David Linden
Main Page: David Linden (Scottish National Party - Glasgow East)Department Debates - View all David Linden's debates with the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
(5 years, 4 months ago)
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Harriett Baldwin
In the interests of brevity, Madam Deputy Speaker, I confirm that the UK position is that there should be no further drawdown.
David Linden (Glasgow East) (SNP)
Sudan finds itself sixth in the Open Doors world watch list for persecution of Christians and we know that the 2 million Christians there are subjected to extreme persecution, in particular in the Nuba mountains where thousands of Christians have been slaughtered and displaced, so this is a serious issue. Will the Minister consider the calls from Christian Solidarity Worldwide to convene a special session of the UN Human Rights Council on that issue?
Harriett Baldwin
The hon. Gentleman will be aware of the Foreign Secretary’s prioritisation of freedom of religion and belief in his work, and my colleague from the other place, Lord Tariq Ahmad, was in Khartoum last year making precisely this point.
The hon. Gentleman makes a very sensible point about the Human Rights Council. He will be aware that we tried to raise this at the Security Council last week but it was blocked by Russia and China. However, we will of course explore all international avenues to make sure that we keep this issue on the agenda.