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 his counterpart in Bangladesh on the upholding of (a) the right to life, (b) the right to a fair trial, (c) the right to freedom of expression and (d) other human rights since the death in custody of Bangladeshi writer and journalist Mushtaq Ahmed.

The UK government was very concerned to hear about the death in custody of Mushtaq Ahmed, who was being held under the Digital Security Act in Bangladesh. In a statement on 26 February, the British High Commissioner in Dhaka, alongside other local Ambassadors and High Commissioners, emphasised the importance of freedom of expression and called for a swift and transparent investigation into Mushtaq Ahmed's death. In a tweet on 27 February, the Minister of State for South Asia, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, also called for a full investigation.

Bangladesh remains a Human Rights Priority Country for the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. We continue to stress to the Government of Bangladesh, both in public and in private, the importance of respect for human rights and the rule of law. Lord Ahmad has raised concerns with the Foreign Minister, the State Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Bangladesh High Commissioner in London on several occasions.

We continue to urge the Government of Bangladesh to engage constructively with civil society and the media to ensure that legislation such as the Digital Security Act is implemented in accordance with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, as well as the Constitution of Bangladesh. We also regularly engage with the Government of Bangladesh on the full range of our human rights concerns, including the treatment of those in detention and the integrity and independence of the judicial process.