Asked by: Baroness Whitaker (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the extent to which online advertisements promote discrimination against Traveller communities; what plans they have to ensure that digital media platforms do not carry adverts that include such discrimination; and what steps they intend to take against individuals or organisations that place adverts that discriminate against Traveller communities.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The regulation of online advertising in the UK is led by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA). The ASA is responsible for the day-to-day enforcement of the UK Code for Non-broadcast Advertising and Direct & Promotional Marketing (the CAP Code).
Within the CAP code, section 4.1, covers rules around discrimination, stating that “particular care must be taken to avoid offence on the grounds of race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, disability or age.” Marketers should be particularly aware of their depictions of these characteristics, and ensure that their ads do not contain anything which may be likely to cause serious or widespread offence on any grounds.” More information can be found here: https://www.asa.org.uk/advice-online/offence-use-of-stereotypes.html
In investigating a possible breach of advertising rules, the ASA will use the CAP code to determine the course of action. If the advertisement is deemed to be offensive or discriminatory, the advertiser will be asked to take down the ad.
Asked by: Stephen Doughty (Labour (Co-op) - Cardiff South and Penarth)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what the UK Government's priorities are at the UN Human Rights Council over the next six months.
Answered by Nigel Adams
As set out in the Integrated Review, the UK will continue to play a leading international role in multilateral governance and use our diplomacy at the UN to defend universal human rights and promote women's economic empowerment. As such our priorities at the Human Rights Council are to continue to hold states that violate human rights to account, to promote girls' education and work to end violence against women and girls, defend freedom of religion or belief, support democratic values, and protect media freedom.
Asked by: Imran Ahmad Khan (Independent - Wakefield)
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 help support independent journalism in the Xinjiang province of China.
Answered by Nigel Adams
Alongside severe restrictions on religion and culture in Xinjiang, freedom of expression and of the media is severely curtailed. We continue to urge the Chinese authorities to allow journalists to practice their profession without fear or arrest, harassment or reprisal, and to end extensive censorship and control over the media and wider freedom of expression. The UK has repeatedly taken a leading international role in holding China to account, including by leading statements at the UN Human Rights Council in June and the UN Third Committee in October. At the time, the UK was the only country to have led a joint statement at the UN.
Asked by: Lord Blencathra (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the adoption of the resolution by the UN General Assembly (UNGA) Promotion of interreligious and intercultural dialogue, understanding and cooperation for peace (A/75/L.36/Rev.1), published 1 December, and (2) the reference by the Prime Minister of Pakistan, in his address relating to that resolution to the 75th Session of the UNGA on 25 September, to Islamophobic incidents in Europe of Muslims being targeted; and what assessment they have made of (a) that reference in view of Article 7 of the former version of that resolution (A/75/L.25), published on 4 December 2019, which “condemns any advocacy of religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence, whether it involves the use of print, audiovisual or electronic media, social media or any other means", and (a) whether that reference may be used to create an offence of blasphemy against Islam.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Promoting Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) for all, and promoting respect between different religious and non-religious communities is a longstanding priority for the UK Government. We believe that one of the most effective ways to tackle injustices and advocate for respect amongst different religious groups is to encourage countries to uphold their human rights obligations, particularly through international institutions such as the UN. While the UK supported the underlying theme of A/75/L.36/Rev.1 at the 75th Session of the UN General Assembly, Her Majesty's Government abstained in the voting on the resolution because there were elements of the text which the UK, along with others, were unable to support.
The UK's views on the Resolution are clear. While the UK and Pakistan do have differences in approach to FoRB and Freedom of Expression, the large bulk of operative paragraph 7 of the previous version of the Resolution is a verbatim copy of Article 20.2 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which the UK ratified in 1976. In the ongoing academic and legal debate about whether this reference can be used domestically to justify blasphemy legislation, the longstanding UK position is that this provision does not require that. We remain deeply concerned by the misuse of blasphemy laws. These laws generally limit Freedom of Expression and are only compatible with international human rights law in narrow circumstances. We regularly raise at a senior level the issue of blasphemy laws with the authorities in Pakistan and elsewhere. We believe that people must be allowed to discuss and debate issues freely, including exercising their right to Freedom of Expression, to invoke, peacefully, discussions about thought, conscience and religion.
Asked by: Imran Ahmad Khan (Independent - Wakefield)
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 help tackle Ahmadi persecution in Indonesia.
Answered by Nigel Adams
In October 2018 the Minister of State for South Asia visited Jakarta in his capacity as the Prime Minister's Special Envoy for Freedom of Religion and Belief (FORB). There he met representatives of the Ahmadi Muslim community to discuss minority rights, underlining the UK's close interest in their welfare and protection of their rights. HMG officials regularly discuss minority rights with senior members of all six official faiths in Indonesia and meet with leaders of the Ahmadi community, most recently in January this year.
