Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to the Burmese government on the rights of the Rohingya and other minorities in that country.

I raised the issue of the Rohingya with the Burmese Minister for Construction on 29 November, as well as concerns relayed by a number of Parliamentary colleagues calling for the immediate resumption of humanitarian access to Northern Rakhine. I reiterated our call for an independent investigation into allegations of human rights abuses, to which the Government of Burma has made commitment. The Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my noble Friend the Rt Hon. Baroness Anelay of St Johns, visited Burma from 9-12 November where she raised similar concerns. She also discussed the peace process, in which the UK plays a leading role on seeking an end to the long-running conflict between the military and ethnic armed groups. This included a call for unfettered access for those in need of humanitarian aid in conflict-affected areas.