Asked by: Imran Ahmad Khan (Independent - Wakefield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what support his Department is providing to governments in Africa to ensure they have access to an adequate supply of oxygen to help tackle covid-19.
Answered by James Duddridge
The UK is one of the largest donors to the international pandemic response. We have committed up to £1.3 billion of UK aid to address the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, and to help end the pandemic as quickly as possible. We are one of the major funders of the Access to COVID-19 Tools or ACT Accelerator, which is a global collaboration mobilising technical and financial support to increase equitable access to COVID-19 tests, treatments, and vaccines, including oxygen. FCDO is also supporting regional bodies like Africa Centre for Disease Control and the World Health Organisation (WHO) Africa Regional Office that are directly working with the governments on oxygen supplies in African countries.
For example, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the UK has provided nearly £15 million support to the COVID-19 response that includes supporting the health facilities in Kinshasa. We provided 80 oxygen concentrators in the city and supported the installation of solar energy in five health facilities to ensure a reliable and green electricity supply for these oxygen concentrators.
Asked by: Imran Ahmad Khan (Independent - Wakefield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions his Department have had with their Bangladeshi counterparts on the persecution of atheists in that country.
Answered by Nigel Adams
The UK Government is committed to defending freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) for all, and promoting respect between different religious and non-religious communities. Promoting the right to FoRB is one of the UK's longstanding human rights priorities.
Bangladesh is a human rights priority country for the FCDO. Ministers and our High Commission in Dhaka regularly raise human rights concerns as part of continued dialogue with the Government of Bangladesh. The UK supports community leaders in Bangladesh to address the causes and effects of inter-religious, ethnic and political conflict. Our development programming supports citizen groups in 31 districts across the country to come together to resolve grievances, mitigate religious violence and advocate for inclusive and peaceful co-existence.
While Bangladesh is a secular people's republic with formal guarantees of religious freedom, we recognise the risk of religious persecution faced by Ahmadiyya Muslims and other groups including Hindus, Christians and atheists in Bangladesh, and actively engage with minority communities to understand their concerns. We will continue to monitor this closely and advocate for FoRB as well as other human rights.
Asked by: Imran Ahmad Khan (Independent - Wakefield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Bangladeshi counterpart on the persecution of Ahmadis in that country.
Answered by Nigel Adams
The UK Government is committed to defending freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) for all, and promoting respect between different religious and non-religious communities. Promoting the right to FoRB is one of the UK's longstanding human rights priorities.
Bangladesh is a human rights priority country for the FCDO. Ministers and our High Commission in Dhaka regularly raise human rights concerns as part of continued dialogue with the Government of Bangladesh. The UK supports community leaders in Bangladesh to address the causes and effects of inter-religious, ethnic and political conflict. Our development programming supports citizen groups in 31 districts across the country to come together to resolve grievances, mitigate religious violence and advocate for inclusive and peaceful co-existence.
While Bangladesh is a secular people's republic with formal guarantees of religious freedom, we recognise the risk of religious persecution faced by Ahmadiyya Muslims and other groups including Hindus, Christians and atheists in Bangladesh, and actively engage with minority communities to understand their concerns. We will continue to monitor this closely and advocate for FoRB as well as other human rights.
Asked by: Imran Ahmad Khan (Independent - Wakefield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Afghani counterpart on the ongoing talks between that government and the Taliban.
Answered by Nigel Adams
The UK is in regular contact with the Afghan Government on a number of issues, including the Afghan peace negotiations. The Prime Minister spoke to President Ghani on 17 June, and reiterated the UK's commitment to Afghanistan. Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon spoke to the Afghan Foreign Minister, Hanif Atmar, most recently on 2 June and 3 May. The UK remains committed to supporting Afghanistan and continues to encourage efforts to reach a sustainable and inclusive political settlement. For there to be a lasting peace, the Taliban must engage meaningfully in a dialogue with the Afghan government.
Asked by: Imran Ahmad Khan (Independent - Wakefield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with their Bangladeshi counterparts on the persecution of Christians in that country.
Answered by Nigel Adams
The UK Government is committed to defending freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) for all, and promoting respect between different religious and non-religious communities. Promoting the right to FoRB is one of the UK's longstanding human rights priorities.
