Attacks on Civilians (Burma)

Monday 14th January 2013 Commons Chamber

15:34

[Valerie Vaz (Walsall South) (Lab)]

(Urgent Question): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the Burmese army attacks on civilians in the Kachin state.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Alistair Burt)]

I thank the hon. Lady for her question.

Conflict between the Kachin independence army and the Burmese military has been ongoing in northern Shan and Kachin states since the breakdown of the ceasefire agreement in June 2011. There was an upsurge in violence in November and December 2012. As the Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, my right hon. Friend the Member for East Devon (Mr Swire), said on 3 January, the British Government are deeply concerned by reports emerging from Kachin state of an escalation in hostilities, including the use of Burmese military helicopters and aircraft against Kachin independence army positions, including in areas around the state capital and Laiza. These tactics represent a marked escalation and pose a significant risk of civilian casualties. Indeed, we received on 13 and 14 January unconfirmed reports that a small number of civilian casualties had resulted from the fighting.

The British Government have been encouraged by the reforms made by the Burmese Government of President Thein Sein over the past 18 months. We have therefore adopted a policy of constructive engagement, but we have been clear that progress on ethnic reconciliation must remain the highest priority. The situation in Kachin is increasingly serious and could present a threat to such wider reforms.

In the past hour and a half, I have spoken to our ambassador in Rangoon. Earlier today he met one of the key Kachin civil society leaders to discuss the situation on the ground.

My right hon. Friend the Minister of State visited Burma from 12 to 15 December, raising our concerns over the situation in Kachin with the Burmese Minister of Defence and Minster Aung Min, the lead Government negotiator for the peace process. The Burmese Government reconfirmed their commitment to seeking a ceasefire with the Kachin independent army at that point.

During my right hon. Friend’s visit, he made clear to the Burmese Government three points, which remain especially pertinent given recent events. First, the British Government call for an immediate cessation of hostilities. President Thein Sein has called for the fighting to stop, saying that the Burmese Government

“does not want to pass on the conflict to the next generation.”

It is imperative that military commanders in Burma heed their President’s call for an end to hostilities.

Secondly, there must be unhindered humanitarian access to conflict-affected areas. In response to increased need, the Department for International Development announced in December 2012 an additional £1.5 million of humanitarian support for people displaced by fighting in Kachin and neighbouring states, bringing our total humanitarian aid contribution to the conflict in Kachin to £3.5 million and supporting 27,500 people to access food, shelter and clean water.

Thirdly, we call for both sides to return to the negotiating table and make renewed efforts towards a lasting peace. All sides, including the Kachin independence army, must come to the negotiating table and make renewed efforts to work towards lasting peace.

As I am sure the House would expect, we will continue our dialogue with both sides, and we stand ready to respond to any request for support in any mediation process between them.

[Valerie Vaz]

I am grateful to you, Mr Speaker, for allowing me to ask the urgent question, as well as to the Minister for coming to the House.

The Minister referred to the fact that today, at 8.15 am Burmese time, a 15-year-old boy and a pastor were killed by a direct hit. Will he again raise with the Burmese Government the need to stop any firing on civilians, because BBC Asia has confirmed that these attacks are unprovoked? Will he also raise with the Burmese Government the fact that humanitarian aid is not getting through to 75,000 displaced people? He talked about DFID money, but will he ensure that any British aid is getting to the people who need it most? Given that the EU has suspended sanctions, will the Minister suggest to his EU counterparts that sanctions be reinstated if such direct action on civilians does not stop?

Has the Minister discussed the crisis with the Chinese Government? The planes are of Chinese origin and the gunships are Russian, so will he undertake to say to both Governments that the raids must stop?

Given that the Kachin state reached an agreement with the Burmese Government in 2011, and that other minority groups have also formed agreements with them—that is all being put in jeopardy—will the Minister take steps to ensure that the United Nations calls all parties round the table for a proper constitutional settlement, and perhaps a second Panglong conference? Finally, will he ask the Prime Minister to put Burma on the agenda at the G8 summit, when we have the presidency, so that we can hear the voice of the peacemakers, and will he report to the House?

[Alistair Burt]

I thank the hon. Lady for her questions. I repeat again, I am sure on behalf of the whole House, our deep regret at any civilian deaths. Our determination is to seek contact with all sides and that the hostilities cease altogether, wherever they are directed. But, of course, it is particularly upsetting if civilians are involved, and we have indeed made that clear to the Burmese authorities.

It is very important that UK aid support is getting through. We work with aid agencies on the ground, and I understand that the International Committee of the Red Cross is able to operate and get there, but, naturally, when individual circumstances arise and difficulties are created on the ground, that will not always be the case. However, the hon. Lady is absolutely right, and we are equally determined to make sure that that aid gets through.

