Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether his Department is taking steps to support freedom of religion and belief in Nicaragua.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is committed to defending Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) for all. We share widespread international concern about the suppression of human rights in Nicaragua, including the right to freedom of religion or belief. In June 2023, the Prime Minister's Special Envoy, Fiona Bruce MP, in her capacity as Chair of the International Religious Freedom or Belief Alliance, issued an international statement condemning the continued persecution of the Catholic Church by the Nicaraguan Government. In my [Minister Rutley] tweet on 16 January, I welcomed the release of Bishop Álvarez and 18 other clergy from their unjust detention but condemned their expulsion from Nicaragua. The UK calls on President Ortega to fully respect the human rights of all citizens and to unconditionally release all political prisoners.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they last held discussions regarding the civil and democratic rights of Ahmadi citizens in Pakistan with (1) the government of Pakistan, and (2) with the Secretary General of the Commonwealth; and what responses they received.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
On 19 January, I raised the need for inclusivity in the upcoming elections with Pakistan's Caretaker Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani. On 25 September 2023, the former Foreign Secretary raised the importance of credible, inclusive, and timely elections with Pakistan's Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-haq Kakar. On 21 August, I wrote to Foreign Minister Jilani to raise concerns about the treatment of minority religious communities and underline the need to ensure all Pakistan's citizens, including Ahmadi Muslims, are able to exercise their democratic rights. There have been no recent discussions between HMG and the Secretary General of the Commonwealth on Ahmadi citizens in Pakistan. At CHOGM 2022 Commonwealth leaders endorsed specific language, proposed by the UK, that noted that freedom of religion or belief are cornerstones of democratic societies.
Asked by: Tim Loughton (Conservative - East Worthing and Shoreham)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many asylum applications were granted on the basis of the risk of persecution on religious grounds in each of the last five years.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
This information is not recorded in a reportable format.
Information regarding initial decisions on asylum applications, by outcome, is contained within the ASY_D02 tab of the Asylum applications, decisions and resettlement dataset: Immigration system statistics data tables - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
This does not include the grounds for granting leave to remain in the UK.
Asked by: Lord Patten (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the safety of UK citizens seeking to worship in Christian churches and Jewish synagogues in Turkey.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The FCDO routinely updates our travel advice, which provides guidance for British nationals on staying safe abroad, including in Turkey. Our travel advice notes that no travel can be guaranteed safe and in Turkey terrorists may target places visited by foreigners, including places of worship. The UK stands with Turkey against terrorism, and we welcome the Turkish authorities' swift response to security threats, such as the fatal shooting which took place at Santa Maria Church in Istanbul on 28 January. We support the rights of all minority groups in Turkey, including Christians and Jews.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Southwark (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have held with the government of Israel regarding the latter's plans to create a national park on the Mount of Olives; and what assessment they have made of the impact of these proposals on the Christian holy sites.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We recognise that Jerusalem holds particular significance for many groups around the globe, especially the three Abrahamic faiths of Christianity, Islam and Judaism. We are committed to the Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) for all and an advocate for the integrity of culturally important areas to be respected. A final determination of the status of Jerusalem should be sought as part of a negotiated settlement between Israelis and Palestinians. It must ensure Jerusalem is a shared capital of the Israeli and Palestinian states, with access and the religious rights of all peoples respected.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of Article 23 legislation in Hong Kong on religious freedom; and whether he plans to make representations to his counterpart in Hong Kong on that matter.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The proposed new Article 23 legislation needs to align with international standards and protect the rights promised to the people of Hong Kong. We will monitor the development of the legislation and continue to raise the erosion of rights and freedoms with the Hong Kong and Chinese authorities. The Foreign Secretary last did so with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on 5 December. The UK is committed to defending Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) globally. We continue to monitor FoRB in Hong Kong through our regular Six-monthly Reports to Parliament and interactions with local faith leaders. In our latest report, published on 19 September, we noted religious practice is generally not restricted in Hong Kong, with a variety of religious practices coexisting across the territory.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps his Department has taken to address the persecution of Buddhists in Tibet.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government consistently raises human rights issues with the Chinese authorities. The Foreign Secretary did so during his introductory call with China's Foreign Minister on 5 December 2023. We also regularly raise Tibet in multilateral fora, urging China to reverse its ongoing, serious, and systematic human rights violations. On 23 January at China's Universal Periodic Review at the UN Human Rights Council, the UK again called on China to cease human rights violations in Tibet. The British government works with international organisations and networks to promote and protect the freedom of religion or belief for all where it is threatened, including through the UN, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, the Council of Europe, and the International Religious Freedom or Belief Alliance.
Asked by: Carla Lockhart (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps the Government is taking to help promote freedom of religious belief in Yemen.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Promoting the right to Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) is a longstanding human rights priority for the UK. We regularly emphasise the importance of human rights, including FoRB, through our engagements with Governments and other key partners. We are also firmly committed to the protection of ethnic and religious minorities around the world, including in Yemen.
We continue to actively monitor the situation of the Baha'i, Muhamasheen, and Jewish communities, including through meeting with their representatives in the UK.
We urge the Houthis to cease their persecution, mistreatment and arbitrary detention of Yemenis detained for their beliefs.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he has made an assessment of the most significant factors affecting freedom of religion or belief under the (a) federal Government of Iraq and (b) Kurdistan Regional Government.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) is a longstanding priority for the UK and we are firmly committed to the protection of ethnic and religious minorities in Iraq, including the Kurdistan region. Lord (Tariq) Ahmad, Minister for the Middle East and North Africa, held a roundtable with religious leaders during his visit to Iraq in February 2023, in which he heard from them directly about factors affecting their communities, including militia presence, the legacy of conflict, exclusion and sectarianism and lack of legal protection. We frequently raise these with the Government of Iraq and Kurdistan Regional Government, calling for greater protection and deeper inclusion in national and local government.
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, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact for his policies of the recent Court of Justice of the European Union ruling on the prohibition of visible religious symbols in government offices within the European Union.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
We note the recent Court of Justice of the European Union (EU) ruling on the prohibition of visible religious symbols in government offices.
This case is a matter for the EU and its Member States. We will continue, as part of our wider work on freedom of religion or belief, to monitor the situation of religious or belief communities, including where applicable, as this relates to British citizens working in the EU.
The UK Government is committed to defending freedom of religion or belief for all, and promoting mutual respect, here in the UK and internationally. Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) is a longstanding human rights priority for the UK.