Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what action they are taking to implement the proposals contained in the joint briefing by Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK, Burma Campaign UK and Justice4Rohingya UK Five steps the UK can take now to start to address the Rohingya crisis, published on 17 September.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK, a lead donor on both sides of the border, is working hard to find solutions to the Rohingya crisis. We have convened the UN Security Council three times this year to discuss the Rohingya crisis and continue to use our UN role and bilateral engagement to push for solutions.
We support sanctions that target those responsible for human rights violations, which is why we listed the top two Myanmar generals in the Global Human Rights sanction regime in July.
The UK has publicly supported the ICJ case and provisional measures which are putting pressure on Myanmar to protect the Rohingya. We will continue to consider whether a UK legal intervention would add value to the merits of the case.
We recognise concerns about the impartiality of the Union Election Commission. We are not providing any direct financial support to the UEC, but are working through partners to promote international best practice and long-term institutional strengthening.
Supporting IDPs and refugees remains a priority and in 2019/20 we provided £30 million to support the displaced and conflict affected in Myanmar. The UK has ensured both a total and percentage increase in bilateral aid provided to IDPs and conflict affected people in Myanmar over the last three years.
We are deeply concerned about the denial of citizenship to the Rohingya, the Minister of State for Asia and the Pacific raised the issue of linking citizenship to voting rights when he spoke to the Myanmar Minister for International Cooperation in June.
The UK supports the RAC recommendation to reform the 1982 Citizenship Law and we calling on the Myanmar government, both publicly and privately, to fully implement the RAC recommendations.
Asked by: Yasmin Qureshi (Labour - Bolton South East)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether her Department has plans to undertake a review of the Official Development Assistance it allocates to Burma.
Answered by Nigel Adams
In response to the Rohingya crisis, in 2018 DFID reviewed and reshaped its programme in Myanmar to better focus on meeting the needs of the poorest, the most malnourished and excluded. This includes doing more in conflict-affected areas and with displaced people and refugees. Across Myanmar over 6 million people benefit from UK aid. DFID Myanmar does not provide any direct financial support to the Government of Myanmar and has introduced an enhanced due diligence regime for the private sector, including asking partners to avoid working with military owned companies. Allocations for all programmes are subject to rigorous due diligence and ongoing monitoring to enhance effectiveness and strategic impact.
In 2019, DFID again conducted a full review of its strategy. This review took stock of the changing conflict dynamics across the country, including the increasing conflict in Rakhine state, and the changing political situation in the country in the run up to the anticipated 2020 election. For DFID Myanmar this has reinforced the need to focus on supporting the most vulnerable including finding more durable solutions for Myanmar’s long-term displaced population and helping to strengthen the longer-term foundations for peace, prosperity, inclusion and democracy. In the last two months DFID Myanmar have again reviewed their portfolio given COVID-19. They have prioritised supporting the health and humanitarian response, whilst addressing the possible secondary impacts on the economy, society and conflict. A cross-Whitehall discussion was convened in April to review DFID Myanmar’s plans for responding to COVID-19.
Asked by: Yasmin Qureshi (Labour - Bolton South East)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what additional funding her Department has allocated to tackling the covid-19 pandemic in relation to refugees from Burma in (a) Bangladesh and (b) Thailand.
Answered by Nigel Adams
We have allocated over £10 million to support COVID-19 preparedness efforts in the Rohingya camps and surrounding host communities in Bangladesh. This contribution has been allocated from previously announced funding and includes establishing treatment centres; distributing soap and building more handwashing structures; and producing and rolling out a range of communications tools to share vital information, including by reaching vulnerable older people with advice.
A majority of DFID’s activities on the Thai/Myanmar border are now being focused on COVID-19 preparedness and response. On the Thai/Myanmar border, we have provided an additional funding to support the work of The Border Consortium (TBC) across nine of the refugee camps. On the Myanmar side we planning to provide funding of around funding, also through TBC. The funding will be used to carry out COVID-19 awareness activities and messaging in local languages, set up of hand washing facilities, increasing the value of the food vouchers to help households cope with lockdown training front line health workers and topping up civil society emergency response. This will benefit the refugees in Thailand and IDPs in Myanmar.
Asked by: Yasmin Qureshi (Labour - Bolton South East)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what additional Official Development Assistance her Department has allocated to tackling the covid-19 pandemic in relation to internally displaced people in Burma.
Answered by Nigel Adams
DFID is monitoring the spread COVID-19 cases in Myanmar closely and have adapted programmes in response. The primary focus is on the needs of the most vulnerable especially Internally Displaced Peoples and those living in conflict affected areas. The Secretary of State has agreed an additional £10 million in humanitarian funding to reinforce humanitarian support in response to COVID-19. To help prepare the humanitarian response, DFID Myanmar are asking partners to stockpile sufficient food and medicines to ensure needs can be met in the case of future lockdowns and quarantines; rapidly expanding water and sanitation facilities in camps and surrounding villages and treating severely malnourished children. They are also expanding food supplies to support newly vulnerable groups, advocating for access to health services, and supporting social distancing measures, including through aid delivery. DFID are ensuring the protection of the most vulnerable against increased risks of trafficking and violence against women through awareness campaigns.
