Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the current status of indefinite conscription in Eritrea.

We continue to be deeply concerned by reports that indefinite conscription is ongoing in Eritrea. We raise concerns about human rights in Eritrea regularly, both directly with the Government, as the former Minister for Africa did with the Eritrean Foreign Minister in September 2018, and in international fora. In a statement at the 41^st session of the UN Human Rights council on 12 July the UK welcomed the renewal of the Special Rapporteur's mandate, which we co-sponsored. The UK also urged Eritrea to cooperate with the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Eritrea and to reform national service.