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1151156

registered interest
date	21/10/2019
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: Minority Groups
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to provide training for Pakistani minority groups and non-governmental organisations on how to (1) organise, campaign and lobby for their rights, and (2) respond to the shrinking of civil society space in Pakistan; and how the persecution of Ahmadi and Christian minorities was raised during the visit to Pakistan by HRH the Duke of Cambridge.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL233
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/11/2019 answer text <p>The British Government provides training, workshops and seminars on Freedom of Religion or Belief in Pakistan, including to representatives of minority groups. These aim to increase awareness of rights and constitutional safeguards, and to strengthen connections between minority communities and local media. The British Government continues to support civil society and non-governmental organisations lobbying the Government of Pakistan to honour its international commitments. Department for International Development will work with local civil society organisations to promote respect, tolerance and inclusion of minorities and marginalised groups through its AAWAZ II programme.</p><p>While in Pakistan, Their Royal Highnesses the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge discussed interfaith harmony with faith leaders from across Pakistan’s various religious communities, including Christian, Hindu, Sikh, Shia and Sunni. Discussions focused on the challenges and opportunities present in promoting interfaith relations in Pakistan, as well as how faith representatives can work together to build acceptance and tolerance in Pakistani society. They also spent time with members of the Kalash community in the Bumburet Valley of Chitral.</p> answering member printed Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon question first answered 04/11/2019 16:33:46 answering member 4210 label Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1151160

registered interest
date	21/10/2019
answering body	Department for International Development
answering dept id	20
answering dept short name	International Development
answering dept sort name	International Development
hansard heading	Pakistan: Minority Groups
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to require organisations that receive UK aid funding for projects in Pakistan to hire at least 5 per cent of any in-country staff from minority communities.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL237
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/10/2019 answer text <p>We do not have any plans to require recruitment by quota for DFID funded programmes. People from minority communities may be reluctant to disclose their minority status, which makes it difficult to count and monitor against this metric. However, our programme documentation makes clear that we require our partners to avoid discriminatory practices in recruitment as well as take action on safeguarding.</p><p> </p><p>Our Aawaz programme has helped members of minority communities to challenge discrimination and its successor Aawaz 2 will continue this work.</p> answering member printed Baroness Sugg question first answered 30/10/2019 13:56:50 answering member 4584 label Biography information for Baroness Sugg
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1150609

registered interest
date	17/10/2019
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: Minority Groups
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 joint report by the APPG for the Pakistani Minorities and the APPG for International Freedom of Religion or Belief Religious minorities of Pakistan: report of a parliamentary visit, published on 9 September.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL185
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/10/2019 answer text <p>We remain concerned about continuing reports of discrimination against religious minorities in Pakistan. The Government strongly condemns the persecution of all minorities, including the targeting of innocent people based on their beliefs. We regularly raise our concerns about the use of the blasphemy laws with the Pakistani Government at a senior level. The British Government continues to urge Pakistan to honour its human rights obligations, including those related to religious minorities, and to uphold the rule of law.</p><p>​</p> answering member printed Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon question first answered 28/10/2019 12:49:09 answering member 4210 label Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1135688

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: Minority Groups
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government when they last raised the plight of minorities in Pakistan with the Secretary-General of the Commonwealth; what response they received; and whether they asked the Secretary-General to raise continued human rights violations with the government of Pakistan.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL16781
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/07/2019 answer text <p>We continue to be in close contact with the Commonwealth Secretariat on its support to member states to live up to the commitments to tolerance, to human rights, good governance and the rule of law set out in the Commonwealth Charter.</p><p>In addition, the British Government will continue to urge Pakistan to honour in practice its human rights obligations, including those related to religious minorities, and to uphold the rule of law.</p> answering member printed Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon question first answered 15/07/2019 14:38:46 answering member 4210 label Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1130584

registered interest
date	06/06/2019
answering body	Department for International Development
answering dept id	20
answering dept short name	International Development
answering dept sort name	International Development
hansard heading	Pakistan: Minority Groups
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what training they provide to (1) Pakistani minority groups, and (2) non-governmental organisations, on how to organise, campaign, and lobby for minority groups; and what steps they are taking in response to the restrictions of civil society space in Pakistan.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL16128
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/06/2019 answer text <p>The UK Government has consistently expressed our concern over the closure of civil society space in Pakistan at all levels of Government. Whilst we do not specifically train minority groups or non-governmental organisations on how to organise, campaign and lobby, we will continue to support civil society by lobbying the Government of Pakistan to pursue a fair and transparent process for INGO registration.</p> answering member printed Baroness Sugg question first answered 19/06/2019 11:28:04 answering member 4584 label Biography information for Baroness Sugg
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1124850

registered interest
date	07/05/2019
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: Minority Groups
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 letter sent by 50 members of the European Parliament to the Prime Minister of Pakistan on 30 April warning that continued violation of the UN Treaty on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights in respect of the treatment of Pakistan’s minorities may compel the EU Parliament to call on the European Commission to suspend all subsidies and trade preferences to Pakistan; and whether they are considering taking similar action.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL15525
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/05/2019 answer text <p>​We are aware of the open letter to Pakistan's Prime Minister, Imran Khan, in which EU Parliamentarians express concerns about the persecution of minorities and highlight the link to the Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+).</p><p>The British Government urges Pakistan to make human rights reforms in line with the relevant UN conventions, and to fully cooperate with the EU in the GSP+ process. I raised our concerns about Freedom of Religion or Belief and the protection of minority religious communities with Pakistan's Foreign Minister and Human Rights Minister during my visit to Pakistan in February 2019. At the UN Universal Periodic Review of Pakistan in November 2017, the UK pressed Pakistan to strengthen the protection of minorities and to explain the steps being taken to tackle the abuse of the blasphemy laws.</p> answering member printed Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon question first answered 17/05/2019 13:03:37 answering member 4210 label Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1109558

registered interest
date	03/04/2019
answering body	Department for International Development
answering dept id	20
answering dept short name	International Development
answering dept sort name	International Development
hansard heading	Pakistan: Minority Groups
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to reconsider their policy of disregarding the status of Pakistan’s minorities in determining and allocating development aid.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL15027
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/04/2019 answer text <p>UK aid prioritises support for the poorest and most excluded people and communities in Pakistan regardless of race, religion, social background or nationality. Our investment will not only assist Pakistan to become a more prosperous country that will help millions of its citizens living in poverty, but will also improve stability and security in Pakistan, the region, and beyond.</p> answering member printed Lord Bates question first answered 16/04/2019 13:54:05 answering member 1091 label Biography information for Lord Bates
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1019260

registered interest
date	03/12/2018
answering body	Department for International Development
answering dept id	20
answering dept short name	International Development
answering dept sort name	International Development
hansard heading	Pakistan: Minority Groups
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bates on 27 November (HL11514), whether they intend to collect disaggregated population data on minority groups in Pakistan to establish whether UK aid reaches those groups; when they last raised the issue of inclusion of minorities with the government of Pakistan; and what response, if any, they received.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL11949
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/12/2018 answer text <p>DFID has developed a data disaggregation action plan to help strengthen our understanding of whom and where people are, or are at risk of, being left behind and the analysis of why. The action plan sets out the initial practical steps that we will take to move the agenda forward within our own organisation and through the global system, focusing on four key levels of disaggregation - sex, age, disability status and geography. We have focused on these four in the first instance to reorient our approach and raise our ambition, which over time will ensure DFID is better equipped to disaggregate in a number of ways, including by minority group. DFID and FCO continue to raise the issue of human rights of minorities at the highest levels with the Government of Pakistan, including in our annual Bilateral Assistance Talks, advocating greater tolerance and action against abuses when they occur.</p> answering member printed Lord Bates question first answered 17/12/2018 16:03:37 answering member 1091 label Biography information for Lord Bates
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

993318

registered interest
date	22/10/2018
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: Minority Groups
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government how British (1) foreign policy, and (2) aid programmes support persecuted minorities in Pakistan
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL10846
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/11/2018 answer text <p>Promoting human rights, including freedom of religion or belief, is a fundamental part of the British Government's work, including in Pakistan.</p><p>We remain concerned by the treatment of minority communities, including religious minorities, in Pakistan.</p><p>We regularly raise our concerns about the protection of minority communities, including religious minorities, with the Pakistani Government at a senior level. The Prime Minister emphasised the importance of advancing the rights of minorities during her telephone call with Imran Khan in August following his election as Prime Minister of Pakistan. I raised our concerns about Freedom of Religion or Belief and the protection of minority religious communities with Pakistan's Human Rights Minister, Dr Shireen Mazari, in September 2018.</p><p>Under the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's Magna Carta Fund for Human Rights and Democracy, the UK has supported projects in Pakistan to promote greater tolerance and religious freedom.</p><p>We ensure that our development assistance, delivered through the Department for International Development (DFID), targets the poorest people in Pakistan regardless of race, religion, social background, or nationality. DFID Pakistan does not disaggregate results or budgets by religion.</p> answering member printed Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon question first answered 05/11/2018 16:06:39 answering member 4210 label Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

989316

registered interest
date	16/10/2018
answering body	Department for International Development
answering dept id	20
answering dept short name	International Development
answering dept sort name	International Development
hansard heading	Pakistan: Minority Groups
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what training programmes in Pakistan they support to help illiterate and impoverished members of minority communities to qualify for jobs.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL10710
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/10/2018 answer text <p>The Department for International Development’s Skills Development Programme funds the Punjab Skills Development Fund to provide technical and vocational skills training to poor and vulnerable Pakistanis, including those from minority communities, to help them to qualify for jobs or make self-employment more profitable. 178 training courses are currently being delivered on a range of subjects, for example on hospitality services, construction, manufacturing, and textile production.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Bates question first answered 26/10/2018 13:37:22 answering member 1091 label Biography information for Lord Bates
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool