Asked by: Lord Eames (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the statement of Mr Marzuki Darusman, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in North Korea, that the United Kingdom should consider implementation of all recommendations made by the United Nations Commission of Inquiry, whether there are any points within recommendations 1224 and 1225 that they consider do not apply to the United Kingdom.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
Para 1224 of the Report recommends that states and others should support the work of civil society organisations to improve the human rights situation in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), including efforts to document violations and to broadcast accessible information into each country. We have previously funded projects with South Korean non-governmental organisations related to documenting violations in the DPRK. We have also worked with international and domestic organisations within the DPRK to improve the treatment of disabled people. Our focus on direct engagement complements that of others, like the US, who support broadcasts into the DPRK.
The former Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, the right Hon. Baroness Warsi, stated during the debate on Human Rights in North Korea on 23 July (Official Report, columns GC460-464) the UK’s position on the recommendations for the UN Security Council (para 1225(a)) and our commitment to ensuring that the international community takes action in response to the Commission’s report (para 1225(f)). The recommendations in para 1225 (b) and (c) have been taken forward through the UN Human Rights Council and those in (d), (e) and (g) are primarily for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and the UN Secretariat. We are currently exploring the prospects for taking forward para 1225(h), which recommends forming a human rights contact group. Para 1225(i) relates to provision of humanitarian assistance. The UK does not have a bilateral aid programme in the DPRK, but agrees fully with points made in this recommendation about how such assistance should be provided.
Para 1225(j) recommends the convening of a high-level political conference to consider a final peaceful settlement to the Korean War. A comprehensive resolution of the situation on the Korean peninsula will require the DPRK to address the international community's legitimate security concerns.
Asked by: Lord Eames (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether any discussions have been held with the Ambassador of the Peoples' Republic of China concerning the findings of the United Nations Commission of Inquiry, especially on the issue of the forcible repatriation of North Korean refugees and the Peoples' Republic of China's obligation under the United Nations Convention relating to the status of refugees.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) officials raised concerns on the forcible repatriation of refugees with the Chinese Embassy in London on 13 August 2014. FCO officials also raised this issue and the findings of the UN Commission of Inquiry during the UK-China Human Rights Dialogue on 19-20 May 2014, which representatives from the Chinese Embassy in London attended. The Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for East Devon (Mr Swire), raised the issue with the Chinese Permanent Representative in Geneva on 18 June.
Asked by: Lord Eames (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have raised concerns with the Peoples' Republic of China concerning its compliance in the treatment of North Korean refugees within Chinese territory with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and the United Nations Convention against torture and other cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment or punishment.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
The Government regularly raises with China the treatment of North Korean refugees. We have made clear that people who have escaped from North Korea are entitled to protection under the International Convention relating to the Status of Refugees (1951) and the Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees (1967). We have also made clear that the Chinese government should allow people from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea safe passage to resettlement in third countries; and we encourage the Chinese government to work with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees to facilitate this. We expect China, like all countries, to comply fully with its obligations under international human rights conventions. The Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for East Devon (Mr Swire), raised these issues with the Chinese Permanent Representative in Geneva in June 2014.
Asked by: Lord Eames (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the reply by Baroness Warsi on 23 July (HL Deb, cols 460–4GC) to the debate on the Commission of Inquiry Report on human rights in North Korea, whether the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and British Embassy in Pyongyang use teaching programmes in North Korean universities and colleges and children's care homes to challenge the indoctrination of children that was documented in the Commission Report; and if so, how.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
The primary focus of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and British Council funded teacher training programme in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea is on training teachers of English, although the programme also includes an element of direct teaching to university and middle school students. The programme uses a mixture of standard British Council English language materials and materials developed together with DPRK teachers specifically for the North Korean context. This includes, for example, a module on English for International Law, based on texts from the UN including the UN Charter. The DPRK would not agree to any programme that explicitly challenged their ideology, but through the programme North Korean teachers and students develop a better understanding of the UK and its values. They also experience an approach to learning based on questioning and reaching individual conclusions, rather than dictation and rote learning.
While our Embassy in Pyongyang has funded some projects aimed at improving nutrition in children’s homes and childcare centres, we do not have any teaching programmes for these groups.
Asked by: Lord Eames (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the reply by Baroness Warsi on 23 July (HL Deb, cols 460–4GC) to the debate on the Commission of Inquiry Report on human rights in North Korea, what bilateral steps have been taken by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to end sexual violence in North Korea; whether experts from its Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative have entered into dialogue with the government of North Korea; and what assessment they have made of whether any projects explicitly designed to improve the rights of women in North Korean society have ever been implemented in North Korea.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
We have been clear with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) that we find its appalling human rights record unacceptable and have called on it to take action in response to all of the Commission of Inquiry’s findings, including those relating to sexual and gender-based violence. We have also worked with the South Korean based non-governmental organisation (NGO), Citizens Alliance (NKHR), to fund a project on North Korean refugees and women’s rights in the DPRK and to increase the NGO’s capability in this field. The report produced through this project was submitted to the Commission of Inquiry and formed part of the evidence for their report.
We do not have a full audit of projects undertaken by other Embassies, UN Agencies or NGOs. With regard to UK projects within the DPRK, it is only possible to undertake projects with a willing North Korean counterpart. We have not previously undertaken projects specifically designed to improve women’s rights or sexual and gender-based violence. To date experts from the Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative have not held discussions with the Government of DPRK. The DPRK recently accepted a number of recommendations from its 2009 Universal Periodic Review, including some that related to equality and women’s rights. This creates a potential opportunity for engagement. We are currently considering how we might exploit this most effectively.