Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department in response to the ongoing human rights abuses in Uganda.

The UK Government follows the human rights situation in Uganda closely. Human rights are universal and should apply equally to all people. We continue to call on Uganda to guarantee freedoms enshrined in the Ugandan Constitution. At the 43rd Human Rights Council on 19 June, the UK International Ambassador for Human Rights welcomed the agreement between the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Government of Uganda to renew the mandate of the UN Human Rights office in Kampala. At the UN Security Council on 13 October, we called on the Government of Uganda to ensure their upcoming elections are peaceful, free and fair as reports of shrinking democratic space are concerning. The British High Commissioner in Kampala has raised the importance of free and fair elections and respect for human rights in recent calls with senior Government Ministers. We will continue to monitor the situation.