Asked by: Madeleine Moon (Labour - Bridgend)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 25 March 2019 to Question 234859 on Sri Lanka: Water, what progress has been made by the Sri Lankan Government on determining whether the Chunnakam power plant was responsible for pollution in that area.
Answered by Mark Field
On 4 April 2019 the Supreme Court in Sri Lanka ordered the Northern Power Company, which operated a thermal power station in Chunnakam to allocate 20 million Sri Lanka Rupees to compensate residents affected by contamination of ground water and soil near the station. We understand that the plant is no longer functioning.
Asked by: Madeleine Moon (Labour - Bridgend)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 28 November 2018 to Question 194629, whether his Department plans to award a civilian service medal to UK citizens to the OSCE mission to Ukraine.
Answered by Alan Duncan
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office highly values the work of all UK citizens serving in the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) in Ukraine. There are no plans to introduce a specific OSCE SMM civilian service medal. We will continue to support our secondees with a package of benefits and remuneration that recognises their work for this important Mission.
Asked by: Madeleine Moon (Labour - Bridgend)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Chinese counterpart on upholding the human rights of Uighur Muslims in China; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Mark Field
We have serious concerns about the human rights situation in Xinjiang and the Chinese Government’s deepening crackdown; including credible reports of re-education camps and widespread surveillance and restrictions targeted at ethnic minorities.
During China’s Universal Periodic Review at the UN Human Rights Council on 6 November, the UK made a statement which described our concern about the treatment of ethnic minorities in China, including Uyghurs. We issued a specific recommendation, calling on China to implement the recommendations by the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination on Xinjiang, and to allow the UN to monitor the implementation. We also raised our concerns about Xinjiang in our Item 4 statement at the September UN Human Rights Council, and we supported the statement of 26 October by the European External Action Service highlighting concerns about Xinjiang.
I raised our concerns about Xinjiang with Vice Minister Guo Yezhou during my visit to China on 22 July 2018. The Foreign Secretary, Rt Hon Jeremy Hunt MP, also raised our concerns about the region with Chinese State Councillor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his visit to China on 30 July 2018.
Asked by: Madeleine Moon (Labour - Bridgend)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 28 November 2018 to Question 194629, what medals UK citizens who serve in OSCE missions are eligible to receive.
Answered by Alan Duncan
The Government supports recognition for UK civilians serving overseas, including via the OSCE Medal which is awarded annually to individuals who have made an outstanding contribution to the cause of security and cooperation in Europe. It is a civilian, not a military award.
Asked by: Madeleine Moon (Labour - Bridgend)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will recognise the contribution of UK citizens to the OSCE mission by awarding them the CSDP medal; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Alan Duncan
The Common Security and Defence Policy Service (CSDP) Medal is an international military decoration awarded to individuals who have served with CSDP missions. The Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine is a separate mission outside the scope of the CSDP. UK citizens who serve in OSCE missions are not therefore eligible for CSDP medals. We fully support our secondees to OSCE with a package of benefits and remuneration for their work, and we continue to consider other ways to recognise our secondees’ service to this important Mission.
Asked by: Madeleine Moon (Labour - Bridgend)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many UK citizens working for the OSCE’s mission to Ukraine are employed by (a) the Government, (b) a UK contractor and (c) the OSCE; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Alan Duncan
The UK currently provides 66 monitors to the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Special Monitoring Mission (SMM), the second largest cohort of any participating state. This includes the recent appointment of a UK secondee to the senior position of Deputy Chief Monitor. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office funds these secondee postings through the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF). Since the OSCE is an independent multilateral organisation, we are unable to provide details of other UK citizens who may be contracted or employed by the organisation in Ukraine.
Asked by: Madeleine Moon (Labour - Bridgend)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the average time spent in Ukraine was of UK representatives to the OSCE’s mission to that country.
Answered by Alan Duncan
Secondees are placed on contracts for one year which can be renewed on agreement, as the mandate for the mission is renewed by the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). While in Ukraine they work full time and are subject to OSCE staffing regulations. As the OSCE is an independent multilateral organisation, any UK secondees are working for the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission and are not formally representatives of the UK.
Asked by: Madeleine Moon (Labour - Bridgend)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether his Department is taking steps to recognise the contribution of UK citizens to the OSCE mission in Ukraine; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Alan Duncan
The UK is a long standing supporter of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and its Special Monitoring Mission. We fully support our secondees to the Mission and provide them with a package of benefits and remuneration for their work. This is in addition to the allowances they receive directly from the OSCE. This demonstrates both our commitment to the Mission and our recognition of the work of our secondees. We continue to consider other ways to recognise our secondees’ service to this important Mission.
Asked by: Madeleine Moon (Labour - Bridgend)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to (a) support and (b) protect human rights defenders in the UK’s human rights priority countries.
Answered by Mark Field
In November 2017 the then Foreign Secretary issued a revised version of the UK Guidelines on Working with Human Rights Defenders to the diplomatic network, giving it advice on how best to support human rights defenders. Depending on the local context, this might involve making public statements, attending trials, or working privately with the host government. In addition, posts in all Human Rights Priority Countries are required to have a Human Rights Strategy which includes working with human rights defenders. Funding for projects through the Magna Carta Fund further supports the work of the diplomatic network in supporting human rights defenders. Working at the multilateral level, in November 2017 we helped secure consensus on the UN General Assembly Resolution on Human Rights Defenders to support and protect human rights defenders.
Asked by: Madeleine Moon (Labour - Bridgend)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make representations to (a) Russia, (b) China, (c) Norway and (d) South Korea on establishing a Marine Protected Area in the Weddell Sea.
Answered by Alan Duncan
The Weddell Sea Marine Protected Area proposal is currently being finalised by those European Union Member States who are also Members of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR). International consultations are underway at official and technical levels with CCAMLR Members including those from Russia, China, Norway and the Republic of Korea. The final proposal will be submitted to CCAMLR in September, when we will work with other EU Members to consider the most appropriate level of lobbying to secure agreement for the proposal.