Asked by: Hilary Benn (Labour - Leeds Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether the Gulf Strategy Fund supports any work in prisons in Saudi Arabia.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Gulf Strategy Fund does not support any work in prisons in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Asked by: Hilary Benn (Labour - Leeds Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent representations he has made to his counterpart in Pakistan on (a) the persecution of Ahmadi Muslims and (b) the alleged desecration of Ahmadi places of worship in that country.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
Protecting freedom of religion or belief for minority communities is central to the UK Government's human rights engagement in Pakistan. The Minister for Development raised the treatment of Ahmadi Muslims with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on 9 January. Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, the Minister for South Asia, also raised this issue with Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on 14 December, and with Ministry of Interior officials on 8 December. The British High Commission in Islamabad continues to engage at a senior level with government representatives and civil society; the High Commissioner raised the issue with Minister of State Hina Rabbani Khar on 4 January.
Asked by: Hilary Benn (Labour - Leeds Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the human rights situation in Somaliland.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The human rights situation in Somaliland deteriorated in 2022, in particular the curtailing of media freedoms, restrictions on the freedoms of assembly and expression and the use of disproportionate force and live fire to disperse protestors. We see the promotion of respect for human rights as essential to peace and stability. We will continue to monitor the human rights situation in Somaliland and to work with human rights defenders across Somaliland to use our collective voice to call for change.
Asked by: Hilary Benn (Labour - Leeds Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how much and what proportion of humanitarian aid to East Africa was spent on nutrition support in the 2021-22 financial year.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
In financial year 21/22 the UK spent £221 million on humanitarian aid in East Africa. This included the provision of specialist nutrition commodities and health care and sanitation activities - sectors which are integral to nutrition. Given the broad nature of our nutrition work we are not able to provide accurate information about the size and proportion of humanitarian aid to East Africa that was spent on nutrition support in the 2021-22 financial year.
Asked by: Hilary Benn (Labour - Leeds Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, which UK-funded aid programmes in East Africa have had reduced levels of funding since 2020.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
In 2020 total bilateral Overseas Development Aid spend in East Africa amounted to £1.058 billion. In 2021, this decreased to £608 million. Comparative figures for 2022 are not currently available and will be published in due course within the 2022 Statistics on International Development report. Details on the FCDO's overall programme spend by year and by country are published online on UKaid Development Tracker (https://devtracker.fcdo.gov.uk/).
Asked by: Hilary Benn (Labour - Leeds Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make representations to the Government of Israel on the threatened revocation of Salah Hammouri’s residency in Jerusalem.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We have called upon the Government of Israel to fully respect the fundamental rights and freedoms of human rights defenders and organisations, and to allow them to freely operate in Israel and Occupied Palestinian Territories.
Asked by: Hilary Benn (Labour - Leeds Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the welfare of Dawit Isaak and other journalists who were arrested in Eritrea in 2001.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
We are aware of the missing journalists, including the dual Swedish-Eritrean national Dawit Isaak, who disappeared in September 2001. Although there are no recent updates as to their current status and welfare, we frequently raise concerns about human rights with the Government of Eritrea. Eritrea consistently ranks towards the bottom of the World Press Freedom Index, with internal media operated by the state. Through our Embassy in Asmara and with international partners, we continue to call upon the Government of Eritrea to release all those who have been arbitrarily incarcerated for their freedom of expression, religious or political beliefs.
Asked by: Hilary Benn (Labour - Leeds Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations he has made to the Government of Iran on the arrest, detention, killing and sentencing to death of those people taking part in recent protests.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The execution of Mohsen Shekari was a tragedy. The use of the death penalty against protestors standing up for their basic human rights is morally abhorrent. The UK opposes the death penalty in all circumstances. On 8 December, the Foreign Secretary released a statement condemning the regime's action and summoned Iran's most senior diplomat to demand that Iran must halt all executions and end the violence against its own people. The UK will continue to hold Iran to account for its brutal crackdown of protests and refusal to respect the basic human rights of its citizens.
Asked by: Hilary Benn (Labour - Leeds Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department's policies of the reported detention of Harem Rafat Fatah in the Kurdish region of Iraq.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are aware of the reported detention of Harem Rafat Fatah in the Kurdish region of Iraq and have assessed that it does not imply changes to Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office policies. The UK is a vocal supporter of human rights in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. This includes supporting a timely investigation and a fair trial for all suspects. Where we have concerns about due process or human rights we raise these with senior members of the Kurdistan Regional Government.
Asked by: Hilary Benn (Labour - Leeds Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the humanitarian situation in Tigray.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The humanitarian situation in Tigray remains very serious. According to the UN, approximately 5.4 million people require life-saving aid and hundreds of thousands are on the brink of famine. The recent peace agreement between the Government of Ethiopia and the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) contained commitments to provide unfettered humanitarian access and the restoration of essential services. We welcome the early signs of progress, but humanitarian delivery needs to scale-up rapidly if it is to meet the desperate needs.