Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what assessment his Department has made of the situation of Hindus in Sri Lanka after the recent arrest and assault of Tamil Hindu worshippers.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Promoting Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) is a UK priority in Sri Lanka. The UK Government regularly raises human rights, including the importance of religious tolerance and protecting the rights of all Sri Lankans to practise their faith. Through UK funded programmes, we support Sri Lankan youth to advocate for FoRB and improve religious harmony.
We continue to be concerned by increasing tensions around land in Sri Lanka, including at the Vedukkunaari Aadhi Sivan temple in Vavuniya. We welcome the release of the eight arrested Hindu worshippers but note that this incident has troubling implications for FoRB.
Asked by: Carla Lockhart (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps he is taking to support (a) human rights and (b) democracy in (i) sub-Saharan Africa and (ii) other countries.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK is a long-standing supporter of an open international order based on respect for democracy and human rights. Globally, our work includes holding Russia to account over its actions in Ukraine and at home and China for its actions in Xinjiang province; and supporting the Human Rights Council and the Summits for Democracy. Across Africa, our human rights work has included support to media freedom in South Sudan, human rights defenders in Zimbabwe, and tackling child exploitation in DRC. We have also partnered to support democratic institutions: for example, the judiciary in Kenya, civil society in Nigeria, and the African Union (AU), through our £7 million AU Conflict and Governance programme.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Streatham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps his Department is taking to provide support for human rights to (a) people in, (b) aid agencies and (c) human rights organisations working in Eswatini.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK works to promote respect for human rights around the world, including in Eswatini. The British Government supports the Swazi people indirectly through programmes delivered by UN agencies (including UNICEF, UNFPA and WFP), their implementing partners and the Global Fund, as well as through advocacy and engagement with local Human Rights Defenders and state authorities. The British High Commission also provides project support to local NGOs and CSOs working on key human rights issues such as gender-based violence, freedom of expression and the rights of women and girls.
Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, whether he has made representations to the Kenyan Government on the ratification of the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK is not a party to the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance. However, the UK condemns enforced disappearances and extra judicial killings, which are human rights violations that deny victims basic human rights under the law and Kenya's Constitution. We have raised these concerns with the Chair of the Kenyan Human Rights Parliamentary caucus.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what his priorities are for the UN Summit of the Future on 22-23 September 2024.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK welcomes the Summit of the Future as an opportunity to secure UN reform, so that it can meet the challenges of today and those of tomorrow. Our priorities are to: support a New Agenda for Peace which commits to conflict prevention through national prevention approaches, and localised warning mechanisms; shape shared principles for digital co-operation; accelerate the full achievement of the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals), based on the International Development White Paper priorities; and defend positions on human rights and gender, notably sexual health and reproductive rights and Female Genital Mutilation, and advance women's participation at all levels of decision-making.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what discussions he has had with counterparts in Tajikistan on reports of recent disappearances of activists and opposition leaders in that country.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
We discuss Tajikistan's human rights situation both bilaterally and in international fora, including during the Foreign Secretary's visit this week, and during Minister Docherty's visit to Tajikistan in 2023 and through the British Embassy in Dushanbe.
Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)
Question
To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, how many staff left the Equality and Human Rights Commission in each year since 2015.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
As an executive non-departmental public body that is operationally independent, this is for the Equality and Human Rights Commission to respond. I have attached the response from the Interim Chief Executive below.
Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what criteria his Department uses to determine whether it can enter into discussions on establishing potential asylum partnerships akin to the UK-Rwanda Migration and Economic Development Partnership.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK is continuing to work with a range of international partners to tackle global illegal migration challenges. Our focus has been on passing the Safety of Rwanda Bill, which builds on the Illegal Migration Act, and putting plans in place to get flights off the ground as soon as possible to Rwanda.
A range of factors need to be taken into consideration for migration partnerships, including the human rights situation in the country.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 11 March 2024 to Question 16834 on Trade Agreements: Dispute Resolution, whether she has made an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of the findings of the UN Special Rapporteur's report entitled Paying polluters: the catastrophic consequences of investor-State dispute settlement for climate action and human rights relating to the transparency of investor-State dispute settlements.
Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)
I refer the Hon. Member to the response provided to Question 16553 on 11 March.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Streatham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of reports of the murder of José Alirio Chochué Molanoin in Colombia on 19 January 2024.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The British Government remains concerned at the worrying rate of murders of, and threats against, peace signatories, including that of José Alirio Chochué. We will continue to support the Colombian Government in its commitment to implement the 2016 Peace Agreement and ensure the protection and safety of peace activists and women's rights campaigners. During my visit to Colombia in March, I raised the human rights situation with Vice Foreign Minister Coy. At the UN Security Council meeting on Colombia earlier this month, we set out our concern over attacks on human rights defenders, communities, women and social leaders, and reiterated our commitment to supporting efforts to tackle the root causes of violence in Colombia.