Show Search Form

Search Results

registered interest	true false
date	exactly: or between: and
answering body
answering dept id
answering dept short name
answering dept sort name
hansard heading
house id
legislature	pref label
question text
tabling member printed
uin
answer	is ministerial correction true false date of answer exactly: or between: and answer text answering member printed question first answered answering member label
tabling member	label

Search

1133029

	registered interest
	date	18/06/2019
	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	Sudan: EU Immigration
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government (1) whether the UK's financial contributions to the Khartoum Process have funded the Sudanese Rapid Support Forces, and (2) what assessment they have made of reports that the Rapid Support Forces sold migrants to Libyan human traffickers and abused migrants' fundamental human rights.
	tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
	uin	HL16447
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/07/2019 answer text <p>The purpose of the Khartoum Process is to facilitate an EU-Africa dialogue on managing migration, combatting organised immigration crime and addressing the effects of trafficking in the Horn and North Africa. It is called the Khartoum Process because the agreement was signed in Khartoum but it is not specific to Sudan. The UK's financial contributions to the Khartoum Process have not funded the Sudanese Rapid Support Forces. EU funded work on the Regional Operations Centre Khartoum is currently suspended.</p><p>The UK is aware of reports that the Sudanese Rapid Support Forces sold migrants to Libyan human traffickers and abused migrants' fundamental human rights, but is not able to verify their veracity. The British Government has been clear on the need to do more to break the business model of people smugglers, and is taking steps to try to improve the situation in Libya. This includes working with the Government of National Accord to build the capacity of their law enforcement agencies, and taking steps to tackle the organised crime groups who facilitate the travel from source countries to Europe and the United Kingdom. In June 2018, the UK co-designated UN sanctions against six Libyan and Eritrean traffickers along with France, the US, Germany and the Netherlands.</p> answering member printed Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon question first answered 02/07/2019 14:10:36 answering member 4210 label Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
	tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1131875

	registered interest
	date	12/06/2019
	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	Darfur: Human Rights
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports by Amnesty International stating that forces of the government of Sudan, including the Rapid Support Forces and allied militias, have continued to commit war crimes and other serious human rights violations in Darfur, including (1) the destruction of villages, (2) unlawful killings, and (3) sexual violence, in the last year.
	tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
	uin	HL16293
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/06/2019 answer text <p>We continue to support efforts to deliver long-term peace for the people in Darfur, including through development and humanitarian assistance. We condemn the recent looting of the UN mission's West Darfur Headquarters and call for all to respect humanitarian principles. We have been consistent in public and in private that there must be accountability for the crimes committed by members of the former regime. The UK strongly supports the mission of the International Criminal Court; due legal process must be followed.</p><p>On 6 June, the Minister of State for Africa summoned the Sudanese Ambassador to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to express our grave concerns at the use of all forms of violence, including sexual violence against civilians by the Sudanese authorities. The UK has called for the human rights of all Sudanese people to be respected, the resumption of the political process leading to an agreed peaceful transfer of power to a civilian-led government, as demanded by the Sudanese people.</p> answering member printed Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon question first answered 20/06/2019 12:39:38 answering member 4210 label Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
	tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1137361

	registered interest
	date	08/07/2019
	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	China: Muslims
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that Muslim children are being separated from their families, faith and language in schools in Xinjiang; and what representations they intend to make about such separations to the government of China.
	tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
	uin	HL16968
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/07/2019 answer text <p>We have serious concerns about the detention of more than a million Uyghurs, along with widespread surveillance and restrictions targeted at minorities. British diplomats in China visit Xinjiang every few months, in order to see at first-hand the situation there. They most recently visited in May 2019, and their observations have supported much of the recent open source reporting about the restrictions targeted at specific ethnic groups.</p><p>Ministers and senior officials frequently raise the human rights issues in the region with their Chinese counterparts, most recently in a public statement on 3 July at the 41st session of the UN Human Rights Council. The Foreign Secretary also highlighted our concerns with Chinese State Councillor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his most recent visit to China, in July 2018. Later that month, the Minister for Asia and the Pacific did the same with his Chinese counterpart Vice Minister Guo Yezhou. Additionally, our Embassy in Beijing regularly raises the treatment of Uyghurs in Xinjiang with the Chinese authorities.</p><p>Reports about forced separation of children add to the growing body of disturbing evidence highlighting the situation Uyghurs face in Xinjiang. We will continue to monitor the situation closely and raise our concerns with the Chinese government at all levels bilaterally and in appropriate UN fora, including the Human Rights Council.</p> answering member printed Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon question first answered 22/07/2019 12:51:42 answering member 4210 label Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
	tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1137362

