Middle East: Syrian Refugees

Baroness Uddin Excerpts
Wednesday 26th March 2014

(10 years, 8 months ago)

Lords Chamber
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Baroness Northover Portrait Baroness Northover
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The noble Lord is right. As I mentioned earlier, that is why we have a programme for supporting those countries; we recognise the instability caused by hosting all these refugees.

Baroness Uddin Portrait Baroness Uddin (Non-Afl)
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My Lords, given the large-scale dispersion, how easy or difficult is it to support those who have been victims of rape as a weapon of war?

Baroness Northover Portrait Baroness Northover
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The noble Baroness will know that my right honourable friend the Foreign Secretary has emphasised this in terms of how we are approaching the Syrian crisis. We are doing a considerable amount—and it is new work—in trying to support those who have suffered sexual violence in this conflict. That is so often the case in such conflicts, and this is one of the first times we are seeing whether we can gather evidence systematically so that cases can be taken and, in the mean time, supporting those who have suffered in this way.