The UK welcomed the decision of the Government to establish a committee to coordinate the COVID-19 response with the Ethnic Armed Organisations (EAOs). The ultimate success of the committee will need to be judged on the effectiveness of the Committee in enhancing the response to COVID-19 in ethnic areas, including Rakhine State.
Asked by: Yasmin Qureshi (Labour - Bolton South East)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what support her Department is providing to Burma in relation to the parliamentary elections to be held in November 2020 in that country.
Answered by Nigel Adams
The UK Government continues to support the ongoing democratic transition in Myanmar. Having committed £7.1 million between June 2019 to July 2021 to election support. The major focus is on raising public awareness and encouraging participation in the election, with emphasis on marginalised groups and the youth – aware of the fact that there are approximately 5 million people voting for the first time in 2020. The support also aims to support civil society initiatives, including local monitoring of elections.
Around 20% of this assistance is in the form of technical assistance and advice provided by the International Foundation for Electoral Systems to the Union Electoral Commission (UEC) to enable them to effectively change laws and procedures to align with international and regional best practices, and to provide the training that will allow the UEC to work towards more credible, fair, open and inclusive elections. This support is enabling open and constructive dialogues between UEC, civil society and political parties during the critical period prior to the 2020 elections.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee West)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps he has taken to ensure that his Department's funding for Sittwe General Hospital, Rakhine State, Burma, is not being used to discriminate against Rohingya people.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The UK supports improved health care for all communities in Rakhine through the multi-donor Access to Health Fund. We are clear that funding for Sittwe Hospital, provided as one part of this programme, must deliver improved access to healthcare for Rohingya people. We will not fund activities that further disadvantage this group.
Baroness Sugg raised the need for equal access to health treatment for all, when she met with the Rakhine State Health Director and the Union Minister of Health and Sport during her visit to Myanmar last autumn. This is in accordance with the Rakhine Advisory Commission recommendations. The UK will continue to raise this issue in discussions.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions the UK Government has had with Aung San Suu Kyi on the detention of political prisoners in Burma.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
The UK Government continues to be concerned about the many journalists and political prisoners who are incarcerated in Myanmar. Myanmar's laws on freedom of expression remain oppressive and are used, particularly by the military, to imprison opponents. In September 2018, , the former Foreign Secretary raised the cases of the two imprisoned Reuters journalists with Aung San Suu Kyi. They were released in May 2019. The British Ambassador continues to raise the issue of political prisoners with other Myanmar Ministers as well as urging reform of repressive legislation.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of St Albans (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether the Rohingya people’s civil and human rights are being upheld in Myanmar.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The recent UN Fact Finding Mission report is clear that the situation is dire for the 600,000 Rohingya who remain in Rakhine State. The British Government is clear that Rohingya in Myanmar continue to be at serious risk of human rights violations, including mass killings, sexual and gender-based violence and human trafficking. We are particularly concerned at restrictions on freedom of movement, religious belief and access to education. This situation has been exacerbated by the conflict between the Arakan Army and the Myanmar military.
We continue to push the Government of Myanmar to fully implement the recommendations of the Rakhine Advisory Commission, in order to improve conditions for all those who living in Rakhine State. Baroness Sugg raised this with senior government figures in Rakhine on her recent visit.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of St Albans (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports of attacks against Chin people in Myanmar.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is concerned by reports of attacks against the Chin people and missing Chin residents as a result of serious clashes between the Arakan Army and the Myanmar military. This conflict has now displaced tens of thousands of people, with civilians caught in the middle. We call on both sides to exercise restraint and engage in dialogue.
Asked by: Baroness Tonge (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support the safe and voluntary repatriation of Rohingya refugees to Myanmar.
Answered by Baroness Sugg
We are clear that the repatriation process for Rohingya refugees must be safe, voluntary and dignified, and meet international humanitarian principles and standards. We agree with the UN Refugee Agency that conditions for such repatriation do not yet exist in Rakhine State, Myanmar. We have pressed and continue to press the Government of Myanmar for full implementation of the Kofi Annan Rakhine Advisory Commission recommendations to create the conditions for the safe and voluntary returns of Rohingya refugees to Myanmar.
A recent escalation of violence in Rakhine State between the Arakan Army, an ethnic Rakhine separatist group, and the Myanmar military is a further barrier to returns. An end to the fighting will be important to de-escalate tensions and create space for progress on the conditions for returns. The UK has recently announced further funding to the crisis, bringing our total commitment to the response in Bangladesh since August 2017 to £256 million, and making us the second largest donor to the 2019 international Joint Response Plan. We welcome Bangladesh’s continued commitment to the principle of voluntary, safe and dignified returns and encourage the Government of Myanmar to pursue the dialogue it started with Rohingya refugees in July 2019.