Bangladesh is a human rights priority country for the FCDO. Ministers and our High Commission in Dhaka regularly raise human rights concerns as part of continued dialogue with the Government of Bangladesh. The UK supports community leaders in Bangladesh to address the causes and effects of inter-religious, ethnic and political conflict. Our development programming supports citizen groups in 31 districts across the country to come together to resolve grievances, mitigate religious violence and advocate for inclusive and peaceful co-existence.
While Bangladesh is a secular people's republic with formal guarantees of religious freedom, we recognise the risk of religious persecution faced by Ahmadiyya Muslims and other groups including Hindus, Christians and atheists in Bangladesh, and actively engage with minority communities to understand their concerns. We will continue to monitor this closely and advocate for FoRB as well as other human rights.
Asked by: Imran Ahmad Khan (Independent - Wakefield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent steps his Department has taken to strengthen relations with the US.
Answered by Wendy Morton
President Biden's visit to the UK last week, which was his first overseas visit as President, demonstrated the significant synergy between our international priorities and those of the US Administration. This included a new Atlantic Charter that was agreed on 10 June, and which will set the tone for UK-US international leadership in the 21st century, including in the context of pandemic recovery. We also issued a Joint UK-US Statement on 10 June, which demonstrates our close relationship, built on open trade, vibrant democracies, and cooperation on global issues from COVID-19 to climate change.
Asked by: Imran Ahmad Khan (Independent - Wakefield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with representatives from the Governments of (a) Chad and (b) the Central African Republic on the recent reported violence at the border between those two countries.
Answered by James Duddridge
The UK's statement at the UN Security Council on 7 June condemned the recent violence on the Chad / Central African Republic (CAR) border, and expressed our condolences for the lives lost. As our Ambassador to Chad stated on 5 June, the UK supports the stability of the region, and takes seriously infringements of the territorial integrity of any country. Tensions must be de-escalated through diplomatic means. Ministers have not held discussions recently with the Governments of Chad or CAR regarding the border clashes.
Asked by: Imran Ahmad Khan (Independent - Wakefield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department has taken to help prevent the persecution of atheists in Saudi Arabia.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
The UK strongly supports the right to freedom of religion or belief (FoRB), which is restricted in Saudi Arabia. Ministers and our Ambassador in Saudi Arabia regularly raise and discuss freedom of religion or belief.
On 24 May 2021, I raised FoRB with the Saudi President of the Human Rights Commission during my visit to Saudi Arabia. Our views are well known and the UK will continue to encourage further human rights reform in Saudi Arabia.
Asked by: Imran Ahmad Khan (Independent - Wakefield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the Government of Afghanistan on protections for religious minorities in that country.
Answered by Nigel Adams
UK Ministers and officials frequently raise the protection of religious minorities with Afghan counterparts. Most recently, on 2 June Lord Ahmad spoke to Afghan Foreign Minister Hanif Atmar to offer condolences for the attack on 8 May on a school in a predominantly Hazara area of Kabul. British Embassy officials in Kabul regularly meet with representatives from religious minority groups to hear their concerns. We continue to make public condemnations about targeted killings, and violence against minorities and human rights advocates, calling for transparent investigations. Only a negotiated and inclusive settlement will bring sustainable peace to Afghanistan. We continue to make clear to all sides that any political settlement must protect the progress made in the country, including protection for women and minority groups.
Asked by: Imran Ahmad Khan (Independent - Wakefield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of India on protections for people practicing minority religions in that country.
Answered by Nigel Adams
Human rights form a regular part of our dialogue with India. Most recently, Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, the Minister of State for South Asia, discussed the situation for Christians in India with India's Minister of State for Home Affairs, Kishan Reddy, on 15 March. Our Acting High Commissioner in New Delhi also discussed UK Parliamentary interest in minorities in India with officials from India's Ministry of External Affairs on 5 January. A senior FCDO official discussed the situation for India's religious minorities with the Indian High Commissioner on 29 December.
The British High Commission in New Delhi regularly meets religious representatives and has run projects promoting minority rights. This year, they supported an interfaith leadership programme for a cohort of emerging Indian faith leaders, creating an opportunity to exchange expertise on leading modern, inclusive faith communities, and promoting values of tolerance and multi-culturalism.