Freedom of Religion and Belief is a core aspect of the Embassy's work under the Human Rights strand. In December 2019, the British Embassy ran a workshop on media freedom in Jakarta which included a discussion on how journalists can raise FORB issues to public attention. Embassy officials also regularly attend 'Friends of FORB' meetings with likeminded countries and organisations.
Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to reduce Islamophobic bullying and harassment on social media.
Answered by Luke Hall - Minister of State (Education)
Muslims in our country should be able to practise their faith in freedom.
We have some of the strongest legislation in the world to tackle hate crime and, where groups incite racial hatred or are engaged in racially or religiously motivated criminal activity, we would expect them to be prosecuted.
To strengthen this, we are working on the Online Harms policy. The online harms policy is focused on making the UK the safest place in the world to be online. Our approach to tackling online harms will support more users to participate in online discussions, by reducing the risk of bullying or being attacked on the basis of their identity (for example their gender, race, disability, sexuality, religion or age).
Asked by: Baroness Anelay of St Johns (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how they plan to mark International Freedom of Religion or Belief Day on 27 October.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Promoting the right to Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) for all is one of the UK's longstanding human rights priorities and we welcome the focus that this International Day brings on FoRB. Noting the COVID-19 pandemic, we have used our social media channels to mark this year's International FoRB day, underlining our commitment to FoRB for all. As Minister responsible for Human Rights, I also participated in an event on 27 October which focused on the linkage between the Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative and Freedom of Religion or Belief. We will continue to raise awareness of religious persecution and stand up for the rights of members of minority communities around the world.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they intend to have with the government of Nigeria about (1) the abduction of Ezra Bako, Miracle Saitu Danjuma, Favour Danjuma, Happiness Odoji, and Christiana Madugu, from a school in Kaduna, and (2) Christian churches being attacked in Nigeria; and what assessment they have made of the reasons for those occurrences.
Answered by Baroness Sugg
The UK Government condemns the reported attack on the village of Damba-Kasaya in Kaduna State and abduction of students and a teacher from the Prince Academy School. Attacks on schools and abductions of children are abhorrent and must stop. We call on the Nigerian Government to establish the full facts of the incident and to take urgent action. Our High Commission is following up urgently with the Nigerian authorities.
We also condemn attacks on places of worship. We are aware that churches have been targeted in incidents of intercommunal violence that predominantly occur in Nigeria's Middle Belt. We do not currently have sufficient information to establish the motives for the reported attack on the Baptist Church in Damba-Kasaya nor the identity of the perpetrators. We recognise that religious identity is often invoked in conflict, even where the root causes relate to other issues. Religious tensions are frequently stoked by the media and politicians, fueling reprisal attacks. The UK will continue to play a constructive role in calming these tensions and supporting solutions which meet the needs of all affected communities.
In North East Nigeria, churches have frequently been attacked by Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa. These groups target both Christians and Muslims who do not subscribe to their extremist views. We are committed to helping Nigeria tackle the terrorist threat. We provide a comprehensive package of security, humanitarian and stabilisation assistance to help tackle the threat and support affected communities. We are firmly committed to standing up for freedom of religion or belief around the world. People should be able to worship freely and in safety regardless of their religion.
Asked by: Taiwo Owatemi (Labour - Coventry North West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what diplomatic steps the UK Embassy in Poland is taking to help support human rights defenders in that country.
Answered by Wendy Morton
Our Embassy in Warsaw actively promotes human rights and helps prevent discrimination. It works closely with human rights defenders, including on media freedom, LGBT rights and freedom of religion or belief. The Embassy has established itself as one of the diplomatic missions in Warsaw that is most active on the LGBT agenda. During last year's Pride season, it brought the diplomatic community in Warsaw together to endorse a joint letter to the Polish Prime Minister expressing support for LGBT equality and respect for human rights. It works with NGOs such as the Campaign Against Homophobia and Polish Society for Anti-Discrimination Law on projects to improve the situation of LGBT people. The British Ambassador in Warsaw regularly meets Dr Adam Bodnar, Poland's Human Rights Commissioner; we will continue to work with NGOs through the Embassy and through international organisations, including the UN, OSCE, and the Council of Europe, to promote tolerance and non-discrimination.
Asked by: Lord Hylton (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made, and intend to make, to the government of China about upholding the "one country, two systems" principle, in respect of Macao, in particular regard to maintaining freedom of religion or belief and freedom of speech.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We have no specific plans to raise Macao with the Government of China, but will continue to raise a range of human rights issues with the Chinese authorities, including freedom of religion and belief, media freedom and freedom of speech more broadly. On 8 June and 28 July the Foreign Secretary set out our concerns about Hong Kong and Xinjiang to State Councillor/Minister for Foreign Affairs, Wang Yi.