Asked by: Janet Daby (Labour - Lewisham East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had recent discussions with his Sri Lankan counterpart on water quality in the Northern Province.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government is aware of the challenges Sri Lanka faces around water management and quality, and the unique challenges faced by communities in the Northern Province. Officials from the British High Commission Colombo regularly visit the Northern Province to meet a range of stakeholders to hear their experiences and issues. A number of public bodies in Sri Lanka, including the National Water Supply and Drainage Board, have conducted tests into the water quality. The Chunnakam Power plant has offered compensation to those affected by water pollution. The UK Government supports the International Water Management Institute, an international water management research organisation, to provide solutions to increasing water scarcity in Puttalam and Kilinochchi.
Asked by: Janet Daby (Labour - Lewisham East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, in the context of the UK's position as the penholder for Colombia’s 2016 peace agreement at the UN Security Council, what steps his Department is taking to support recently opened peace talks between the Colombian Government and the EMC armed group.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Through our role as penholder at the UN Security Council (UNSC), the UK works closely with international partners to support the peace process in Colombia. During the most recent UNSC meeting on 11 October, Council members reiterated their willingness to help monitor and verify the implementation of the ceasefire between the Government and the armed group that identifies itself as the Estado Mayor Central, when the Secretary General confirms that appropriate ceasefire protocols are in place. In August, the UK helped coordinate a similar agreement for the UN Verification Mission in Colombia to monitor and verify the ceasefire with the armed group Ejército de Liberación Nacional (ELN). As the second largest UN Trust Fund donor, the UK will continue to be a leading advocate of Colombia's peace process.
Asked by: Janet Daby (Labour - Lewisham East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to advocate for children in Saudi Arabia who are at risk of execution as a result of partaking in democratic resistance; and what steps he took to support Mustafa Al-Darwish before he was executed.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
The United Kingdom strongly opposes the death penalty in all countries and in all circumstances, as a matter of principle. The Saudi authorities are aware of the UK Government's strong position on such cases. We reiterated our opposition to the death penalty in Saudi Arabia in a joint statement at the UN Human Rights Council on 15 September 2020. On 24 May 2021, during my visit to Saudi Arabia, I discussed the death penalty, including those charged with conducting crimes as minors, with the President of the Saudi Human Rights Commission, Dr Awwad Alawwad. The British Embassy Riyadh raised our concerns regarding Mustafa Hashem al-Darwish with the Saudi authorities ahead of, and following, his execution.
Asked by: Janet Daby (Labour - Lewisham East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
What progress he has made on making an assessment of the potential merits of granting diplomatic protection to Anoosheh Ashoori.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
We have received Mr Ashoori’s application for diplomatic protection. The Foreign Secretary is considering the matter carefully. We remain committed to securing Mr Ashoori’s immediate and permanent release. We have been supporting Mr Ashoori’s family since we became aware of his detention. The Foreign Secretary has remained in contact with the family to reinforce the UK's efforts to bring him home. He last met them on 17 June.
We will continue to press for consular access and appropriate medical care until he is released.
Asked by: Janet Daby (Labour - Lewisham East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of reports that (a) the Chinese government is testing emotion recognition technology on detained Uyghurs in the Xinjiang region and (b) technology firms Hikvision and Dahua are developing facial recognition technologies to identify and track Uyghurs; and whether he plans to take steps to prevent (a) Government departments and (b) firms and consumers in the UK from purchasing goods from firms that are reportedly providing technology to the Chinese government for the surveillance of Uyghurs.
Answered by Nigel Adams
The UK is committed to promoting the ethical development and deployment of technology in the UK and overseas. We are aware of a number of Chinese technology companies linked to violations taking place in Xinjiang, and are monitoring the situation closely.
On 12 January, the Foreign Secretary announced a series of measures to help ensure UK businesses and the public sector are not complicit in human rights violations or abuses in Xinjiang. These measures, which are being implemented by the UK Government, include a review of export controls; the introduction of financial penalties under the Modern Slavery Act; increasing support for UK government bodies to exclude suppliers complicit in violations or abuses; and strengthening the Overseas Business Risk guidance to highlight that businesses engaged in the fields of surveillance, biometrics, or tracking technology are at heightened risk of complicity in human rights violations in Xinjiang.
The UK Government has also published guidance to help cutting-edge UK firms negotiate the ethical, legal and commercial questions they may encounter when working with Chinese businesses, supporting safe and appropriate UK-China collaboration in digital and tech. The guidance provides firms with clear, up-to-date information and specialist support which reflect the UK's values and take account of national security concerns.
Asked by: Janet Daby (Labour - Lewisham East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to tackle the demolition of Palestinian homes by the Israeli authorities.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
The UK regularly raises demolitions with the Government of Israel. I called on Israel to stop demolitions on 5 February 2021 and raised my concerns about demolitions of Palestinian homes and structures with the Israeli Ambassador on 29 October 2020. UK officials from the British Consulate in Jerusalem have made regular visits to areas at risk of demolition and eviction to reiterate UK support for those communities. The UK is clear that in all but the most exceptional of circumstances, demolitions are contrary to International Humanitarian Law. The practice causes unnecessary suffering to Palestinians and is harmful to the peace process.
Asked by: Janet Daby (Labour - Lewisham East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the implications for its policies of reports by Save the Children that Palestinian children are being detained in Israeli prisons; and what steps his Department is taking in response to those reports.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
We are concerned by the findings of the Save the Children's report entitled, 'Defenceless: The impact of the Israeli military detention system on Palestinian children'. UK officials are in contact with Save the Children over the report's findings. We remain concerned about the treatment of Palestinian children detained in Israeli prisons. Reports of the heavy use of painful restraints and the high number of Palestinian children who are not informed of their legal rights, in contravention of Israel's own regulations, are particularly concerning, as is the continued transfer of Palestinian child and adult detainees to prisons inside Israel in violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention. We remain committed to working with Israel to secure improvements to the practices surrounding children in detention. Our Embassy in Tel Aviv have a regular dialogue with Israel on this issue. We also fund projects providing legal aid to minors and capacity building to local lawyers. We continue to call on the Israeli authorities to comply with their obligations under international law.
Asked by: Janet Daby (Labour - Lewisham East)
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 in response to reports of violence by the Israeli Defence Force against Palestinian children.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
We repeatedly call on Israel to abide by its obligations under international law and have a regular dialogue with Israel on legal issues relating to the occupation, including the treatment of Palestinian children. We continue to stress the importance of the Israeli security forces providing appropriate protection to the Palestinian civilian population, in particular the need to protect children, and urge restraint in the use of live fire. In instances where there have been accusations of excessive use of force, we have advocated swift, transparent investigations.
Asked by: Janet Daby (Labour - Lewisham East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to support the government of Haiti in establishing conditions for a fair and transparent election process.
Answered by Wendy Morton
The UK continues to monitor developments in Haiti. We support the work being done by the UN and others to take forward the electoral process. We hope that this will enable credible elections to take place so that democratic institutions can be restored in the country as soon as possible.
Asked by: Janet Daby (Labour - Lewisham East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what plans he has to pursue sanctions against Chinese officials involved in human rights abuses in the Xinjiang region.
Answered by Nigel Adams
On 6 July, the UK Government established the Global Human Rights ('Magnitsky') sanctions regime by laying regulations in Parliament. This sanctions regime allows for asset freezes and travel bans on targeted individuals and organisations. It is not appropriate to speculate who may be designated under the sanctions regime in the future, as to do so could reduce the impact of the designations. We will keep all evidence and potential listings under close review.