Asked by: Valerie Vaz (Labour - Walsall and Bloxwich)
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 Uganda on (a) the arrest of opposition party leaders, (b) alleged vote rigging and (c) the ensuing violence in that country.
Answered by James Duddridge
I spoke to Foreign Minister Sam Kutesa on 12 January, ahead of the elections in Uganda on 14 January, to express the importance of British officials being accredited as observers. We deployed 51 Election Observers across Uganda on election day we have been consulting with the diplomatic community, civil society actors, other international observers, and the Government of Uganda to ensure we have a comprehensive and accurate picture of the elections. We have urged the Government of Uganda to respond to the concerns raised on the overall political climate surrounding the elections, which I set out in my statement of 17 January. The treatment of opposition leader Robert Kyagulanyi is unacceptable and I publicly expressed my concerns about this in my tweet of 19 January. Our High Commissioner in Kampala pressed this issue with the Ugandan authorities and I welcome the High Court of Uganda's decision of 25 January that the detention of Robert Kyagulanyi was unconstitutional and unlawful and that these restrictions have been lifted. The British High Commission Kampala pressed the Ugandan authorities to end these unacceptable restrictions on his liberty. Our High Commissioner in Kampala continues to meet political actors from all parties and met Robert Kyagulanyi on 27 January 2021. The High Commissioner urged Kyagulanyi and all parties to reject violence, engage in peaceful dialogue and follow due process to address any electoral irregularities.
Asked by: Valerie Vaz (Labour - Walsall and Bloxwich)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether his Department has deprioritised any Statutory Instruments in relation to the UK leaving the EU; and if he will publish the criteria his Department uses to deprioritise those Instruments.
Answered by Alan Duncan
In preparation for no deal, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has laid Statutory Instruments (SIs) relating to sanctions, the Kimberley Process and the Overseas Territories, under the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act (2018) and EU Withdrawal Act (2018). On sanctions, the FCO decided to lay Regulations before exit for those regimes with particular UK interests and where the EU's designations might change after exit. It was decided that it was not necessary to have a full domestic SI in place for other regimes for exit day, because it was possible to rely on retained EU law for a period.
Asked by: Valerie Vaz (Labour - Walsall and Bloxwich)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the oral contribution by the Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office to the Foreign Affairs Committee on The future of the UK Overseas Territories on 18 December 2018, Q221, HC1464 and section 51(2) of the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018, on what date his Department will require the Governments of Overseas Territories to introduce publicly accessible registers of the beneficial ownership of companies within their jurisdictions; and whether that date is consistent with the 31 December 2020 target in section 51(2) of the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018.
Answered by Alan Duncan
The Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018 states that “the Secretary of State must no later than 31 December 2020, prepare a draft Order in Council requiring the government of any British Overseas Territory that has not introduced a publicly accessible register of the beneficial ownership of companies within its jurisdiction to do so”.
The UK Government will therefore prepare the draft legislation by this date, requiring an Overseas Territory that has not introduced a public register, to do so by December 2023. This is consistent with the both the Act and the Government’s call for all countries to make public registers the global norm by 2023.
Asked by: Valerie Vaz (Labour - Walsall and Bloxwich)
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 potential merits of establishing an independent international investigation into the human rights situation in Rakhine state, Burma.
Answered by Lord Sharma
We have repeatedly called for an independent investigation into human rights violations in Rakhine state. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has already issued a substantive report on the widespread and alarming level of human rights violations carried out by the military in Rakhine State since 9 October. The UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Burma also referred to them in her press briefing following her visit in January, and in her report released on 1 March.
With our international partners, we are currently negotiating a Resolution at the Human Rights Council in Geneva, where we are advocating for the renewal of the mandate of the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Burma. We are also seeking to establish a mechanism which has the support of both the Burmese authorities and the international community to establish the facts and help deliver accountability for the violations. I expressed my deep concern over the situation in Rakhine when I addressed the Human Rights Council on 28 February. I have also raised our concern directly with Burmese Ministers, most recently on 27 February with U Kyaw Tin, the Burmese Deputy Minister of State for Foreign Affairs.
We also fully support the Rakhine Advisory Commission led by former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan. I discussed with Mr Annan the Commission's interim recommendations published on 16 March. The Commission is mandated to provide advice on a long term solution to reconciling inter-communal strife in Rakhine and is due to present its final recommendations in the summer. The UK stands ready to provide any appropriate assistance to enable the Burmese authorities to implement its recommendations.
Asked by: Valerie Vaz (Labour - Walsall and Bloxwich)
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 international counterparts on an independent international investigation into the human rights situation in Rakhine state, Burma.
Answered by Lord Sharma
We have repeatedly called for an independent investigation into human rights violations in Rakhine state. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has already issued a substantive report on the widespread and alarming level of human rights violations carried out by the military in Rakhine State since 9 October. The UN Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Burma also referred to them in her press briefing following her visit in January, and in her report released on 1 March.
With our international partners, we are currently negotiating a Resolution at the Human Rights Council in Geneva, where we are advocating for the renewal of the mandate of the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Burma. We are also seeking to establish a mechanism which has the support of both the Burmese authorities and the international community to establish the facts and help deliver accountability for the violations. I expressed my deep concern over the situation in Rakhine when I addressed the Human Rights Council on 28 February. I have also raised our concern directly with Burmese Ministers, most recently on 27 February with U Kyaw Tin, the Burmese Deputy Minister of State for Foreign Affairs.
We also fully support the Rakhine Advisory Commission led by former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan. I discussed with Mr Annan the Commission's interim recommendations published on 16 March. The Commission is mandated to provide advice on a long term solution to reconciling inter-communal strife in Rakhine and is due to present its final recommendations in the summer. The UK stands ready to provide any appropriate assistance to enable the Burmese authorities to implement its recommendations.
Asked by: Valerie Vaz (Labour - Walsall and Bloxwich)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he has raised with Burma State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi (a) the banning of media from areas of Rakhine State, (b) government blocking of humanitarian aid to Rohingya in Rakhine State and (c) the sacking of Myanmar Times journalist Fiona MacGregor for reporting on the mass rape of ethnic Rohingya women.
Answered by Lord Sharma
We have raised the situation in Rakhine with the Government of Burma, including with State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi as well as the Ministers for Defence, Home Affairs, Border Affairs, Immigration, and Information.
The Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my noble Friend, the Rt Hon Baroness Anelay of St Johns, visited Burma from 9-12 November. She urged Burmese Government Ministers to resume immediate humanitarian access to the affected areas in Northern Rakhine and for a full and independent investigation into all reports of human rights violations. The Government of Burma has committed publicly to do so. We have also raised the importance of access and freedom for media personnel in Burma.
Asked by: Valerie Vaz (Labour - Walsall and Bloxwich)
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 the governments of (a) India and (b) Pakistan on the current situation in Kashmir.
Answered by Lord Sharma
The former Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for East Devon (Mr Swire) was deeply saddened by recent reports of unrest in Kashmir, and offered his condolences to the victims and their families. Our High Commission in Delhi is monitoring the situation closely and we have updated our travel advice. The Pakistani Foreign Secretary briefed our High Commissioner along with other P5 Ambassadors on Pakistan’s views on the current situation in Kashmir on 12 July.