Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent representations he has made to his counterpart in Pakistan on (a) the persecution of Ahmadi Muslims and (b) the alleged desecration of Ahmadi places of worship in that country.

Protecting freedom of religion or belief for minority communities is central to the UK Government's human rights engagement in Pakistan. The Minister for Development raised the treatment of Ahmadi Muslims with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on 9 January. Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, the Minister for South Asia, also raised this issue with Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on 14 December, and with Ministry of Interior officials on 8 December. The British High Commission in Islamabad continues to engage at a senior level with government representatives and civil society; the High Commissioner raised the issue with Minister of State Hina Rabbani Khar on 4 January.