Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make representations to the Bangladeshi Government on the restrictions to free speech enacted by that country's Digital Security Act and the effect of that Act on free and fair elections in that country.

I remain very concerned by continuing restrictions on freedom of expression in Bangladesh. The Digital Security Act has attracted significant Civil Society and media criticism in Bangladesh, including for the vagueness of its text, which they fear could be used to prosecute a range of behaviours, and for its harsh sentences. On 27 September, the UK, along with other EU Missions in Dhaka, issued a statement raising concerns that the Act could undermine freedom of expression. Subsequently, the Acting High Commissioner met the Bangladeshi Information Minister on 9 October to emphasise our concerns. Bangladesh remains a Human Rights Priority Country for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. We raised freedom of expression as a key concern in Bangladesh during the UN Human Rights Council Universal Periodic Review.

I am clear that the UK wants to see a free, fair and pluralistic general election in Bangladesh, and continuing restrictions on freedom of expression will have a negative impact on that election. I have consistently encouraged the Government of Bangladesh and opposition parties to engage in an effective dialogue to this end. I made these points to senior members of the Government of Bangladesh, including State Minister for Foreign Affairs, Shahriar Alam, and members of the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party during my visit to Bangladesh from 29 June to 1 July this year. The Foreign Secretary made these points to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina when they met on 24 September at the UN General Assembly in New York.