Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of the recent killing of Imam Muhsin Hendricks in South Africa; and whether he has had discussions with his international counterparts on the protection of (a) religious and (b) LGBTQ+ communities from targeted violence.

The tragic murder of Imam Muhsin Hendricks on 15 February strengthens our resolve to continue implementing our policies on Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) and LGBT+ rights to protect, support and promote individual human rights for all. The UK has been, and will continue to be, a vocal and visible supporter of LGBT+ rights and FoRB in South Africa. The Minister for Africa expressed publicly the UK's sadness at the death of Imam Hendricks on 19 February and acknowledged his role as a courageous spokesperson for LGBT+ rights and gender equality in South Africa.

Globally, we remain firmly committed to working with our international partners to promote tolerance and mutual respect in relation to FoRB and LGBT+ rights through our engagement in multilateral fora, our bilateral work, and our programme funding. For example, the joint Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and private philanthropy Equal, Safe and Free Fund is supporting grassroots LGBT+ organisations across Africa, and the UK Special Envoy for FoRB, David Smith MP, will attend the UN Human Rights Council 58th session in Geneva to discuss FoRB with international partners in the coming weeks.