Asked by: Baroness Whitaker (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have received the report of the United Nations Secretary-General to the United Nations General Assembly on the implementation of its resolution calling on the United Kingdom to return the Chagos Islands to Mauritius by 22 November 2019; and if not, when they expect to receive it.
Answered by Baroness Sugg
The United Nations published the Secretary General's report on the 'Advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice on the legal consequences of the separation of the Chagos Archipelago from Mauritius in 1965' on 12 June. The UK government has issued a statement following the publication of this report. A copy of the statement can be found at gov.uk, United Nations Secretary General's report on the implementation of Resolution 73/295: UK statement.
Asked by: Baroness Whitaker (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the consistency with which the term “freedom of religion or belief” is used in their publications instead of “religious freedom”; and what steps they will take to ensure that only the term “freedom of religion or belief” is used.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The United Kingdom is committed to defending freedom of thought, conscience, religion or belief as set out in international law. We attach great importance to referring to 'Freedom of Religion or Belief' in publications, as we assess this best captures the freedom to have a faith, belief, or no belief at all. On occasion, the British Government has referred to 'religious freedom' as a short-hand, but we strive to ensure that 'Freedom of Religion or Belief' is referred as often as practicable, particularly in formal publications.
Asked by: Baroness Whitaker (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that Iran’s Baha'i minority are being prevented from obtaining identity cards under new rules, thereby depriving them of basic civil rights.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are aware of reports that Iran's Baha'i community are being prevented from obtaining identity cards under new rules, depriving them of accessing many basic services. We remain concerned about the continued harassment and mistreatment that the Baha'i and other minority religious groups face. We support the UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Iran's assessment that discrimination against the Baha'is in Iran is sanctioned by a lack of constitutional recognition. We regularly call upon Iran to cease harassment of all religious minorities and to fulfil its international and domestic obligations to protect freedom of religion or belief to all Iranians.
Asked by: Baroness Whitaker (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps the Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations in Geneva and Ambassador for Human Rights will take to promote the human rights of people who were evicted from the Chagos Islands between 1968 and 1973.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations in Geneva and Ambassador for Human Rights engages bilaterally with States to support the Permanent Representative in delivery of their human rights obligations and represents the Government's position in the Human Rights Council in Geneva.
The Government recognises that the manner of the removal of Chagossians from the British Indian Ocean Territory in the 1960s and 1970s was wrong. Substantial compensation (around £15.5 million in current prices) has been paid to Chagossians since that time. British courts and the European Court of Human Rights have confirmed that compensation has been paid in full and final settlement.
Asked by: Baroness Whitaker (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the communiqué from the government of Mauritius on 30 April that the UK’s actions over the Chagos Archipelago are “in flagrant disregard of the … conclusions of the International Court of Justice”; are “an affront to the rule of law”; and have perpetuated “a historically wrongful act vis-à-vis the forcibly evicted inhabitants of those islands.”
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer to the statement I made on 30 April 2019, Official Report, col HLWS1491. An International Court of Justice (ICJ) Advisory Opinion is advice provided to the United Nations General Assembly at its request; it is not a legally binding judgment. The Government respects the ICJ and has considered the content of the Opinion carefully, however, we do not share the Court's approach. This and former Governments have expressed sincere regret about the manner in which Chagossians were removed from the British Indian Ocean Territory in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
Asked by: Baroness Whitaker (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of Bulgaria about (1) the demolition of Roma homes in Voivodinovo and other places with no offer of new housing, and (2) the adequacy of roads, water, sewage systems, and rubbish collection in Roma settlements in Bulgaria.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Our Embassy in Sofia regularly engages with the Bulgarian government and local authorities setting out the economic and social benefits of Roma integration. It is active in promoting minority rights in Bulgaria, with our Ambassador playing a prominent role in the ‘Friends of Roma’ Ambassadors Group, which supports initiatives related to inclusion and education.
Asked by: Baroness Whitaker (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will make representations to the government of Pakistan to restore the right to travel of Gulalai Ismail who was arrested on her return to Pakistan.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are concerned by restrictions on freedom of expression, including the detention of human rights activists, in Pakistan. The freedom to hold and express views without censorship, intimidation or unnecessary restriction is a cornerstone of democracy. The arrest of Gulalai Ismail is a further worrying development against the backdrop of restrictions on fundamental rights in Pakistan.
We regularly raise at a senior level our concerns about the human rights situation with the Government of Pakistan, including on the freedom of expression. I discussed human rights in Pakistan with the Minister for Human Rights, Dr Shireen Mazari, in September 2018. The British Government continues to urge Pakistan to honour in full its human rights obligations.
Asked by: Baroness Whitaker (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, following the government of Ukraine's undertaking to respond by March 2018 to the UK's request for action to ensure that individuals from Ukraine's Roma community are afforded full and equal access to an education, fair treatment by law enforcement bodies and the judiciary, and a right to acquire a nationality, what response they have received from the government of Ukraine.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK raised the treatment of members of the Roma community during Ukraine's Universal Periodic Review at the United Nations in November 2017. In their response, Ukraine noted that it was implementing the 2013-20 Strategy for the Protection and Integration of the Roma National Minority into Ukrainian Society, including efforts to improve the documentation of the Roma population and school attendance of Roma children. The UK continues to engage with the Ukrainian authorities and non-governmental organisations on this issue.
Asked by: Baroness Whitaker (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 21 March (HL6185), whether they intend to make representations to the government of Israel to ensure that all school children are taught both Hebrew and Arabic.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We have no plans to raise this issue with the Israeli authorities.
Asked by: Baroness Whitaker (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of Israel regarding the restoration of Arabic as an official state language.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Arabic is an official language of the State of Israel.