Asked by: Imran Hussain (Labour - Bradford East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had on the situation in South Sudan with member states of the African Union and representatives from the African Union.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
We regularly discuss South Sudan with senior African Union Commission (AUC) officials in Addis Ababa and Juba and raise it regularly with individual African Union Member States on a bilateral basis, including at the Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission Partners meeting in Kampala on 10 November. Most recently, our Ambassador to South Sudan met with the AU Special Representative for South Sudan in Juba on 20 November, while our Ambassador to Ethiopia and UK Permanent Representative to the African Union met the AUC Commissioner for Peace and Security on 21 October and raised South Sudan with him then.
Asked by: Imran Hussain (Labour - Bradford East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had on the withdrawal of Kenyan forces from the UN Mission in South Sudan with his counterparts in all the member states participating in that Mission.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
We are concerned that a number of Kenyan troops have already been withdrawn from the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS). The UK High Commissioner in Nairobi raised these concerns directly with the Kenyan Principal Secretary for Foreign Affairs on 8 November and emphasised the important role Kenya has to play in resolving the crisis in South Sudan and in providing security to ordinary South Sudanese through their participation in the peacekeeping force. The UK Special Representative for Sudan and South Sudan discussed this issue with regional partners on 10 November in Kampala and our Mission to the UN in New York has discussed this with other Security Council Members and troop contributing counties. We understand that UNMISS are now looking at contingency plans.
Asked by: Imran Hussain (Labour - Bradford East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what support the British High Commissions in India and Pakistan are providing to British citizens affected by the violence in Kashmir.
Answered by Alok Sharma - COP26 President (Cabinet Office)
The Foreign & Commonwealth Office encourages all British nationals to check the FCO's Travel Advice web pages before travelling. This highlights the current unrest in Indian-administered Kashmir. It explains that due to the accessibility and current unrest in the area, the level of consular assistance that the FCO can provide is extremely limited.
Asked by: Imran Hussain (Labour - Bradford East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he and his Department have had with the Indian government on recent violence in Kashmir.
Answered by Alok Sharma - COP26 President (Cabinet Office)
I remain very concerned by reports of violence and offer my condolences to the victims and their families. The United Kingdom abides by its commitments under international law and expects all countries to comply with their international legal obligations. Our High Commission in Delhi is monitoring the situation closely and we have changed our travel advice. The long standing position of the UK is that it is for India and Pakistan to find a lasting resolution to the situation in Kashmir, taking into account the wishes of the Kashmiri people. It is not for the UK to prescribe a solution or to act as a mediator.
Asked by: Imran Hussain (Labour - Bradford East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his (a) foreign counterparts and (b) cabinet colleagues on recent reports of border clashes between Ethiopia and Eritrea.
Answered by James Duddridge
We are concerned over recent reports of fighting between Ethiopian and Eritrean forces along the border near Tsorena. I made a statement on 16 June calling on both countries to exercise restraint and to adhere to the terms of the Algiers Agreement. We have also made clear to Ethiopia and Eritrea that they should engage in meaningful political discourse to seek a resolution to the ongoing border issues. Officials have discussed the clashes with our partners in Europe and at the UN, many of whom share our concerns and have made similar calls for restraint.
Asked by: Imran Hussain (Labour - Bradford East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what his policy is on the establishment of a UN Commission of Inquiry into human rights violations against Rohingya people in Burma.
Answered by Lord Swire
I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 12 November 2015 (PQ14884), which can be located at: http://www.parliament.uk/writtenanswers/.Asked by: Imran Hussain (Labour - Bradford East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the contribution of the Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the hon. Member for East Devon, of 22 October 2015, Official Report, column 1264, what training was provided to the election observers supported by Government funding referred to in that contribution.
Answered by Lord Swire
The United Kingdom funded the National Democratic Institute (NDI) in training and deploying some 5000 Burmese civil society observers throughout the country. These national observers were trained to evaluate the quality of the electoral process at polling stations and to rapidly report incidents on the day. The presence of national and international observers was a key part of the United Kingdom’s strategy for deterring fraud in Burma’s elections on 8 November.Asked by: Imran Hussain (Labour - Bradford East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent steps his Department has taken to raise the security, humanitarian access, freedom of movement and citizenship rights of ethnic groups with the Burmese government.
Answered by Lord Swire
The Government consistently raises concerns about the human rights situation in Burma, including for all ethnic groups, with the Burmese government. However, these are issues that particularly affect the Muslim Rohingya community in Rakhine State, who are subject to persecution and denied the most basic rights. I and other Ministers take every appropriate opportunity, both publicly and in private, to press the Burmese authorities to take urgent steps to address the desperate situation of the Rohingya. I did this with senior Burmese ministers during my visit to Burma in July, when I travelled to Rakhine State for the second time. Most recently, I raised the issue with the Burmese Foreign Minister, Wunna Maung Lwin, in September in New York. We will continue our efforts to address the serious, ongoing human rights violations against the Rohingya community, including with whoever forms the next Government of Burma.
Asked by: Imran Hussain (Labour - Bradford East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department plans to take to facilitate a transition in Burma from dictatorship to democracy.
Answered by Lord Swire
The United Kingdom has supported Burma’s reform process which started in 2011 and led to the parliamentary elections on 8 November. We have allocated around £25m over five years to strengthen democratic governance in Burma. This included support to the elections through the provision of technical advice to the Burmese election commission, voter education and monitoring and observation of the electoral process. While the elections were not perfect, they were largely peaceful, orderly and well–run on the day. We are monitoring closely the tabulation of the voting and the formation of the next government which will follow. We hope to continue our policy of engagement with the next Burmese government to continue to encourage Burma along its journey of democratic reform.
Asked by: Imran Hussain (Labour - Bradford East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of steps taken by (a) his Department and (b) the Burmese government to stop the use of child soldiers in that country.
Answered by Lord Swire
We welcomed the commitment the Burmese government made to ending the recruitment of child soldiers in signing the UN’s Action Plan in 2012. Since then Burma has made some progress, including the release of over 600 child soldiers and, in September, signing the Optional Protocol to the Convention on Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict. However, we are clear that more still needs to be done. Access to military units and non-state armed groups continues to be restricted, release of child soldiers has been limited, and while recruitment of children has slowed, it has not ceased entirely. We are also aware of reports that children continue to be arrested for “desertion”. I raised this issue with Minister of the President’s Office, U Aung Min, when I visited Burma in July and we will continue to do so with the Burmese authorities, including to press for swift implementation of the Optional Protocol.