Asked by: Lord Bishop of Coventry (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the statement by the International Council on Monuments and Sites on 5 March that Tigray's heritage is falling victim to fighting and "cultural cleansing".
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
We are deeply concerned by reports of violations of international law and international human rights law from Tigray, and have raised our concerns with Ministers in the governments of both Ethiopia and Eritrea, making clear the overriding need to protect civilians and adhere to international law and international human rights law. We are concerned by reports from Tigray of attacks on places of worship as well as damage to cultural monuments and artefacts. Our Embassy in Addis Ababa has been in contact with the UNESCO offices in Addis, and is monitoring matters carefully. We are concerned by the growing weight of credible evidence of atrocities in Tigray, including looting. The Minister for Africa has called for the withdrawal of Eritrean forces. We welcome the announcement, on 26 March, of their withdrawal and call for this to be immediate and unconditional. We have clearly set out the need for independent, international, investigations into allegations of human right abuses and violations. We have also stressed the need for Ethiopia to safeguard its incredible diversity of faith and identity. Respect for cultural heritage is part of this, alongside freedom of expression and freedom of religion and belief.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Coventry (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what measures are in place to ensure that Official Development Assistance-funded programmes are distributed by the government of Ethiopia without reference to the ethnicity of those accessing services.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The UK's Official Development Assistance (ODA) portfolio is consistent with legislation such as the Equality Act 2010, which includes the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED). PSED ensures that the FCDO understands how different people will be affected by their activities and services are non-discriminatory and accessible to all. UK ODA provided to the Government of Ethiopia in the form of financial aid supports the delivery of specific development results. We work closely with the Government of Ethiopia to ensure and monitor that aid is provided impartially and serves to improve the conditions of intended beneficiaries, with no reference to the ethnicity of those accessing services. We are keeping the provision of aid to Ethiopia under constant review.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Coventry (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to reports that over 60,000 refugees have left Ethopia and entered Sudan following conflict in Darfur, what steps they are taking to ensure that (1) this does not destabilise Sudan, and (2) access to humanitarian aid is not affected.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The conflict in Tigray has had significant consequences and displaced hundreds of thousands of people, as well as impacting those that were already in need of humanitarian assistance in Ethiopia and Sudan. During his visit the Foreign Secretary commended Sudan's leaders for their efforts to press for a peaceful resolution to the situation and for their support for refugees entering Sudan from Ethiopia. The UK has provided an additional £5 million in funding to the UN Human Rights Council and the Danish Refugee Council to address urgent needs arising from the Tigray crisis in Sudan. We continue to engage the Government of Sudan and the region on the need to find a peaceful resolution.
As a leading donor to Sudan, the UK is providing £125 million in economic and humanitarian assistance this financial year that is helping with stability and efforts to improve the lives of ordinary Sudanese. On 21 January the Foreign Secretary visited Sudan and reaffirmed the UK's commitment to support Sudan's democratic transition, including via £40 million funding to the Sudan Family Support Programme that will help with much needed economic reforms. The Foreign Secretary also visited a World Food Programme nutrition centre in Sudan, where he saw first-hand the vital role that UK aid is playing in helping those most in need of humanitarian assistance with the provision of life-saving food assistance to vulnerable communities.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Coventry (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to reports that authorisation from the government of Russia is now required for foreign nationals to enter the Nagorno-Karabakh region, what assessment they have made of the impact this will have on the delivery of humanitarian aid to that region.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The UK Government is aware of reports that Russian peacekeepers stationed in Nagorno-Karabakh are providing authorisation for those who wish to enter the region. Whilst we have not made an assessment on whether this will impact the delivery of humanitarian aid, during her recent visits to Baku and Yerevan the Minister for the European Neighbourhood and the Americas urged closer cooperation between Azerbaijan and Armenia with a view to ensuring that all humanitarian agencies were able to access the region to deliver aid.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Coventry (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the implementation of restrictions for Armenians to visit the Dadivank Monastery, what representations they have made to the government of Azerbaijan to ensure that Armenians are able to access sites of historical religious importance in areas returned to Azerbaijan.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The UK Government has made no representations to the Government of Azerbaijan on this issue. However, we continue to urge both Governments to work with UNESCO to ensure the protection of all sites of historical and religious importance.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Coventry (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they have taken to ensure that aid workers are permitted (1) to deliver humanitarian aid, and (2) to assess the needs of the population, in Ethiopia.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The UK remains deeply concerned about the humanitarian situation in Tigray and has been consistent in calling for free and unfettered humanitarian access. The Foreign Secretary raised the need for humanitarian access to Tigray with Prime Minister Abiy during his recent visit to Ethiopia and pressed for a political dialogue to bring lasting peace to the region. The Minister for Africa re-enforced the urgency of the need for humanitarian access when he spoke with the Ethiopian Ambassador on 24 February. The UN estimates that up to 1.3 million people affected by the conflict need humanitarian assistance, though the lack of free and sustained access makes it extremely challenging to determine the actual impact of the conflict on civilians - an estimated 80% of Tigray region remains beyond the reach of relief agencies.