Our position on sanctions is very clear. The sanctions in relation to Burma have only been suspended; they have not been lifted. Could they be reimposed? Oh, yes, they could. Whether or not the Foreign Affairs Council in April moves to lift rather than suspend them will depend on the progress that Burma is making in relation to the challenges it has been set in dealing with ethnic conflict and the political process. I do not doubt for a moment that the Burmese Government are well aware of the conditions that are likely to attach to any further progress in relation to sanctions.

The Chinese Government have already been contacted by the United Kingdom in relation to how it deals with those who flee across the border, whom the Chinese tend to see as economic migrants as opposed to our own definition, which would be those seeking to escape the conflict. This gives us an opportunity to engage directly with the Chinese Government. I genuinely do not know whether their participation through types of arms has been raised, but I note what the hon. Lady says and will raise that with my right hon. Friend when I next speak to him.

On 2 January, the UN Secretary-General called for the fighting to stop and for access to be guaranteed to the delivery of aid to vulnerable communities, including those displaced by violence. The UN Secretary-General’s special adviser, Vijay Nambiar, has recently returned from Burma. We hope that he will have the opportunity to brief the Security Council on his return very quickly and our concerns will be made known to him, but we will keep in regular contact.

I am afraid that it is rather too early for me to say what might or might not be on the agenda of the G8 summit. Let us hope that by that stage we will all have seen the progress in Burma that we wish to see.

[Mr David Burrowes (Enfield, Southgate) (Con)]

I appreciate that the Minister had a telephone conversation this morning with the ambassador, but, as I asked in the House on Thursday, what specifically have the Government done to respond directly to the concerning reports coming from the Kachin border over the Christmas period? How will the Government make it crystal clear to President Sein that he cannot hold out the hand of peace and reform while allowing direct attacks on civilians?

[Alistair Burt]

As I sought to make clear, we have been very disturbed at the increasing violence in the state. We know that there is frustration on all sides with progress on the issues affecting the Kachin people and the Burmese Government. But a degree of patience has been called for, and whatever difficulties there are cannot be resolved by resort to physical violence. I can assure my hon. Friend that the ambassador, and my right hon. Friend the Minister of State in his recent visit, made very clear the UK’s concerns. He can also be assured, from my conversation with the ambassador this morning, that these conversations are taking place at the highest level and with great urgency. My hon. Friend is right: continuing progress in Burma on the relief of sanctions and the normalisation of relations is entirely dependent on how Burma handles its present responsibilities, and the world is indeed watching.

[Jonathan Ashworth (Leicester South) (Lab)]

The Minister will accept that we welcome the reforms in Burma—I am sure we all agree on that—but does he agree that we must send the strongest message to Burma that it has to recognise the diversity of its people, whether that is minorities in Kachin or granting citizenship to the Rohingya in Rakhine? Will he give us more details of the work the UK Government can do at UN level to support ethnic reconciliation in Burma?

[Alistair Burt]

The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right. Ethnic reconciliation is a key factor in the return of normalisation of relationships between Burma and the rest of the world. We are engaged bilaterally and through the UN and others in doing whatever we can to provide support, encouragement and, where possible, examples of reconciliation within the United Kingdom to assist efforts being made in Burma.

The hon. Gentleman rightly mentions the Rohingya people. As he may know, the latest position is that the commission of investigation set up by the Burmese Government is hoping to report in March. There have been no further flare-ups since the violence in October. That might suggest that the political process is being taken seriously and has some opportunity to succeed, but it will not do so unless it tackles the question of citizenship, which the hon. Gentleman mentioned and on which the whole House is agreed.

[Bob Stewart (Beckenham) (Con)]

As the Minister has stated that the International Committee of the Red Cross can apparently get through, are personnel and staff from our own Department for International Development able to work either alongside it or under the aegis of the ICRC on the ground?

[Alistair Burt]

I specifically asked this morning about the engagement of international aid agencies. As my hon. Friend will know only too well, the circumstances of engagement on the ground depend very much on security and everything else, but I was assured that international agencies are still working there. I am not currently in a position to say whether that includes our colleagues in DFID working alongside the ICRC or working to provide support, but as a result of my hon. Friend’s question I will make sure that the question is asked again. Ensuring that this aid is delivered directly is absolutely crucial in the circumstances.

[Mr John Spellar (Warley) (Lab)]

As my hon. Friend the Member for Walsall South (Valerie Vaz) highlighted, Labour Members have been deeply concerned by the escalation of tensions in Kachin state over the past month and by the reports overnight that three civilians have been killed and at least four wounded—attacks that must be condemned. Despite how far Burma has come over the past year, the violence in Kachin state serves as a reminder to the international community of the further progress that it must make. Does the Minister think that the UK has put sufficient pressure on the Burmese Government over the past year to bring an end to the conflict?

