Saudi Arabia: Detainees

(asked on 2nd November 2020) - View Source

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make UK attendance at the upcoming G20 in Riyadh contingent on the release of (a) Loujain al-Hathloul, (b) other human rights defenders, (c) Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, (d) Prince Turki bin Abdullah and (e) other political detainees.


Answered by
James Cleverly Portrait
James Cleverly
Home Secretary
This question was answered on 5th November 2020

The UK will participate in the G20 Summit, which is likely to focus on health, the global economic recovery and wider global challenges (including climate change, trade and development). It is a key part of international planning for a sustainable recovery from coronavirus. As current G20 President, Saudi Arabia will play a vital role in coordinating the global health and economic response. We hope that the international platform provided by the G20 Presidency encourages continued progress on domestic reforms.

Our close relationship with Saudi Arabia allows us to raise our concerns about human rights, including on political detainees, in private and in public. We have expressed significant concerns about reports of continuing arrests and arbitrary detentions in Saudi Arabia. We have raised detention cases, including Loujain al-Hathloul, at senior levels with the Saudi authorities. The UK signed a statement at the UN Human Rights Council on 15 September. It regretted the continued detention of at least five women's human rights defenders, arrested in 2018, and called for the release of all political detainees. We continue to raise concerns at all levels and are monitoring the situation closely.

Reticulating Splines