The UK is working closely with humanitarian and development agencies to make sure aid reaches civilians affected by the fighting. UK-funded aid agencies in Tigray are working hard to deliver support in challenging circumstances, including food, shelter, water and healthcare. The Foreign Secretary visited Gondar, the site of a humanitarian hub in the neighbouring Amhara region on 22 January. He heard how £11.4m of UK Aid is supporting the World Food Programme and NGOs to ensure the delivery of aid to those affected by the conflict.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Coventry (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the risk of ethnic cleansing in the Nagorno-Karabakh region; and what discussions they have had with the government of Azerbaijan about the use of derogatory language that could increase the risk of ocnflict in that region.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The UK Government is aware of reports of human rights abuses taking place during last year's Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Whilst we have seen no evidence that ethnic cleansing is taking place, the Minister for the European Neighbourhood and the Americas has raised our concerns over allegations of war crimes with the Governments of Armenia and Azerbaijan and urged that they be thoroughly investigated. We continue to call on all parties to act responsibly and refrain from taking any actions that risk a return to conflict.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Coventry (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, what assessment they have made of reports of Azeri forces committing human rights abuses against Armenian prisoners of war; what steps they are taking to assist the return of all prisoners of war currently held following the conflict in the Nagorno-Karabakh region; and what plans they have to collate any information they have received relating to such abuses in order to refer such reports to the International Criminal Court.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The UK Government welcomes the ceasefire agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The UK Government is aware of reports that both sides may have mistreated civilians and military prisoners of war during the conflict and afterwards. The Minister for the European Neighbourhood and the Americas has been in regular contact with the Armenian and Azerbaijani Foreign Ministers since the outbreak of hostilities in September and has urged credible investigation of these reports. During a call in December she welcomed the news that Azerbaijani investigations were underway. The UK Government has no plans to refer these reports to the International Criminal Court as we believe these matters are for the relevant Governments to investigate.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Coventry (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the tripartite meeting between the governments of Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia on 11 January, what discussions they have had with the government of (1) France, and (2) the United States, about encouraging further involvement of the OSCE Minsk group in discussions about reaching a final settlement on the status of the Nagorno-Karabakh region.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The UK engages regularly with the Governments of France and the United States on the question of Nagorno Karabakh, including since the 11 January tripartite meeting. We continue to emphasise, to all partners, the UK's support for the Co-Chairs of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk Group in reaching a lasting settlement to the Nagorno-Karabakh issue, in line with the Madrid Principles.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Coventry (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of Azerbaijan about returning prisoners of war currently held following the conflict in the Nagorno-Karabakh region.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The UK Government welcomes the ceasefire agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The UK Government is aware of reports that both sides may have mistreated civilians and military prisoners of war during the conflict and afterwards. The Minister for the European Neighbourhood and the Americas has been in regular contact with the Armenian and Azerbaijani Foreign Ministers since the outbreak of hostilities in September and has urged credible investigation of these reports. During a call in December she welcomed the news that Azerbaijani investigations were underway. The UK Government has no plans to refer these reports to the International Criminal Court as we believe these matters are for the relevant Governments to investigate.