I thank the Minister for his report on the discussions held by the Minister of State, the right hon. Member for East Devon (Mr Swire), but will he tell us in a bit more detail what contacts the Foreign Office has had with colleagues in the EU and the UN to concert international action?

There are disputed reports about the Government’s convoy to Kachin in December, which the rebels claimed contained ammunition. Has the Foreign Office been able to verify these claims and whether its destination was the army base?

There are also reports that Laiza residents are having to dig trenches and build shelters to try to protect themselves from the military’s attacks. Has the Foreign Office discussed with DFID and with international counterparts what immediate assistance can be provided to protect civilians?

As the Minister will be aware, the Chinese Foreign Ministry has called on the Burmese Government and the Kachin independence army to resume negotiations, and their spokesman has confirmed that

“China has already taken measures necessary to step up control over the border area and protects the lives and property of the border people”.

Has the UK made contact with China to discuss these more recent developments and the plight of Kachin civilians fleeing the violence? Does the Minister have an indication of what these “measures” constitute? Human Rights Watch has reported that China has in fact forced Kachin refugees back to Burma and was denying international humanitarian agencies access to the refugees in Yunnan province. What assessment has the FCO made of the treatment of the displaced and the options for those now escaping the violence? Will the Government work with the international community to ensure that Kachin civilians can access humanitarian support?

The immediate priority must be the welfare of those civilians and an end to the attacks, so what, in the Minister’s assessment, are the prospects for a ceasefire? Will the Government make it categorically clear that we will not tolerate air strikes and helicopter gunship attacks and that we will support the call on 2 January from the UN Secretary-General to the Burmese authorities to desist from any action that could endanger the lives of civilians living in the area?

[Alistair Burt]

I thank the right hon. Gentleman for his questions, which covered a range of areas that obviously concern the House significantly. We share with him and the House a sense of condemnation following the deaths of civilians, as well as their concern about the resurgence of hostilities. We have indeed made it clear to the Burmese authorities that there should be an immediate ceasefire and that hostilities should stop. There is no possibility of the political reconciliation process being able to take place until that happens. We therefore continue to make representations to both sides, because this is a complex issue that has many sides and we want to make representations to ensure that they play their part and that, when hostilities cease, there is a proper opportunity for the necessary political dialogue.

The right hon. Gentleman asked whether there had been sufficient political persuasion by the United Kingdom over the past year. My sense of the evidence of the progress that has been made comes from the visit of the Minister of State and the contacts that he has, as well as from the obvious progress that has been made in Burma in a variety of ways to ease the situation in different areas. However, as soon as one situation flares up again, we have to question that progress, and the House can be assured that we will continue to exert pressure.

It is obvious that progress must continue to be made if Burma is to resume its place among the rest of the nations. It understands that very well, and the forthcoming Foreign Affairs Council in April will accordingly be of huge significance. We will certainly expect to see further progress by then. In relation to that, contact is of course constantly maintained with partners in the European Union and the United Nations, and we certainly supported the calls made by the Secretary-General at the beginning of the year for a rapid end to hostilities. The right hon. Gentleman referred to the claims made by the KIA. I have received no details of their verification at this stage. He also asked about the preparations for a military attack, and that does indeed form a vital part of the consideration about humanitarian relief and assistance in those circumstances. That matter has indeed been raised.

As I said in answer to a previous question, we are well aware that China has been returning refugees because it classes them as economic migrants, rather than as people fleeing conflict, which would appear to the United Kingdom to be the more obvious way of classing those who are fleeing across the borders. We do indeed make representations to China that it should act responsibly and provide proper humanitarian care to those who are seeking relief from the violence and conflict. None of that will have any impact, however, unless work is done between the KIA and the Burmese Government to settle the issue. We will continue to make representations to the Chinese, but settling the issue is very much the most important thing.

The right hon. Gentleman asked about the prospects for a ceasefire. We would hope that, following the international pressure that has been brought to bear as a result of the incidents of recent weeks, and particularly those that took place over the weekend, the Burmese Government will take note of how seriously those incidents are being seen in foreign capitals around the world, notwithstanding the fact that the greatest tragedy is that being inflicted on those who are suffering the violence. That violence must cease so that a proper political process can take place.

[Martin Horwood (Cheltenham) (LD)]

European sanctions on Burma remain in place, but it is welcome that reconsideration of the suspension in April will take into account these worrying reports from Kachin state. The arms embargo also remains in place. Does the Minister agree that, for the foreseeable future, that should remain the case?

[Alistair Burt]

Yes.

[Mr Speaker]

I am grateful to the Minister and to colleagues.