Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will campaign for the adoption of a resolution at the UN Human Rights Council’s 50th session that (1) extends the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Eritrea, (2) describes and condemns human rights violations in Eritrea, and (3) sets benchmarks for improvement.

Eritrea remains a Human Rights Priority Country for the UK. As in previous years, we will work with likeminded partners - particularly the EU as penholders of the resolution - to ensure the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Eritrea is extended at the upcoming 50th session of the Human Rights Council via a robust and credible resolution. We fully support the work of the Special Rapporteur and welcome both his report and his establishment of a set of human rights benchmarks for Eritrea to meet in order to show improvement.

At the Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur the UK urged Eritrea to prioritise National Service reform; release all those in arbitrary detention; guarantee freedom of religion or belief for all faiths; and protect freedom of expression. We also continue to call on the Government of Eritrea to 1) allow the Special Rapporteur to visit Eritrea and cooperate fully with his mandate, 2) engage and cooperate fully with the mandate of the International Commission of Human Rights Experts in Ethiopia, established by the Human Rights Council at the 33rd Special Session on 17 December 2021 to investigate human rights violations and abuses committed by all parties to the conflict in Ethiopia, and 3) engage constructively with the recommendations of the 3 November 2021 UN-Ethiopian Human Rights Commission joint investigation report.