Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what representations they plan to make, if any, to the government of Bahrain about the (1) imprisonment, and (2) prospects of release from imprisonment, of Dr Abduljalil al-Singace.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We continue to monitor and discuss the case of Dr Abduljalil al-Singace and others as necessary, with the Bahraini Government as well as with the oversight bodies.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether, in conducting Overseas, Security and Justice Assistance assessments for 2020-21 for programmes delivered under the Gulf Strategy Fund, they have sought an assurance from the government of Bahrain that the practise of the death penalty will no longer be carried out.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK's long-standing policy is to oppose the death penalty in all circumstances, in all countries, as a matter of principle, which we have made clear on a regular basis to the Government of Bahrain.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to implement the recommendations in the report by Human Rights Watch and the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy The Court is Satisfied with the Confession, published on 10 October, that they (1) urge the government of Bahrain to implement the report’s recommendations, (2) suspend funding, support, technical assistance and training for security services and the judiciary until Bahrain enacts and complies with the recommendations in the report, and (3) urge the government of Bahrain to halt all executions and investigate torture allegations and violations of the right to a fair trial.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK government uses a range of reports and analyses and is aware of these cases. The UK's long-standing policy is to oppose the death penalty in all circumstances, in all countries, as a matter of principle, which we have made clear on a regular basis to the Government of Bahrain.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report by Human Rights Watch and the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy The Court is Satisfied with the Confession, published on 10 October; and in particular its findings that (1) there are serious and persistent human rights violations in cases of eight death row inmates in Bahrain, and (2) beneficiaries of the Gulf Strategy Fund are associated with abuses.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK government uses a range of reports and analyses and is aware of these cases. The UK's long-standing policy is to oppose the death penalty in all circumstances, in all countries, as a matter of principle, which we have made clear on a regular basis to the Government of Bahrain.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, when were the last five occasions they raised the case of Mohammed Ramadhan with the government of Bahrain; what was the title of the UK representative who raised the case; and what was the title of the Bahraini representative or authority with whom the case was raised.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK's long-standing policy is to oppose the death penalty in all circumstances, in all countries, as a matter of principle, which we have made clear on a regular basis to the Government of Bahrain. This includes regarding the case of Mohammed Ramadhan and others.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to reports that (1) political prisoner Hussein Al-Saadi has been returned to Jau Prison in Bahrain despite suffering from heart problems and sickle cell disease, and (2) complaints made to Bahrain’s Ministry of Interior Ombudsman have not secured Al-Saadi adequate medical treatment, what urgent representations they will make to the government of Bahrain on this case.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Officials and ministers have regular discussions with senior Bahraini counterparts on human rights issues, including most recently during Lord Ahmad's meeting with the Bahraini Foreign Minister in New York. The Government of Bahrain has been clear that access to medical care for those in detention is guaranteed and provided. We welcome these assurances, urge continued transparency and encourage those with concerns to raise them with the appropriate Bahraini human rights oversight body.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to (1) the visit by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon to Bahrain in February, and (2) the comment by a Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office spokesperson to the Middle East Eye on 22 June which said that “a number of human rights cases were raised with senior members of the Bahrain Government by Lord Ahmad during his visit in February”, what were the names of individuals whose cases Lord Ahmad raised with the government of Bahrain during this visit.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
During my visit to Bahrain, I discussed human rights issues and the individual cases of Abduljalil Al Singace, Mohammed Ramadan and Hussain Moosa during my meetings with senior members of the Government of Bahrain, as well as with the independent human rights oversight bodies.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the comment by a Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) spokesperson to the Middle East Eye on 22 June which said that “a number of human rights cases were raised with senior members of the Bahrain Government by Lord Ahmad during his visit in February”, why the FCDO said that it does not hold any information about cases raised during Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon's February visit to Bahrain in response to Freedom of Information request FOI2022/13659.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I [Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon] discussed a number of human rights cases with senior members of the Bahrain Government and the oversight bodies during my visit in February, including the then Justice Minister, HE Shaikh Khalid bin Ali Al Khalifa, and Foreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani. More recently, I again raised human rights issues during a meeting with the Foreign Minister in London.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made, if any, to the government of Bahrain to ensure that prisoners receive treatment for tuberculosis; and what assessment they have made of reports that prisoners in that country have (1) not been tested for tuberculosis when displaying symptoms, and (2) been denied medical care for the disease.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Officials and ministers have regular discussions with senior Bahraini counterparts on human rights, including most recently when Minister Milling co-chaired the UK-Bahrain Joint Working Group with the Bahrain Foreign Minister on 16 June 2022.
The Government of Bahrain has been clear that access to medical care for those in detention is guaranteed. We welcome these assurances, and urge continued transparency and encourage those with concerns about treatment in detention to raise them with the appropriate Bahraini human rights oversight body.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by the Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) on 22 February (122816), what plans they have, if any, to respond to a letter by 27 human rights organisations on 17 January which called on them to help resolve the case of Dr Abduljalil Alsingrace who is detained in Bahrain.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Our apologies for the delay in responding to the letter in question, this was due to an administrative error. A response was issued on 22 June.