Asked by: Karen Lee (Labour - Lincoln)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps have been taken to help ensure that Bahraini female political prisoners Hajer Mansoor, Medina Ali, and Najah Yusuf will be protected from reprisals when their case is raised at the (a) UK Parliament and (b) United Nations.
Answered by Alistair Burt
The Honourable Lady will be aware from previous answers to questions and from my reply to the Westminster Hall Debate on 11 September that our Embassy in Bahrain and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office continue to monitor the cases of Hajer Mansoor, Najah Ahmed Yusuf and Medina Ali and that we have raised the cases at a senior level with the Government of Bahrain.
We encourage those with concerns about treatment in detention to report these to the appropriate oversight body. We urge these oversight bodies to carry out swift and thorough investigations into any such claims. We understand that the National Institution for Human Rights and the Ministry of Interior Ombudsman are aware of these cases and have been in contact with the three individuals.
Asked by: George Howarth (Labour - Knowsley)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what estimate his Department has made of the number of incidents involving Bahraini security forces torturing detainees in each year for which information is available; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Alistair Burt
The UK has an open dialogue with the Government of Bahrain on a range of issues, including human rights. Bahrain has a number of human rights oversight bodies which investigate allegations of mistreatment and human rights abuse, including the Ministry of Interior Ombudsman and the Special Investigations Unit. These bodies regularly release reports with figures on the number of allegations they have investigated. We continue to encourage anybody with concerns about treatment in detention to report them to the appropriate oversight body. We also encourage the oversight bodies to carry out swift and thorough investigations into any such claims.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the statement issued by Bahraini political prisoners Hajer Mansoor, Medina Ali and Najah Yusuf in relation to the restrictions that have been imposed by the prison administration and Major Mariam Albardoli; and how they intend to respond to those women’s call for international intervention in their case.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Our Embassy in Bahrain and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office continue to monitor the cases of Hajer Mansoor, Najah Ahmed Yusuf and Medina Ali. We have raised the cases at a senior level with the Government of Bahrain.
We encourage those with concerns about treatment in detention to report these to the appropriate oversight body. We urge these oversight bodies to carry out swift and thorough investigations into any such claims. We understand that the National Institution for Human Rights and the Ministry of Interior Ombudsman are aware of these cases and have been in contact with the three individuals.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will make any representations to the Bahraini authorities in relation to the targeting of Hajer Mansoor Hassan by the head of Bahrain’s Isa Town Prison, Major Maryam Albardoli, following the engagement of her son-in-law, Sayed Alwadaei, with the UN and the UK Parliament.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We encourage those with concerns about treatment in detention to report these to the appropriate oversight body in Bahrain. We urge these oversight bodies to carry out swift and thorough investigations into any such claims. We understand that the National Institution for Human Rights and the Ministry of Interior Ombudsman are aware of this case and are monitoring the situation, and have been in touch with Ms Mansoor. We have raised the case with the Government of Bahrain and continue to monitor the situation.
Asked by: Roger Godsiff (Labour - Birmingham, Hall Green)
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 his Bahraini counterpart on detention conditions and access to medical care for detainee Hajer Mansoor.
Answered by Alistair Burt
I refer the honourable gentleman to the answer I gave to question 139036. We encourage those with concerns about treatment in detention to report these to the appropriate oversight body. We urge these oversight bodies to carry out swift and thorough investigations into any such claims. We understand that the National Institution for Human Rights is aware of this case and is monitoring the situation, and that the Ombudsman of the Ministry of the Interior is also investigating the claims and has been in touch with Ms Mansoor. We have raised the case with the Government of Bahrain at a senior level and continue to monitor the situation.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether the Bahraini Ombudsman is conducting swift and thorough investigations into allegations that female political prisoners Hajer Mansoor Hassan and Medina Ali are being denied access to medical treatment in Isa Town Prison.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the British Embassy in Bahrain are aware of these cases and continue to monitor events. We encourage those with concerns about treatment in detention to report these to the appropriate oversight body. We urge these oversight bodies to carry out swift and thorough investigations into any such claims. We understand that the National Institution for Human Rights is aware of these cases and is monitoring the situation, and that the Ombudsman of the Ministry of Interior is also investigating the claims.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the effectiveness of UK-funded oversight bodies in Bahrain such as the Ombudsman for the Ministry of the Interior.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Our Embassy in Bahrain has a continuing dialogue with the Government of Bahrain and all Bahraini human rights oversight bodies. The British Government believes that a body with the power to investigate allegations of mistreatment in a timely, independent and transparent manner can be of great benefit to Bahraini society.
The Bahraini Ministry of Interior Ombudsman was established as an independent oversight body by Royal Decree in 2012. In 2013 the International Ombudsman Institute acknowledged that the Ministry of Interior Ombudsman fulfils its criteria for voting membership, stating that the organisation "is functionally independent of any public authority over which jurisdiction is held." It was the first organisation of its kind in the region and remains unique. In 2014 the Ministry of Interior Ombudsman's Office won the EU's Chaillot Prize for the promotion of human rights in the Gulf Cooperation Council.
The UK welcomes the conclusion of the Ombudsman and Special Investigations Unit into the cases of Mohammed Ramadhan and Hussain Moosa, resulting in the Justice Minister ordering their cases be re-tried.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what technical, financial or other support the UK has given to the Ministry of Interior Ombudsman in Bahrain to help it achieve its objectives.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK has been providing a range of technical and practical assistance to the Government of Bahrain since 2012, in support of its reform programme. This technical assistance supports the building of effective and accountable institutions, strengthening the rule of law, and police and justice reform. It has included work with the National Institution of Human Rights, the Ministry of Interior Ombudsman, and the Prisoners' and Detainees' Rights Commission. Any training provided by or on behalf of the British Government complies with our domestic and international human rights obligations.
Asked by: Tom Brake (Liberal Democrat - Carshalton and Wallington)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent reports he has received on trends in the prison conditions for (a) the Bahrain 13 and (b) other prisoners in Bahrain.
Answered by Alistair Burt
The Government monitors events in Bahrain closely. Where we have concerns on specific issues, including prison conditions, we raise these at an appropriately senior level with the Bahraini authorities. We encourage those with concerns about treatment in detention to report these to the relevant human rights oversight bodies. We continue to encourage the Government of Bahrain to deliver on its international and domestic human rights commitments.
The UK's support to Bahrain's reform programme includes strengthening independent oversight bodies such as the Ministry of Interior Ombudsman and the Prisoners and Detainees Rights Commission which provide oversight of police conduct and detention standards.
Asked by: Tom Brake (Liberal Democrat - Carshalton and Wallington)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, against which criteria the Government is measuring the effectiveness of the Bahraini Ministry of the Interior Ombudsman.
Answered by Alistair Burt
Our Embassy in Bahrain has a continuing dialogue with the Government of Bahrain and all Bahraini human rights oversight bodies. The British Government believes that a body with the power to investigate allegations of mistreatment in a timely, independent and transparent manner can be of great benefit to Bahraini society.
The Bahraini Ministry of Interior Ombudsman was established as an independent oversight body by Royal Decree in 2012. In 2013 the International Ombudsman Institute acknowledged that the Ministry of Interior Ombudsman fulfils its criteria for voting membership, stating that the organisation "is functionally independent of any public authority over which jurisdiction is held." It was the first organisation of its kind in the region and remains unique. In 2014 the Ministry of Interior Ombudsman's Office won the EU's Chaillot Prize for the promotion of human rights in the Gulf Cooperation Council region.