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) of which he had been a member since 1982. In 1993, Shahi was Co-Chairman of Pakistan delegation to the World Conference on Human Rights held in Vienna. Shahi also served as Chairman of Institute of Strategic Studies in Islamabad and headed Islamabad Council of World Affairs- a private think tank.

He was the younger brother of Agha Hilaly who also joined ICS and later opted for Pakistan's foreign service, serving as Pakistan's Ambassador in important capitals such as London, Moscow and Washington (at a time when his younger brother Shahi was Pakistan's permanent representative to UN in New York).

Agha Shahi remained a bachelor all his life. Shahi and his brother belonged to a prominent Shia family of South India. One of their uncles Sir Mirza Ismail served as Diwan (Prime Minister) of the princely state of Mysore, India from 1926 - 1941.

He regularly contributed articles to various international publications. In 1988, a collection of his speeches and articles was published as Pakistan's Security and Foreign Policy.

In September 2006, he died after suffering a heart attack, at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Science in Islamabad, aged 86.