Asked by: Jeffrey M Donaldson (Independent - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effect of the situation in Libya on UK-Libyan relations; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
The UK remains deeply concerned about the ongoing violence in Libya. We, together with our international partners, continue to support the people of Libya. The UK’s commitment to Libya is reflected by the Prime Minister’s appointment of UK Special Envoy Jonathan Powell. The Envoy is working with key Libyan interlocutors and international partners to support UN efforts led by Special Representative of the UN Secretary General (SRSG), Bernardino Leon, to facilitate fully inclusive dialogue to reach a lasting political agreement. I recently met the Libyan Foreign Minister Mohammed Al-Dayre, on my visit to Cairo 12 - 15 January. I said the UK was supportive of the Geneva talks hosted by UN SRSG Leon and encouraged full participation.
Asked by: Jeffrey M Donaldson (Independent - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of prospects for bilateral ceasefires in the Colombian peace process.
Answered by Lord Swire
On 14 January 2015, President Santos announced that his government was ready to begin discussions on a bilateral cease-fire with the FARC, and instructed his negotiators to start discussions as soon as possible. He noted that the FARC had complied with their unilateral cease-fire to date.
We welcome this latest development, which shows a further commitment on both sides to negotiate a sustainable peace for all Colombians after decades of conflict. We will continue to follow events closely.
Asked by: Jeffrey M Donaldson (Independent - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the government of Pakistan on its response to the murder of school children in Peshawar.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), made clear at the time of this horrific attack that the UK stands shoulder to shoulder with the government and people of Pakistan in the fight against terrorism and violent extremism. The Foreign Secretary has conveyed to Prime Minister Sharif that the UK stands ready to assist where we can. We will continue to work in partnership with Pakistan to tackle these challenges.
Asked by: Jeffrey M Donaldson (Independent - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Colombian government on the protection of politicians and peace activists who have been threatened and targeted for assassination by paramilitary organisations.
Answered by Lord Swire
We remain concerned by reports of threats against civil society and members of congress by the BACRIM (criminal bands).
I raised this issue with Ministers and senior officials from across the Colombian government during my visit earlier this year. More recently, our Ambassador in Bogota raised this issue on 30 September during a meeting with the Presidential High Adviser for Human Rights, Guillermo Rivera, and Rafael Blanco from the Chief Office of International Affairs. He was assured that this issue had been raised with the Attorney General’s office and that they had been urged to quickly investigate in order to make a robust assessment of the context of the threats. The Colombian government has also assured us that its Ministry of the Interior is working to ensure that adequate protection measures are in place.
Our Embassy in Bogota continues to urge the Colombian government to take further measures to prevent violence and threats against human rights defenders, trades unionists, civil society and politicians and to promptly investigate human rights violations.
Asked by: Jeffrey M Donaldson (Independent - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the results of the recent general election in Moldova.
Answered by David Lidington
The 30 November Moldovan parliamentary elections illustrate Moldova’s commitment to democracy. We support the right of every Moldovan voter to have their say on the future they want for their country without outside interference.
We look forward to the quick formation of a new government which can govern in an inclusive and accountable manner, implementing the EU-Moldova Association Agreement and making progress in key policy areas including the fight against corruption, continued reform of the justice sector, and combating discrimination.
Asked by: Jeffrey M Donaldson (Independent - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Irish government about the Republic of Ireland re-joining the Commonwealth.
Answered by David Lidington
The Republic of Ireland’s interest in rejoining the Commonwealth is a matter for the Irish Government and the wider Commonwealth membership. The UK Government has had no discussions with the Irish Government on this issue.
Asked by: Jeffrey M Donaldson (Independent - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his international counterparts at the UN about the persecution of Christians in other countries; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by David Lidington
Freedom of religion or belief, including the right of christians to profess their faith freely, is a key human rights priority for this Government. We work actively on it through the UN, encouraging all member states to implement in their own countries the commitments they have made in endorsing UN resolutions on this subject.
During the 69th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York last week, UN Member States adopted resolutions on freedom of religion or belief and combating intolerance.
My right hon and noble Friend, the Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, Baroness Anelay of St. Johns has called upon all UN Member States to ensure that they translate these resolutions into practice and create a climate where no-one is persecuted or discriminated against on the grounds of their religion or belief.
The subject is also raised by means of country specific resolutions. One example is the UN Special Session on Iraq on 1 September when the UK requested a UN investigation into the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) abuses, which would include those directed at Christians, as well as Yazidis and other religious and ethnic minorities.
Asked by: Jeffrey M Donaldson (Independent - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterpart in (a) the government of Israel and (b) the Palestinian authority following the recent vote in the House on Palestinian statehood.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
On 20 October I discussed the issue of Palestinian statehood with Israel's Ambassador Taub and the Palestinian Head of Mission in London, Professor Hassassain. Officials from our Embassy in Tel Aviv and the Consulate General in Jerusalem have discussed it with senior officials from both sides.
Asked by: Jeffrey M Donaldson (Independent - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his EU counterparts about future relations with Ukraine.
Answered by David Lidington
The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond) attended the EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting on 17 November where EU Foreign Ministers reiterated their support for the Minsk Protocol and Minsk Memorandum and urged all parties to implement them swiftly. They once again underlined the Russian Federation's responsibility in this context. The EU welcomed the holding of parliamentary elections in Ukraine on 26 October and looked forward to the urgent formation of a new government. They called for an intensification of much needed political and economic reforms in Ukraine, including constitutional reform, decentralisation, reform of the judiciary, law enforcement, fight against corruption and ensuring the rights of persons belonging to national minorities. The EU underlined that a renewed inclusive, country-wide national dialogue on reforms will be important to consolidate Ukraine's unity and internal cohesion and called on all sides to work towards early local elections in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, in accordance with Ukrainian law, as foreseen in the Minsk Protocol, as the only legal and legitimate means of renewing the democratic mandate of the local authorities.
The EU considers the holding of "presidential and parliamentary elections" in Donetsk and Luhansk "People’s Republics" on 2 November as illegal and illegitimate and will not recognise them. The Foreign Affairs Council called on the European External Action Service and the European Commission to present a proposal for a decision by the end of November on additional listings targeting separatists.
Asked by: Jeffrey M Donaldson (Independent - Lagan Valley)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports he has received on developments in the peace process in Colombia; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Lord Swire
We are aware that President Santos suspended the peace process negotiations following the kidnap of Brigadier-General Ruben Dario Alzate, Corporal Jorge Rodriguez Contreras, and a civilian lawyer, Gloria Urrego, on Sunday 16 November. We welcome the reports that an agreement has now been reached to release Brigadier-General Alzate and his colleagues.
We strongly support the peace negotiations and would welcome their resumption at the earliest opportunity.