	registered interest
	date	08/07/2019
	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	China: Detainees
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that in one township in Xinjiang more than 400 children have lost both of their parents to some form of internment in camps or prisons; and what assessment they have made of whether those internments are part of a campaign to systematically remove children from their roots and their family’s beliefs.
	tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
	uin	HL16969
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/07/2019 answer text <p>We have serious concerns about the detention of more than a million Uyghurs, along with widespread surveillance and restrictions targeted at minorities. British diplomats in China visit Xinjiang every few months, in order to see at first-hand the situation there. They most recently visited in May 2019, and their observations have supported much of the recent open source reporting about the restrictions targeted at specific ethnic groups.</p><p>Ministers and senior officials frequently raise the human rights issues in the region with their Chinese counterparts, most recently in a public statement on 3 July at the 41st session of the UN Human Rights Council. The Foreign Secretary also highlighted our concerns with Chinese State Councillor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his most recent visit to China, in July 2018. Later that month, the Minister for Asia and the Pacific did the same with his Chinese counterpart Vice Minister Guo Yezhou. Additionally, our Embassy in Beijing regularly raises the treatment of Uyghurs in Xinjiang with the Chinese authorities.</p><p>Reports about forced separation of children add to the growing body of disturbing evidence highlighting the situation Uyghurs face in Xinjiang. We will continue to monitor the situation closely and raise our concerns with the Chinese government at all levels bilaterally and in appropriate UN fora, including the Human Rights Council.</p> answering member printed Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon question first answered 22/07/2019 12:52:44 answering member 4210 label Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
	tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1130817

	registered interest
	date	10/06/2019
	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: Rohingya
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Emergency Response and Assessment Team has predicted that the repatriation of the Rohingya would be an easy process; what assessment they have made of the (1) dangers faced by, and (2) rights to full citizenship of, the Rohingya during their repatriation; and what steps are being taken to bring justice to those responsible for crimes against the Rohingya.
	tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
	uin	HL16184
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/06/2019 answer text <p>​We welcome ASEAN's engagement on this issue through their Humanitarian Assistance Centre. However, we remain deeply concerned that the conditions for safe, voluntary and dignified returns in line with UNHCR principles are not in place. The UK has been clear, as has the UN Security Council, that before repatriations start, Myanmar must create the conditions in Rakhine to allow the Rohingya to return safely, voluntarily and with dignity. Refugees must have full access and independent information about conditions in areas of return and arrangements for repatriation.</p><p>We have publicly called for the removal of restrictions that withhold citizenship from individuals who are not from a community recognised by the Myanmar authorities as a 'national race', such as the Rohingya. The UK has supported the recommendations of the Rakhine Advisory Commission's to reform the 1982 Citizenship Law and urges the Myanmar government to fully implement them.</p><p>The UK co-sponsored the resolution at the UN Human Rights Council which set up the Fact Finding Mission in March 2017. This has since found that there may be sufficient grounds for prosecuting senior Myanmar military officials for crimes against humanity. The UK also to secure a resolution which established a mechanism to collect and preserve evidence of atrocities for future prosecutions. We continue to press the Myanmar authorities to ensure its domestic accountability process is independent, credible and results in prosecutions.</p> answering member printed Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon question first answered 20/06/2019 11:50:12 answering member 4210 label Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
	tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1131877

	registered interest
	date	12/06/2019
	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	Sudan: Demonstrations
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that paramilitaries from the Rapid Support Forces in Sudan carried out more than 70 rapes during an attack on a protest camp in Khartoum; and what assistance they are providing to opposition groups in Sudan to ensure that evidence in relation to such reports is collected to enable those responsible to be brought to justice.
	tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
	uin	HL16295
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/06/2019 answer text <p>​On 6 June, the Minister of State for Africa summoned the Sudanese Ambassador to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to express our grave concerns at the use of all forms of violence, including sexual violence against civilians by the Sudanese authorities last week. We have been consistent in public and in private that there must be accountability for the crimes committed by members of the former regime. The UK strongly supports the mission of the International Criminal Court; due legal process must be followed.</p> answering member printed Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon question first answered 20/06/2019 12:43:01 answering member 4210 label Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
	tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1133030

