Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his Pakistani counterpart on the persecution of religious minorities in that country.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The UK strongly condemns the violence faced by religious minorities in Pakistan. Protecting Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB), including for minority communities, remains a priority for the UK Government's human rights engagement in Pakistan. The Foreign Secretary raised the persecution of religious communities with Pakistan's Prime Minister, Anwaral Haq Kakar on 25 September. On 21 August, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, Minister for South Asia, wrote to Pakistan's caretaker Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani, urging the Government to ensure the safety of the Christian community following recent attacks in Jaranwala. He has since written again to the Foreign Minister following the shocking desecration of Ahmadi Mosques and graves in Punjab and Sindh. Lord Ahmad also condemned attacks against religious minorities in his meetings with Foreign Minister Jilani on 13 September, and Pakistani High Commissioner Mohammed Faisal on 6 September.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether the Foreign Secretary has made recent representations to the Government of Pakistan on protecting the human rights of minorities in that country.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK remains deeply concerned by the mistreatment and discrimination faced by marginalised religious communities in Pakistan. We regularly raise the issue at a senior level with the Pakistani Government. The former Foreign Secretary raised the persecution of religious communities with Prime Minister Kakar on 25 September. Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, Minister for South Asia, wrote to Foreign Minister Jilani on this issue on 21 August. Lord Ahmad also raised the desecration of Ahmadi Muslim graves and mosques in a meeting with Foreign Minister Jilani on 13 September and in a letter of 5 October.
Found: Treatment of Ahmadi Muslims in Pakistan 3 Commons Library Debate Pack , The Pakistani state requires
Mentions:
1: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (LAB - Slough) I have often spoken up about the human rights of minorities, and freedom of religious belief is something - Speech Link
2: Jim Shannon (DUP - Strangford) of Ahmadis in Pakistan is also unique, as the group is excluded from the protections other religious minorities - Speech Link
3: Martyn Day (SNP - Linlithgow and East Falkirk) country’s blasphemy laws are frequently misused to settle personal disputes and to target religious minorities - Speech Link
4: Catherine West (LAB - Hornsey and Wood Green) of religion, we have repeatedly raised concerns about blasphemy laws and the worrying situation for minorities - Speech Link
Mentions:
1: Jim Shannon (DUP - Strangford) Pakistani religious minorities face serious persecution, including forced conversions, child marriage - Speech Link
Mentions:
1: Baroness Thornton (LAB - Life peer) This is particularly so for women of Pakistani heritage. - Speech Link
2: Baroness Williams of Trafford (CON - Life peer) I will home in on Pakistani women in particular, who seem to have the worst effects of this—there are - Speech Link
3: Baroness Hussein-Ece (LDEM - Life peer) Given that over double the proportion of women from black and other ethnic minorities reported that they - Speech Link
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they have taken to measure and evaluate (1) the effectiveness, and (2) the impact of projects that monitor the evacuation of religious minorities from areas affected by religious persecution in Pakistan.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government strongly condemns the violence faced by religious minorities in Pakistan. I [Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, Minister for South Asia] condemned recent attacks against religious minorities in my meetings with Pakistan's caretaker Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani on 13 September, and Pakistani High Commissioner Mohammed Faisal on 6 September. UK aid in Pakistan continues to support projects promoting the rights of religious minorities. Our Aawaz II programme brings together community leaders and minority representatives to promote tolerance. The British High Commission recently attended the Aawaz Interfaith dialogue in Lahore, which convened key stakeholders from across Punjab following the attacks against Christians in Jaranwala. Our Hate Speech and Disinformation programme is working to protect marginalised communities from hate speech online.
Feb. 23 2010
Source Page: Estimating ethnic parity in Jobcentre Plus programmes: A quantitative analysis using the Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study (WPLS). 326 p.Found: However, Pakistani and Bangladeshi females on IS were less likely to be claiming bene˜ts than the
Found: We also urge the Pakistani authorities to ensure the safety of those released.