Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their position on establishing an ad hoc tribunal for Da'esh to ensure that its members are prosecuted for their involvement in international crimes, including genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The UK is committed to ensuring that those responsible for the commission of serious international crimes do not go unpunished. Universal jurisdiction has been adopted in the case of certain heinous crimes to accord with customary international law and the UK's international obligations set out in various treaties. The UK is committed to helping countries to prosecute offences that take place on their territory or within their jurisdiction, including the investigation and prosecution of crimes of universal jurisdiction. The UK has arrangements to provide mutual legal assistance to other countries and permits the surrender of its own nationals subject to statutory safeguards.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their response to the House of Commons Resolution passed in April 2021 that Uyghurs and other ethnic and religious minorities in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region are suffering Crimes Against Humanity and Genocide.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
It is the long-standing policy of the British Government that any judgment as to whether crimes against humanity or genocide has occurred is a matter for a competent national or international court, rather than for governments or non-judicial bodies. It should be decided after consideration of all the evidence available in the context of a credible judicial process. Regardless of any court's decision, this Government will stand firm on human rights, including China's repression of Uyghurs and others in Xinjiang.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they are planning to review the approaches taken to address the involvement of UK citizens and residents in the Yazidi genocide; and whether they are initiating and pursuing judicial proceedings for genocide, crimes against humanity, or war crimes inflicted on the Yazidi people.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
In August 2023, the UK Government announced that it acknowledges acts of genocide were committed by Daesh against the Yazidis. This sends a strong signal of the UK's commitment of support to Yazidi communities and has been welcomed by Yazidi people, including the Yazidi Prince, Kurdish Regional Government Prime Minister Barzani, and British Parliamentarians. The UK is committed to ensuring that those responsible for the commission of serious international crimes do not go unpunished. Universal jurisdiction has been adopted in the case of certain heinous crimes to accord with customary international law and to comply with the UK's international obligations as set out in various treaties. These include the Geneva Conventions and the Convention Against Torture. The UK is committed to help other countries to prosecute offences that take place on their territory or within their jurisdiction, including the investigation and prosecution of crimes to which universal jurisdiction may apply. Hence, the UK has arrangements to provide mutual legal assistance to other countries and permits the surrender of its own nationals subject to statutory safeguards.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they are planning to introduce legislation to amend the International Criminal Court Act 2001 to enable UK courts to prosecute non-citizens and non-residents for crimes against humanity, war crimes or genocide in Ukraine.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The UK legal system is built on the tradition that, as a general rule, the authorities of the State in whose territory an offence is committed are best placed to prosecute the crime. However, universal jurisdiction applies to torture and other grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions. It is a decision for the independent prosecuting authorities whether to prosecute such an offence. The UK remains committed to holding perpetrators of war crimes in Ukraine to account, including through our support to the International Criminal Court. We have also delivered a £6.2 million package to support Ukraine's domestic investigations and prosecutions.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination's statement entitled Gaza Strip: States are obliged to prevent crimes against humanity and genocide, published 21 December 2023.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
The Government is aware of the report. The UK continues to call for International Humanitarian Law to be respected by Israel in their actions in Gaza and for civilians to be protected. Israel plans to act within IHL and has the ability to do so, but we are also deeply concerned about the impact on the civilian population in Gaza. We regularly review advice about Israel's capability and commitment to IHL. We act consistent with that advice, for example when considering export licenses. Too many civilians have been killed and we want to see Israel take greater care to limit its operations to military targets and avoid harming civilians and destroying homes.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool Walton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether the Government has sought legal advice on its responsibilities under the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
The UK acceded to the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in 1970. The Convention provides that genocide, whether committed in time of peace or war, is a crime under international law. Whether or not a determination of genocide is made, the UK is committed to work aimed at preventing and responding to atrocity crimes (genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and ethnic cleansing) and utilises all appropriate levers to do so, including early warning and monitoring, diplomatic and multilateral engagement, development and programmatic support, and defence and law enforcement capabilities.
Asked by: Baroness Brown of Silvertown (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the adequacy of the International Criminal Court's resources for (a) investigations of potential genocide, war crimes and or crimes against humanity in Darfur in 2023 and (b) other investigations in the (i) 2023, (ii) 2024 and (iii) 2025 financial year.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
We condemn the direct targeting of civilians and violence against specific groups in Darfur. On 13 July, the UK expressed its apprehension at the UN Security Council meeting regarding the International Criminal Court's (ICC) investigation on Sudan and the trajectory of the conflict in Darfur. We welcomed the ICC Prosecutor's statement that current events in Darfur are in the purview of the Court. On 9 August, at the UK's request, an open briefing on the situation in Sudan was held at the UN Security Council. The UK joined Council members in expressing our apprehension at the deteriorating humanitarian situation and called for an immediate end to hostilities. We will continue to raise human rights violations in international fora. No direct assessment have been made over the adequacy of the ICC's resources. The UK have been a consistent funder of the ICC.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Coventry (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking (1) to identify the presence of alleged Rwandan war criminals in the UK, and (2) to prosecute those who participated in the 1994 Rwandan genocide.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Shadow Minister (Business and Trade)
If a UK resident has been responsible for core international crimes anywhere in the world, they may be investigated and prosecuted in the UK.
The Metropolitan Police has national responsibility for carrying out UK police inquiries for the investigation of all allegations of war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide and torture. The Home Office do not hold information as to when any police investigations are likely to conclude.
All allegations of war crimes referred to the War Crimes Team are considered, assessed and dealt with in line with the War Crimes and Crimes Against Humanity referral guidelines, which are jointly agreed with the Crown Prosecution Service CPS - https://www.cps.gov.uk/publication/war-crimescrimes-against-humanity-referral-guidelines
Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what consultation his Department undertook when drafting amendments to the proposed Convention on International Cooperation in the Investigation and Prosecution of the Crime of Genocide, Crimes Against Humanity, War Crimes and other International Crimes.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office coordinated and agreed UK negotiating positions with other government departments in advance of and during the negotiations on the Ljubljana-The Hague Convention. UK negotiators also consulted widely during the Diplomatic Conference with delegations from other participating States and observers, including civil society representatives. Following the negotiations, the Convention was adopted by consensus on 26 May.
Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that amendments proposed by the Government to the Convention on International Cooperation in the Investigation and Prosecution of Genocide, Crimes against Humanity, War Crimes and Other International Crimes are compatible with the Convention Against Torture.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
The Diplomatic Conference for the Adoption of the Convention on International Cooperation in the Investigation and Prosecution of the Crime of Genocide, Crimes Against Humanity, War Crimes and other International Crimes (now known as the Ljubljana-The Hague Convention) was held in Slovenia from 15-26 May. All of the 53 States which participated in the Conference are party to the UN Convention Against Torture. The Ljubljana-The Hague Convention was adopted by consensus on 26 May.