	registered interest
	date	18/06/2019
	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	Horn of Africa: EU Immigration
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the UK's role in staffing the Regional Operation Centre in support of the Khartoum Process and AU Horn of Africa Initiative, in the light of reports that it shares intelligence with the Sudanese National Intelligence and Security Services which was involved in the violence in Khartoum on 3 June.
	tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
	uin	HL16448
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/07/2019 answer text <p>The UK does not have a direct role in staffing the Regional Operations Centre Khartoum (ROCK) project. Between February 2017 and March 2019 the UK funded directly one technical consultant to support the ROCK to reach its initial operating capacity. The UK contributes around 15% of the EU Trust Fund as a standard assessed contribution. That in turn, funds the ROCK, and we are part of the project’s Management Board, which will continue to scrutinise the ROCK’s operations. However, due to recent events in Sudan, EU funded work on the ROCK is suspended.</p> answering member printed Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon question first answered 02/07/2019 14:12:08 answering member 4210 label Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
	tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1131440

	registered interest
	date	11/06/2019
	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: Capital Punishment
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report by Transitional Justice Working Group’s Mapping the Fate of the Dead: Killings and Burials in North Korea, published in June, which identified 318 public execution sites in North Korea.
	tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
	uin	HL16234
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/06/2019 answer text <p>The report produced by the Transitional Justice Working Group is deeply troubling. While we have no means to verify its specific claims, many North Korean defectors have told consistent stories of having witnessed summary executions and extra-judicial killings, and have described this practice as widespread. We utterly condemn the use of summary executions.</p><p>We will continue to raise with North Korea our concerns over its arbitrary use of the death penalty and the wider human rights situation in the country, in international fora and through our Embassy in Pyongyang and the North Korean Embassy in London. Our long standing policy is to oppose the death penalty in all circumstances as a matter of principle, and we continue to be a strong supporter of the UN General Assembly Resolution for the moratorium on the use of the death penalty.</p> answering member printed Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon question first answered 20/06/2019 11:56:44 answering member 4210 label Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
	tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1135689

	registered interest
	date	01/07/2019
	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	Pakistan: Blasphemy
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the sentencing of Shagufta Kauser and her husband to death in Pakistan for alleged blasphemy; what assessment they have made of whether Shagufta Kauser is (1) from a Christian minority, and (2) illiterate; what representations they have made to the government of Pakistan on her behalf; what response they have received to these representations; and what estimate they have made of the number of people currently facing the death sentence in Pakistan for alleged blasphemy.
	tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
	uin	HL16782
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/07/2019 answer text <p>We continue to monitor the case of Shagufta Kauser and her husband Shafqat Emmanuel who were sentenced to death in April 2014. We understand that Shagufta Kauser is of the Christian faith and we are aware of media reports stating that she and her husband are both illiterate.</p><p>We regularly raise our concerns about the misuse of the blasphemy laws with the government of Pakistan at a senior level. The harsh penalties for blasphemy, including the death penalty, add to these concerns. We remain firmly opposed to the death penalty in all circumstances. We have repeatedly called upon the Government of Pakistan to end capital punishment and, as a minimum, commit to publicly renewing the previously imposed moratorium on the death penalty. Concerns about Freedom of Religion or Belief and the protection of minority religious communities were raised with Pakistan's Federal Minister for Human Rights, Dr Shireen Mazari, during a ministerial visit to Islamabad in February.</p><p>We do not hold figures for individuals on specific charges overseas. According to the US State Department 2018 Report on Freedom of Religion or Belief, at the time of publication, 77 individuals were imprisoned in Pakistan on blasphemy charges, 28 of whom had received death sentences.</p> answering member printed Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon question first answered 15/07/2019 14:41:26 answering member 4210 label Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
	tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1134670

	registered interest
	date	25/06/2019
	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	Eritrea: Health Centres
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to the letter of 20 June from Lord Alton of Liverpool to Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon and to the Minister of State for Africa about the enforced closure of Church-run health facilities in Eritrea; what assessment they have made of the effect of such closures on the health and well-being of the people of Eritrea; whether they have made representations to the government of Eritrea about those closures; and if so, what response they have received.
	tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
	uin	HL16637
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/07/2019 answer text <p>We can confirm that the letter of 20 June has been received and will be answered within 20 days in accordance with Cabinet Office Guidance.</p><p>Whilst the Eritrean Government has a good track record on the provision of basic healthcare, we do not believe that using the military to force closure, or take charge of health centres managed by the Catholic Church is proportionate. We have raised our concerns with the Eritrean Government, about the approach they are taking, and will continue to seek opportunities to engage on this issue and monitor the situation. As Eritrea is a priority country under the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's Annual Human Rights Reporting, we raise concerns about human rights in Eritrea regularly, both direct with the Government, – as the Minister of State for Africa did with the Eritrean Foreign Minister when she last saw him in September 2018 – and in international fora.</p> answering member printed Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon question first answered 04/07/2019 14:51:32 answering member 4210 label Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
	tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool