10 0 1 Foreign and Commonwealth Office 2015-03-26T12:53:42.33Z Baroness Anelay of St Johns false 2015-03-26 Biography information for Baroness Anelay of St Johns <p>We remain deeply concerned by the violent persecution of Christians and other religious minorities in Pakistan and continue to urge the Government of Pakistan to protect the human rights of all its citizens as laid down in the Pakistan Constitution and take concrete action to deliver on commitments to protect minorities.</p><p>On 15 March the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Bournemouth East (Mr Ellwood), joined our High Commissioner in Islamabad in condemning the most recent attack on Christians in Lahore. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), discussed Pakistan’s misuse of the blasphemy laws with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in November 2014. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office monitors religious freedom in Pakistan in its annual Human Rights report, published on 12 March.</p> Foreign and Commonwealth Office 2015-03-23 House of Lords Foreign and Commonwealth Office Lord Hylton 16 To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they plan to take to encourage the government of Pakistan to ensure the protection of Christian and other religious minorities in that country. Pakistan false 2 Biography information for Lord Hylton HL5923 false To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the freedom and safety of Christians to practise their religion in Pakistan; and when they next intend to raise this issue with the government of Pakistan. HL5793 2015-03-24T13:54:18.073Z Lord Allen of Kensington false 2015-03-24 Biography information for Lord Allen of Kensington We remain deeply concerned by the violent persecution of Christians and other religious minorities in Pakistan. On 15 March the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Bournemouth East (Mr Ellwood), joined our High Commissioner in Islamabad, in condemning the most recent attack on Christians in Lahore. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), discussed Pakistan’s misuse of the blasphemy laws with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in November 2014. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office monitors religious freedom in Pakistan in its annual Human Rights report, published last week. We continue to urge the government of Pakistan to protect the human rights of all its citizens as laid down in the Constitution and in accordance with international standards. Foreign and Commonwealth Office 2 2015-03-17 Biography information for Lord Patten Lord Patten Pakistan 16 Foreign and Commonwealth Office Foreign and Commonwealth Office 16 To ask Her Majesty’s Government what advice they give to United Kingdom citizens intending to visit Pakistan concerning freedom of worship, and whether it is safe to visit places of worship in Pakistan. Foreign and Commonwealth Office Foreign and Commonwealth Office false Lord Patten Pakistan Foreign and Commonwealth Office 2 2015-03-17 2015-03-24T13:53:47.937Z Baroness Anelay of St Johns false 2015-03-24 <p>Foreign and Commonwealth Office Travel Advice is comprehensive and is regularly updated. This advice includes: <br><br>“There is a high threat from terrorism, kidnap and sectarian violence throughout Pakistan. In the aftermath of an attack on a school in Peshawar in December 2014, there is a heightened threat of terrorist attacks, and kidnapping against western nationals in Pakistan. You should be particularly vigilant at this time and take appropriate security precautions. Security forces in Pakistan remain on high alert following recent attacks.....Be vigilant, keep a low profile and vary your routes and timings if you make any regular journeys. Public places and public gatherings are often targeted, including courts and government buildings, hotels, airports, markets, shopping malls, restaurants, educational institutions and religious shrines”.</p> HL5794 Foreign and Commonwealth Office Lord Judd Foreign and Commonwealth Office Foreign and Commonwealth Office Biography information for Lord Judd false To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the scale of the use and proposed use of the death penalty in Pakistan; and what representations they have made to the government of Pakistan in the context of both human rights and the fight against extremism. Pakistan 2 16 HL4303 2015-01-20 2015-01-28T14:16:00.033Z Baroness Anelay of St Johns false 2015-01-28 <p>We are concerned about the resumption of capital punishment in Pakistan for terrorism cases. Pakistan has over 8,000 prisoners on death row. It has been reported that 500 of these may be affected by this change but it is not clear if all of these prisoners face execution. It is our longstanding policy to oppose the death penalty in all circumstances as a matter of principle. We fully understand Pakistan’s resolve to protect society from terrorism but there is no conclusive evidence that capital punishment is an effective deterrent. The UK remains opposed to the death penalty in all cases and we have consistently pressed Pakistan on this issue.</p> Pakistan To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have made any representations to the government of Pakistan about the proposed resumption of the use of the death penalty in Pakistan; and what is their assessment of the use of the death penalty in Pakistan. 2015-01-21T14:31:52.453Z Baroness Anelay of St Johns false 2015-01-21 <p>We have consistently pressed the Government of Pakistan on the issue of the death penalty. It is our longstanding policy to oppose the death penalty in all circumstances as a matter of principle. We fully understand Pakistan’s resolve to protect society from terrorism but there is no conclusive evidence that capital punishment is an effective deterrent. The UK remains opposed to the death penalty in all cases.</p> Foreign and Commonwealth Office Lord Kilclooney HL4183 false 2015-01-15 Foreign and Commonwealth Office 2 16 Foreign and Commonwealth Office Biography information for Lord Kilclooney International Development 2014-12-18T12:43:53.247Z Baroness Northover false 2014-12-18 Biography information for Baroness Northover <p>DFID has strong monitoring and third party validation arrangements in place across our education programmes to ensure UK aid is not used in ways that promote prejudice and discrimination against religious or other minorities.</p><p> </p> International Development Department for International Development HL3602 Biography information for Lord Storey 2014-12-10 2 Pakistan 20 false To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they have given to ensuring that international aid for the purposes of education in Pakistan is not used to further the discrimination of minorities; and whether conditional aid programmes will be implemented in the region. Lord Storey 2014-12-05 Baroness Cox Foreign and Commonwealth Office Biography information for Baroness Cox 2014-12-16T14:35:27.127Z Baroness Anelay of St Johns false 2014-12-16 <p>We are aware of the role of Khatm-e-Nubuwwat in Pakistan and the support it provides to the prosecution team in the Asia Bibi case. We remain concerned about the case of Asia Bibi and the court’s decision to uphold the imposition of the death penalty for blasphemy. We hope the verdict will be overturned on appeal. We trust the courts in Pakistan will ensure a fair and swift hearing of her appeal in the Supreme Court.</p> 16 Pakistan 2 HL3460 Foreign and Commonwealth Office false To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the role and activities of Khatm-e-Nubuwwat and in particular its role in the prosecution in Pakistan of Mrs Asia Bibi on charges of blasphemy. Foreign and Commonwealth Office Foreign and Commonwealth Office To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the President of Pakistan and the Pakistan High Commissioner in London about the burning to death in Kot Radha Kishan of a Christian couple following allegations of blasphemy. 2014-11-17T16:27:57.82Z Baroness Anelay of St Johns false 2014-11-17 <p>We were shocked by this brutal killing and immediately issued a statement condemning this act. It is essential the authorities investigate these atrocious murders and bring those responsible to justice. We regularly raise the misuse of blasphemy laws with representatives of the Pakistani government. Most recently, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Bournemouth East (Mr Ellwood), raised this with the Pakistan High Commissioner on 28 October. We will continue to raise our concerns at the highest levels in Pakistan.</p> Lord Alton of Liverpool Foreign and Commonwealth Office 16 HL2746 2014-11-10 Pakistan false Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool 2 Foreign and Commonwealth Office 2014-10-22 Pakistan Lord Ahmed 16 Foreign and Commonwealth Office Foreign and Commonwealth Office false HL2307 Biography information for Lord Ahmed 2014-11-05T15:48:26.9643416Z Baroness Anelay of St Johns false 2014-11-05 <p>The Government of Pakistan has been carrying out a counter-terrorism operation in the tribal area of North Waziristan since 15 June. Its stated objective is to remove all militant groups and dismantle terrorist infrastructure.</p><p>It is for the Government of Pakistan to determine how to tackle the prolonged and deadly insurgency they face. The UK supports Pakistan as it tackles terrorism and violent extremism, and we will stand together to tackle terrorism and the extremism that sustains it. We expect all concerned to act in accordance with international law and take all feasible precautions to avoid civilian casualties.</p> To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have made any assessment of the efforts of the Pakistan security services in clearing the tribal areas of that country of Tehrik-e-Taliban in Pakistan and Al-Qaeda terrorists. Foreign and Commonwealth Office 2 Lord Patten Foreign and Commonwealth Office 2 HL2283 2014-11-04T17:14:45.380975Z Baroness Anelay of St Johns false 2014-11-04 We are concerned to hear that a Pakistan court has upheld the imposition of the death penalty in the case of Asia Bibi. We support the EU's recent statement of concern and hope that the verdict will be overturned on appeal. We regularly raise at the highest levels the misuse of blasphemy laws in Pakistan both against Muslims and against religious minorities. We have consistently pressed the Government of Pakistan on the issue of the death penalty and expressed our principled opposition to it in all cases. We will continue to raise these issues. Foreign and Commonwealth Office To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the position of Ms Asia Bibi, a Christian mother of four sentenced to death in Lahore under Pakistan's blasphemy laws; and whether they intend to make representations to the government of Pakistan. 2014-10-21 Pakistan false 16 Foreign and Commonwealth Office 68