Asked by: Rushanara Ali (Labour - Bethnal Green and Stepney)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what guidance her Department issues to staff on terminology to be used when referring to ethnic groups in meetings with the Burmese government.
Answered by Desmond Swayne
The Department for International Development has not issued guidance to staff on terminology to be used when referring to ethnic groups in meetings with the Burmese government.
Asked by: Rushanara Ali (Labour - Bethnal Green and Stepney)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether officials of her Department have been instructed not to use the word Rohingya when discussing the Rohingya people in meetings with the Burmese government.
Answered by Desmond Swayne
No. DFID officials have not been instructed to not use the word Rohingya when discussing the Rohingya people in meetings with the Burmese government.
Asked by: Rushanara Ali (Labour - Bethnal Green and Stepney)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that displaced Rohingya Muslims have access to basic medicine and healthcare provision.
Answered by Alan Duncan
DFID, along with other aid agencies on the ground in Rakhine, are working to ensure a coordinated response. Our bilateral humanitarian support in Rakhine includes assistance for water, sanitation, and nutrition. Support is provided to both communities. We have not provided bilateral support for medicine and healthcare provision, but ECHO and UN agencies to whom we provide core funding, are. In addition to the delivery of aid, DFID and the FCO continue to advocate at all levels of Government for establishment of conditions which allow for unhindered humanitarian access.
Asked by: Rushanara Ali (Labour - Bethnal Green and Stepney)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent assessment she has made of the humanitarian situation of displaced Rohingya Muslims in Burma.
Answered by Alan Duncan
FCO and DFID staff monitor the humanitarian situation in Rakhine State closely and visit frequently. Whilst there have been improvements to humanitarian operations following the severe disruptions caused by attacks on UN and international NGO premises in March, many vulnerable communities, including the Rohingya, remain under-served. The UK is providing bilateral humanitarian support in Rakhine to all communities affected by the humanitarian situation there, as well as support through core contributions to multilateral agencies.