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63100

registered interest
date	23/06/2014
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	Egypt
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will make representations to the government of Egypt about the protection of the rights of Al Jazeera journalists to a fair trial and to freedom of expression under international law.
tabling member printed	Lord Lester of Herne Hill
uin	HL509
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/07/2014 answer text <p>The British Government is appalled by the sentences given to Egyptian and international journalists in Cairo on 23 June, two of whom were British Nationals. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Rt. Hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), made a statement on 23 June expressing his concerns and urging the Egyptian government to demonstrate its commitment to freedom of expression by reviewing this case as a matter of urgency.</p><p>The Egyptian Ambassador, Ashraf el-Kholy, was summoned to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) on 23 June. FCO Political Director, Simon Gass, told the Egyptian Ambassador that the British Government was deeply concerned by the verdicts, along with the procedural shortcomings seen during the trials. There is provision for freedom of expression contained in the Egyptian constitution and he asked that the Egyptian authorities review the sentences against this standard.</p><p>The UK believes that a free and robust press is the bedrock of democracy and we will continue to raise this case with the Egyptian authorities.</p> answering member printed Baroness Warsi question first answered 01/07/2014 12:47:19 answering member 3839 label Biography information for Baroness Warsi
tabling member	2037 label Biography information for Lord Lester of Herne Hill

47399

registered interest
date	07/04/2014
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
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their evaluation of the situation in Venezuela as regards the rule of law, freedom of speech and the protection of human rights.
tabling member printed	Lord Lester of Herne Hill
uin	HL6631
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/04/2014 answer text <p>Anti-government protests have been taking place in Caracas and other cities in Venezuela since early February. Around 40 people have died, and over 500 injured. About half the victims are anti-government protestors and the rest pro-government supporters, security forces and bystanders. More than 2,000 people have been detained in relation to the protests, although most have been released on parole. <br><br>We are concerned by reports of excessive use of force in protests, and reports of armed groups using violence. We condemn all acts of violence and call on all sides to show restraint. It is important that the Venezuelan government respects the right to protest peacefully and freedom of speech, and ensures that those detained are afforded due process. We have called for all sides to avoid confrontation, reduce tensions and to create the right conditions for genuine dialogue to take place. <br><br>The Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Rt. Hon. Friend the Member for East Devon (Mr Swire), has written to the Venezuelan government emphasising the importance of respecting peaceful protest and the importance of dialogue taking place between the parties. He has offered the UK's assistance in the reconciliation process and asked to speak to his Venezuelan opposite number. Our Embassy in Caracas urges peaceful dialogue through its contacts with a range of actors in Venezuelan society.</p> answering member printed Baroness Warsi question first answered 23/04/2014 12:00:00 answering member 3839 label Biography information for Baroness Warsi
tabling member	2037 label Biography information for Lord Lester of Herne Hill

47400

registered interest
date	07/04/2014
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
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what were their reasons for intervening in proceedings in the United States Supreme Court regarding alleged liability by Shell and Rio Tinto for abuses of human rights in Nigeria and Papua New Guinea; and whether those companies requested Her Majesty's Government to intervene on their behalf.
tabling member printed	Lord Lester of Herne Hill
uin	HL6632
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/04/2014 answer text <p>The UK intervened in both these cases (Kiobel vs Royal Dutch Shell Petroleum and Rio Tinto v Sarei) to clarify our position on the proper limits of the extraterritorial application of US law. The amicus brief submitted by the UK was confined to our views on this point of international law, and did not take a position on the allegations made against the defendants in this case. The views expressed were consistent with long-standing UK policy.</p><p>The UK strongly supports the promotion of business and human rights and was the first country to produce a National Action Plan to implement the UN Guiding Principles. We have consistently made clear that we expect British companies to act in accordance with human rights wherever they operate, and that companies should not be able to act with impunity. States should enact domestic law to regulate the activity of businesses to ensure that they do not have a negative impact on human rights. We believe it appropriate and desirable for a State to provide remedies for human rights victims where human rights abuses are committed by their nationals (including corporate nationals) overseas.</p><p>Rio Tinto wrote to the British Government in November 2011 requesting that the Government intervene in their case in view of our stance on extraterritoriality. After considering the points of law that the case raised, we considered that submitting a brief would be appropriate. The Shell case was brought to our attention by a third party and again we objected because there was little, or no, connection between the corporate defendant and the US. Officials discussed the case with the company after we had made the decision to intervene. The Government initially submitted a brief in support of Shell in the Kiobel vs Royal Dutch Shell Petroleum case because we were not advised that a neutral brief was a possibility. As soon as we became aware, we replaced our original brief with a neutral brief, as the best way of representing our wider legal concerns without taking a position on the specific allegations in this case.</p> answering member printed Lord Wallace of Saltaire question first answered 25/04/2014 12:00:00 answering member 1816 label Biography information for Lord Wallace of Saltaire
tabling member	2037 label Biography information for Lord Lester of Herne Hill