Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North and Cottingham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the Answer of 28 April 2022 to Question 160470, on Ethiopian Airlines: Accidents, whether she has had recent discussions with (a) her counterpart in the Ethiopian Government and (b) the Secretary of State for Transport on the release of the final air accident report for Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, which crashed on 10 March 2019.
Answered by Vicky Ford
Our thoughts remain with the victims and their families of this tragic accident, and I [Minister Ford] appreciate the distress caused by the ongoing delays. Officials at the British Embassy in Addis Ababa have been in contact with the Ethiopian Ministry of Transport and Air Accident Investigation Department to discuss the release of the final air accident report and will continue to lobby them for its immediate release. During our last contact we were informed that, whilst no date has yet been set for the report's release, it is currently being finalised and that it will be released as soon as possible. In line with their international obligations, the Ministry of Transport issued an interim statement ahead of the 3rd anniversary.
Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North and Cottingham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she has had recent discussions with her US counterpart on the reported Supreme Court opinion on overturning the Roe v Wade decision made by that court in 1973.
Answered by James Cleverly - Shadow Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government
This is a matter for the US courts and it would not be appropriate for a foreign government to lobby an independent court process. The UK supports women's reproductive rights globally, including the right to access safe and legal abortion.
Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North and Cottingham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department has taken to assist survivors of sexual violence allegedly carried out by Cameroonian Government forces or armed separatist groups in the Anglophone regions of Cameroon; and what steps her Department has taken to help ensure the perpetrators of those crimes are held to account.
Answered by Vicky Ford
We are appalled by reports of sexual and gender-based violence in the Anglophone regions of Cameroon by both armed separatists and the security forces. The Foreign Secretary has made sexual violence in conflict one of her top priorities. We are working to promote justice for survivors of sexual violence, to provide support to survivors and to prevent sexual violence from occurring.
The UK continues to call for a peaceful resolution to the crisis and for the violence to end. We work with international partners, including France and the United States, to raise the crisis in multilateral fora. At the UN Human Rights Council in March 2022, the UK called for impartial investigations to hold the perpetrators of human rights violations and abuses to account. We continue to raise human rights concerns with the Government of Cameroon.
Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North and Cottingham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if she or her officials have raised concerns with the Cameroonian Government about reports of sexual violence in the Anglophone regions of Cameroon, including rapes allegedly carried out during an attack involving Cameroonian Government soldiers on the village of Ebam in the South West region on 1 March 2020, as documented in a Human Rights Watch report of 26 February 2021.
Answered by Vicky Ford
We are appalled by reports of sexual and gender-based violence in the Anglophone regions of Cameroon by both armed separatists and the security forces. The Foreign Secretary has made sexual violence in conflict one of her top priorities. We are working to promote justice for survivors of sexual violence, to provide support to survivors and to prevent sexual violence from occurring.
The UK continues to call for a peaceful resolution to the crisis and for the violence to end. We work with international partners, including France and the United States, to raise the crisis in multilateral fora. At the UN Human Rights Council in March 2022, the UK called for impartial investigations to hold the perpetrators of human rights violations and abuses to account. We continue to raise human rights concerns with the Government of Cameroon.
Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North and Cottingham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the need for independent human rights monitoring in Cameroon, particularly in areas of on-going armed conflict.
Answered by Vicky Ford
Reports of human rights abuses and violations within Cameroon are disturbing. At the UN Human Rights Council in March 2022, the UK called for impartial investigations to hold the perpetrators of human rights violations and abuses to account.
We welcome that the findings from the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)'s visit to Cameroon in 2019 have finally been published. The recommendations on independent investigations into human rights violations, and ensuring access to healthcare are particularly important. We encourage the OHCHR and Government of Cameroon to continue their engagement to follow-up on their visit findings.
Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North and Cottingham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she has had recent discussions with the Ethiopian (a) Government and (b) Minister for Transport on the release of the final air accident report for Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, which crashed on 10 March 2019.
Answered by Vicky Ford
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North and Cottingham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 24 March 2022 to Question 143624, whether humanitarian aid shipped by volunteer organisations to (a) Ukraine and (b) surrounding countries can include torches, battery packs and power packs.
Answered by James Cleverly - Shadow Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government
Government guidance on what people can do to help can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/ukraine-what-you-can-do-to-help. Each volunteer organisation will have different criteria about what can be included in their aid.
UK funding will also help aid agencies respond to the deteriorating humanitarian situation, creating a lifeline to help Ukrainians access basic necessities. The UK has delivered generators to Ukraine to provide power including for hospitals and water treatment plants. In partnership with Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, on 29 March and 31 March we will deliver supplies from FCDO's humanitarian aid stocks - including blankets, kitchen sets, solar lanterns (which have the ability to charge mobile phones) and hygiene kits - to the UN Refugee Agency.
Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North and Cottingham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether UK humanitarian aid shipped to (a) Ukraine and (b) surrounding countries includes torches, battery packs and power packs.
Answered by James Cleverly - Shadow Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government
We have pledged £394 million of aid, which includes £220 million of humanitarian assistance. As part of this the UK has delivered more than 3.7 million medical items to the Government of Ukraine as well as thousands of blankets and hygiene kits to support displaced people in Moldova. UK funding will also help aid agencies respond to the deteriorating humanitarian situation, creating a lifeline to help Ukrainians access basic necessities.