Asked by: Jeremy Corbyn (Independent - Islington North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps the UK government plans to take in relation to the needs of the 322 Myanmar university students who were arrested and imprisoned in Tamwe, Yangon.
Answered by Nigel Adams
The UK is clear that people's rights to freedom of expression and to protest must be respected. We have called on the military regime to release all those who have been detained arbitrarily and to respect the right to freedom of assembly. It is unacceptable that so many people have been detained, injured or killed in the struggle for democracy. The UK has already imposed sanctions on nine individuals for their role in serious human rights violations, including violating the right to liberty and security. We are determined to impose a cost on the Myanmar military and we are working with partners to ensure a strong and coordinated response, using all tools at our disposal.
Asked by: Jeremy Corbyn (Independent - Islington North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the (a) legal and (b) judicial costs to the UK have been of contesting the claim brought by Mauritius under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea to date; and what estimate he has made of future such costs.
Answered by James Duddridge
The legal costs in terms of Counsels’ fees incurred by the UK in defending the proceedings brought by Mauritius were £681,220. As the award has been handed down by the Arbitral Tribunal, we do not at this stage expect there to be any significant future legal costs.
The Tribunal has concluded that Mauritius and the UK should share the costs of the Tribunal in hearing this case. In that regard, the UK has made a payment of 1.3 million Euros (approximately £957,000). We will shortly be receiving a final note of fees of the Tribunal. We understand that it is likely that the UK’s payment exceeded the UK’s share of the Tribunal’s costs and that accordingly, a proportion of the UK’s payment will be remitted back. We therefore cannot at this stage give a final indication of the Tribunal’s total costs.
Asked by: Jeremy Corbyn (Independent - Islington North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what information his Department holds on whether the recent KPMG report is the first independent study there has been on the feasibility of resettlement in the British Indian Ocean Territory.
Answered by James Duddridge
Both the 2002 and the current feasibility studies of resettlement of the British Indian Ocean Territory involved external consultants. The scope and scale of the most recent study delivered by KPMG was much broader than the 2002 report.Asked by: Jeremy Corbyn (Independent - Islington North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make representations to the government of Bahrain concerning the cases of Nabeel Rajab and Hussain Jawad and other human rights activists charged with expression-related offences.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
I have raised Mr. Rajab’s case with senior representatives of the Government of Bahrain and encouraged the Bahraini authorities to ensure due process is followed and international norms of justice are upheld, including with regards to freedom of expression. The Government is also following Mr Jawad’s case closely. The British Embassy in Bahrain has raised the allegations of mistreatment made by Mr Jawad with the Ministry of Interior’s Ombudsman. I understand that Mr Jawad’s complaint has been referred to the Special Investigation Unit (SIU) and a criminal investigation is underway. The Ministry of Interior Special Investigation Unit is aware of the UK’s concerns about this case. British embassy officials have attended Mr Rajab and Mr Jawad’s court appearances.Asked by: Jeremy Corbyn (Independent - Islington North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of the communication to Bahrain by the UN Chair-Rapporteur of the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, Special Rapporteur on freedom of expression, Special Rapporteur on free assembly and Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders on 14 October 2014, expressing concerns about the trial of Mr Nabeel Rajab in Bahrain; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
I am aware that a number of UN rapporteurs wrote to the Government of Bahrain in October 2014 in relation to the arrest of Nabeel Rajab. I have raised Mr. Rajab’s case with senior representatives of the Government of Bahrain, and encouraged the Bahraini authorities to ensure due process is followed and international norms of justice are upheld, including with regards to freedom of expression. British embassy officials have attended Mr Rajab’s court appearances to underline the UK’s interest in his case and the UK Government will continue to monitor the situation closely.
Asked by: Jeremy Corbyn (Independent - Islington North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent reports he has received on the monitoring of human rights in Mexico; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Lord Swire
I would like to thank the hon. Member for his efforts to promote discussion of human rights in Mexico via the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Mexico and the All-Party Parliamentary Human Rights Group. The promotion and protection of human rights are a key priority for this Government and I receive regular reports from my officials on the human rights situation in Mexico, including the recent tragic events in Iguala and Tlatlaya. We maintain a regular dialogue with the Mexican government on human rights as part of our strong bilateral relationship. We also work with non-government organisations (NGOs) and human rights defenders both here and in Mexico on these issues.
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s human rights work in Mexico has focused on tackling impunity as a way of improving human rights across the country. These include projects to:
Asked by: Jeremy Corbyn (Independent - Islington North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he had on human rights in Mexico with President Peña Nieto during his visit to London in March 2015.
Answered by Lord Swire
The UK and Mexico share an excellent – and rapidly developing – bilateral relationship, which has been further strengthened by the State Visit of President Enrique Peña Nieto. As the Joint Declaration, signed on 4 march by the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond) and the Mexican Foreign Minister makes clear, finding ways to work together to improve the lives of people in both countries and to build respect for human rights is central to our bilateral relationship. During their meeting on Wednesday, the Prime Minister and President Pena Nieto discussed a wide range of issues, including on human rights and rule of law. They also agreed on the importance of accountability, transparency and open government. The President also held discussions with both the Deputy Prime Minster and the Leader of the Opposition.
Asked by: Jeremy Corbyn (Independent - Islington North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will raise the issue of human rights in Mexico at the current session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.
Answered by Lord Swire
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend, the Member for Aylesbury (Mr Lidington) to the House on 3 March, Official Report, column 803, in which he said "We have a strong relationship with Mexico. We use that to seek improvements to Mexico’s human rights record and to give Mexico practical help in trying to improve its judicial and police systems in particular".
UK priorities at the current session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva are: the renewal of UN mandates on Syria, Burma and Iran; increasing international attention on Libya, Ukraine and DPRK; responding to UN reports on Gaza and ISIL activity in Iraq; and thematic resolutions on Freedom of Religion or Belief, Combating Religious Intolerance and Privacy.
Asked by: Jeremy Corbyn (Independent - Islington North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to support cultural exchanges between artists and educators in the UK and their counterparts in Gaza.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
The British Council maintains a full-time office in Gaza, with a staff of three who are involved in supporting UK – Gaza interaction in the fields of culture and education. Access restrictions together with our current travel advice warning against travel to Gaza, makes this work hard. However, despite these difficulties, our ongoing commitment has recently yielded various training events for Gazan educators in the West Bank, and Gazan delegates attending the 2014 British Council regional workshop, on “Cultural Leadership and Innovation”, in Beruit.Asked by: Jeremy Corbyn (Independent - Islington North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, on how many occasions the UK Ambassador to Ethiopia has been afforded a consular visit to Mr Andargachew Tsige; and when it is intended that the next such visit will take place.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
Our Ambassador in Ethiopia has been granted consular access to Mr Andargachew Tsege on two occasions and Ministers have repeatedly raised this consular case with the Ethiopian Government. The UK government’s aim is to have regular and private consular access to Mr Tsege. This has not been forthcoming despite repeated requests. We will continue to urge the Government of Ethiopia to allow this, along with a guarantee that legal due process will be followed and confirmation that the death penalty imposed on him in absentia will not be carried out.