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174735

registered interest
date	20/01/2015
answering body	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept id	16
answering dept short name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept sort name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
hansard heading	Sri Lanka
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the election in Sri Lanka and the prospects for an independent war crime inquiry in that country.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	221359
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/01/2015 answer text <p>The Sri Lankan Presidential Election was generally peaceful and well-managed with a high voter turnout. We commend Sri Lanka’s Election Commission for its conduct of the election, and all Sri Lanka’s political parties and people for accepting the final result and committing to the peaceful transfer of power. The result on the day reflected the will of the Sri Lankan people.</p><p> </p><p>However, we also note the view of Commonwealth Observers that an inadequate electoral and legal framework coupled with an unequal pre-electoral environment, meant the election contest fell short of key benchmarks for democratic elections. We hope that this is something Sri Lanka will now address, with the support of the international community.</p><p> </p><p>We are encouraging the new government to engage with the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, including over the UN Human Rights Council resolution agreed in March 2014. This is consistent with the Prime Minister's, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron), statement after the elections that the UK “encourages President Sirisena to support the ongoing UN Office of the High Commission for Human rights investigation into human rights abuses so that the issues of the past can be addressed and the country can move forward to a brighter, peaceful future where all Sri Lankan’s can play a role.”</p> answering member constituency East Devon answering member printed Mr Hugo Swire question first answered 27/01/2015 14:48:10 answering member 1408 label Biography information for Lord Swire
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

156269

registered interest
date	18/11/2014
answering body	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept id	16
answering dept short name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept sort name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
hansard heading	Burma
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what guidance his Department has issued on the use of the word Rohingya in communications with the government of Burma.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	214863
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/11/2014 answer text <p>No guidance has been issued and it is a word that we continue to use in communications with the government of Burma. The history of the word Rohingya is contested in Burma, but whatever the history we believe in the right of minorities to choose the name by which they are identified. I and other British Ministers are on record using the word Rohingya.</p> answering member constituency East Devon answering member printed Mr Hugo Swire question first answered 25/11/2014 16:17:54 answering member 1408 label Biography information for Lord Swire
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

156270

registered interest
date	18/11/2014
answering body	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept id	16
answering dept short name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept sort name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
hansard heading	Burma
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with his Burmese counterpart on the Rohingya in Burma forming a political party in that country.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	214864
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/11/2014 answer text <p>Our Embassy in Rangoon have raised our strong concerns. We were disappointed about the recent passing of legislation by the Burmese Parliament that will deny holders of temporary registration cards the ability to form and join political parties. This affects a majority of the Rohingya and some 400,000 members of other minorities. We are also particularly concerned by an expected draft Bill that would deny these individuals the right to vote in next year’s elections.</p><p>British Ministers and officials continue to raise our wider concerns about the treatment of the Rohingya with Burmese counterparts. I did so in October with the Minister of Immigration and the new chief Minister of Rakhine State.</p> answering member constituency East Devon answering member printed Mr Hugo Swire question first answered 25/11/2014 16:20:56 answering member 1408 label Biography information for Lord Swire
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

99841

registered interest
date	20/10/2014
answering body	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept id	16
answering dept short name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept sort name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
hansard heading	North Korea: South Korea
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment his Department has made of relations between North and South Korea after clashes on the 38th parallel.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	211090
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/10/2014 answer text <p>In recent weeks, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) and the Republic of Korea (ROK) have exchanged fire across the Demilitarised Zone which separates both countries. On 10 October, DPRK troops fired at balloons containing leaflets sent by South Korean non-governmental organisation activists across the border resulting in the ROK military returning fire. On 19 October, the ROK fired warning shots at DPRK troops approaching the border resulting in another exchange of fire. No casualties were reported. <br><br>We call on both sides to exercise restraint. Both the DPRK and ROK have recently engaged in dialogue, including holding high-level military talks on 15 October. We welcome the news that a provisional agreement was reached for the resumption of inter-Korean high level dialogue and hope this leads to real progress, including on reunions of families separated during the Korean War.</p> answering member constituency East Devon answering member printed Mr Hugo Swire question first answered 27/10/2014 14:20:19 answering member 1408 label Biography information for Lord Swire
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

92891

registered interest
date	13/10/2014
answering body	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept id	16
answering dept short name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept sort name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
hansard heading	Sri Lanka
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the accuracy of reports that Tamils deported to Sri Lanka have been subjected to torture and sexual abuse.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	210112
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/10/2014 answer text <p>This Government fully complies with all of its international obligations under the 1951 United Nations Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and the European Convention on Human Rights. The Home Office assesses each asylum and human rights claim case carefully on its individual merits, taking full account of the latest available country information, case law and UNHCR Eligibility Guidelines for Assessing the Internal Protection Needs of Asylum Seekers. Individuals who face a risk of ill treatment, including torture, on return to Sri Lanka will be granted international protection, and would not be returned. The British Government is aware of cases of torture happens in Sri Lanka and we regularly raise it with the Sri Lankan authorities.</p> answering member constituency East Devon answering member printed Mr Hugo Swire question first answered 20/10/2014 15:27:01 answering member 1408 label Biography information for Lord Swire
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord