| answer text |
<p>The UK has a long history of supporting Freedom of Religion or Belief for all
people. We stand up for everyone's right to practise or not practise a religion that
is in line with their conscience, wherever they are in the world.</p><p>We regularly
raise our concerns about Freedom of Religion or Belief with the Government of Pakistan
at a senior level. I raised the treatment of religious minority communities with Pakistan's
Federal Minister for Human Rights, Dr Shireen Mazari, during my visit to Islamabad
in February, and in subsequent telephone calls.</p><p>Under the Government's Magna
Carta Fund for Human Rights and Democracy, the UK has supported projects in Pakistan
to promote greater tolerance and religious freedom. In November 2018, the Government
announced a new £12 million fund to bolster the work of civil society and Non-Governmental
Organisations to promote respect, and the value of religious diversity and tolerance.</p><p>On
30 January 2019, the Foreign Secretary and the Rt Revd Philip Mounstephen, Bishop
of Truro, launched an Independent Review of Foreign and Commonwealth Office support
for persecuted Christians overseas. The Bishop submitted his interim report on 3 May;
he will submit his final report in the summer.</p>
|
|
