Asked by: Richard Burden (Labour - Birmingham, Northfield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of progress on Sri Lankan adherence to measures outlined in (a) Resolution 30/1 of the 30th Session of the UNHRC in 2015 and (b) Resolution 34/1 of the 34th Session of the UNHRC in 2017; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Mark Field
The UK continues to encourage and support Sri Lanka to deliver the commitments it made to the UN Human Rights Council through Resolutions 30/1 and 34/1. We firmly believe that this is the best framework for establishing truth and to achieve justice and lasting reconciliation.
The UK welcomed the Annual Report of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on 21 March 2018, which assessed progress made by the Sri Lankan government in the implementation of UN Human Rights Council Resolutions 30/1 and 34/1. This found that the Government of Sri Lanka had taken some steps to address human rights concerns and to introduce more democratic and accountable government. These steps included the return of some military-held civilian land, the establishment of an Office of Missing Persons and the ratification of the Convention on Enforced Disappearances.
However, as I made clear to Foreign Minister Marapana on my visit to Colombo in October 2018, more needs to be done. During my visit, I encouraged greater progress, in particular on national accountability and truth-seeking mechanisms, and the development of new counter-terrorism legislation in line with international human rights standards. I was pleased to see that, following my visit, the Sri Lankan Parliament had passed a bill to establish an Office of Reparations. I look forward to seeing this implemented in the near future.
I continued to press for progress with Sri Lankan Speaker Karu Jayasuriya in January, as the Minister for the Commonwealth and the UN, Lord Ahmad, did with Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera,
Asked by: Richard Burden (Labour - Birmingham, Northfield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Sri Lankan counterpart on the human rights of the Tamil community in that country.
Answered by Mark Field
The UK continues to encourage and support Sri Lanka to deliver the commitments it made to the UN Human Rights Council through Resolutions 30/1 and 34/1. We firmly believe that this is the best framework for establishing truth and to achieve justice and lasting reconciliation.
The UK welcomed the Annual Report of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on 21 March 2018, which assessed progress made by the Sri Lankan government in the implementation of UN Human Rights Council Resolutions 30/1 and 34/1. This found that the Government of Sri Lanka had taken some steps to address human rights concerns and to introduce more democratic and accountable government. These steps included the return of some military-held civilian land, the establishment of an Office of Missing Persons and the ratification of the Convention on Enforced Disappearances.
However, as I made clear to Foreign Minister Marapana on my visit to Colombo in October 2018, more needs to be done. During my visit, I encouraged greater progress, in particular on national accountability and truth-seeking mechanisms, and the development of new counter-terrorism legislation in line with international human rights standards. I was pleased to see that, following my visit, the Sri Lankan Parliament had passed a bill to establish an Office of Reparations. I look forward to seeing this implemented in the near future.
I continued to press for progress with Sri Lankan Speaker Karu Jayasuriya in January, as the Minister for the Commonwealth and the UN, Lord Ahmad, did with Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera,
Asked by: Richard Burden (Labour - Birmingham, Northfield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the human rights situation in North Korea; and what representations he has made and to whom on that subject.
Answered by Mark Field
The UK continues to have grave concerns over the human rights situation in North Korea. The Foreign Secretary made clear his strong concerns about freedoms in North Korea at the launch of the review into the Persecution of Christians across the Globe, on 30 January. The British Government raises its concerns over the human rights situation directly with the North Korean authorities and in multilateral fora including the UN Security Council, General Assembly and Human Rights Council. We urge North Korea to use its upcoming Universal Periodic Review in May as a moment to engage in meaningful dialogue on its human rights record.
Asked by: Richard Burden (Labour - Birmingham, Northfield)
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 effect on regional security of the Israeli Government's decision not to renew the mandate of the international observatory task force in Hebron; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Alistair Burt
While we have not made any assessment of this decision, our Ambassador to Israel raised our concerns over this issue with the Israeli authorities on 29 January.
Asked by: Richard Burden (Labour - Birmingham, Northfield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, further to the Answer of 5 June 2018 to Question HL8092, if he will make further representations to the Israeli authorities the concerns of the UK government regarding the threatened deportation of Omar Shakir, Israel and Palestine Director, Human Rights Watch.
Answered by Alistair Burt
It is ultimately up to Israel to determine its immigration policy. The UK's immigration policy is similarly protected. We last made representations to the Israeli authorities on this issue in May 2018.
Asked by: Richard Burden (Labour - Birmingham, Northfield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will list his Department's priorities for the United Nations Human Rights Council session in March 2019.
Answered by Mark Field
The Government's priority for all sessions of the UN Human Rights Council is to ensure that it holds those responsible for human rights violations and abuses to account, effectively addresses global threats to human rights, and strengthens protections for the future. At the 40th session, we envisage specific priorities will include the human rights situation in Syria, Sri Lanka, Burma, Iran, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Libya and South Sudan, and thematic priorities of media freedom, human rights defenders, and freedom of religion or belief.
Asked by: Richard Burden (Labour - Birmingham, Northfield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to the government of India on non-refoulement of Rohingya refugees.
Answered by Mark Field
The former Foreign Secretary raised the plight of Rohingya refugees with his Indian counterpart, the Minister for External Affairs in February 2018. Senior officials at the British High Commission in New Delhi continue to raise the Rohingya with the Indian Ministry for External Affairs, most recently in November 2018. We will continue to raise the issue of the Rohingya and call on India to support safe, voluntary and dignified returns, which respect the rights of Rohingya refugees.
Asked by: Richard Burden (Labour - Birmingham, Northfield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 19 December 2018 to Question 201109, whether he plans to make representations to his Israeli counterpart on allegations that Israeli security forces impersonated humanitarian workers while conducting a military operation inside the Gaza Strip in November 2018.
Answered by Alistair Burt
Whilst we do not have plans to raise these allegations, we routinely make clear to the Israeli authorities our concerns about their conduct of the occupation.
Asked by: Richard Burden (Labour - Birmingham, Northfield)
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 implications for the middle east peace process of recent trends in the level of incitement and intolerance in Israel towards Palestinians and Muslims; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Alistair Burt
We are gravely concerned by the ongoing and increasing violence in the West Bank. We condemn the recent terrorist attacks in the Old City of Jerusalem and in the West Bank. The continued incitement against Israel by Hamas and other actors is deeply concerning. The calls for the murder of Palestinian politicians are unacceptable. President Abbas and the Palestinian Authority have repeatedly demonstrated their commitment to non-violence and a negotiated two-state solution. We continue to urge the Israeli and Palestinian leadership to avoid engaging in, or encouraging, any type of action or language that makes it more difficult to achieve a culture of peaceful coexistence and a negotiated solution to the conflict.