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Falkland Islands
Mr. Keetch:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Governments of Uruguay and Brazil about their decision to withdraw diversion rights for RAF Tristars flying to the Falkland Islands; and if he will make a statement. [81869]
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Mr. Tony Lloyd:
There has been no withdrawal of diversion rights by the Governments of Uruguay or Brazil for RAF Tristars flying to the Falkland Islands.
Mr. Gordon Prentice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Government of Pakistan concerning reports of infringement of the rights of workers and trade unionists. [81857]
Mr. Fatchett:
We have noted the concerns expressed by the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions about the position of trade unions in Pakistan. In association with international labour organisations, we will continue to monitor carefully the rights of workers and trade unionists in Pakistan.
Mr. Gordon Prentice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Governments of India and Pakistan following the missile tests on 11 and 14 April; what progress he has made in persuading both Governments to sign up to the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty; and if he will make a statement. [81855]
Mr. Fatchett:
We have expressed regret that India and Pakistan have chosen to conduct missile tests and continue to believe that restraint in developing nuclear weapons and delivery systems is in both countries' long-term interests. We welcome positive indications by both India and Pakistan that they will sign the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty in time to allow entry into force by September this year.
Mr. Llew Smith:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on his policy on the public release of intelligence reports on atrocities committed by foreign Governments; and if information provided to the International War Crimes Tribunal in the Hague will be released to Parliament. [81942]
Mr. Tony Lloyd:
It is not the Government's practice to publish intelligence material. Given the exceptional circumstances in Kosovo, the decision was made to release classified information to the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, in order to assist the investigation. It would not be appropriate to make this classified information more widely available.
Mr. Mackinlay:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on political and diplomatic developments in relation to Iraq since 24 March. [82029]
Mr. Fatchett:
Three panels established by the Security Council issued their reports on 30 March. We have now tabled a draft Security Council resolution, with the Netherlands as co-sponsors, which attempts to translate the work of the panels into action.
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On disarmament, it would establish a new body, the UN Commission on Investigation, Inspection and Monitoring, to continue UNSCOM's efforts to answer outstanding disarmament questions, primarily through a reinforced monitoring and verification system as recommended by the panel. On the humanitarian side, our resolution draws together a range of measures which should make significant improvements to the humanitarian situation in Iraq, while remaining faithful to the Council's obligation to uphold its resolutions. Finally, the draft picks up the panel's recommendations on dealing with Iraq's continued failure to meet its obligations over Kuwaitis and others missing since 1991. Discussion of our draft continues in New York.
Dr. Marek:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make it his policy that opt-in proposals by Her Majesty's Government into parts of the Schengen Agreement will only be made on the basis that Gibraltar will also have the same opportunity. [82036]
Ms Quin:
At this stage, details of which aspects of the Schengen Agreement Gibraltar would wish to participate in are still under discussion with the Government of Gibraltar.
Dr. Marek:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs for what reasons the White Paper on Overseas Territories did not propose the granting of full British passports to those Chagossiens who had British citizenship before being resettled. [82035]
Mr. Tony Lloyd:
British citizenship did not come into being until 1 January 1983. The Ilois ( who were at that time citizens of the United Kingdom and Colonies) left the Territory 30 years ago. We have to deal with the situation now; the vast majority of the Ilois are citizens of other sovereign states, (either Mauritius or the Seychelles), in addition to holding British Dependent Territory citizenship, and have been for a generation. This is in contrast to other British Dependent Territories citizens who are solely British.
Mr. Viggers:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what advice he has received about the basis in international law for the military action by the United Kingdom and its NATO allies against Serbia. [82068]
Mr. Tony Lloyd:
The action being taken is an exceptional measure to halt an overwhelming humanitarian catastrophe.
Every means short of force was tried to avert this situation. In these circumstances, and as an exceptional measure on grounds of overwhelming humanitarian necessity, military intervention is legally justifiable under international law.
Mr. Wilkinson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he discussed with
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the Secretary of State of the United States of America United Kingdom support for the USA's draft resolution on China and Tibet at the 55 United Nations Commission on Human Rights. [82182]
Mr. Fatchett:
We remain in close contact with our main partners, including the United States, in furthering the common objective of achieving concrete improvements in the human rights situation in China. Along with our European Union partners, we voted against a Chinese no-action motion at the UNCHR on 23 April which sought to prevent a vote on the US-tabled resolution.
Mr. Wilkinson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on what grounds the United Kingdom decided at the General Affairs Council of the European Union not to co-sponsor a joint resolution with its partners on Chinese suppression of human rights in Tibet for the 55 United Nations Commission on Human Rights. [82181]
Mr. Stevenson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) for what reasons he did not table or co-sponsor during the recent General Affairs Council of the European Union a resolution on human rights in China for the 55 UN Commission for Human Rights; and if he will make a statement; [82147]
Mr. Fatchett:
We believe, as do our European Union partners, that continued dialogue and co-operation with China on human rights is more likely to bring about concrete improvement than repeated UN resolutions, all of which have failed to be adopted in the past. This dialogue-based approach has made limited progress in some areas and we will be pressing China for further concrete steps. The General Affairs Council therefore decided on 22 March not to table or co-sponsor a resolution on China at this year's Commission on Human Rights.
Dr. Kumar:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will publish the (a) date of advertisement, (b) closing date of applications, (c) the names of (i) short-listed and (ii) all other candidates, (d) the interview date of candidates and (e) the date of appointment for the post of the Deputy Commissioner of the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police. [81852]
Mr. Foulkes:
I have been asked to reply.
The post was advertised in the Police Review on Friday 6 November 1998. The closing date for applications was Friday 4 December 1998. As regards the names of candidates, all applications to the Department for International Development (DFID) are treated in confidence and therefore we should not disclose these details. Of the 17 people who responded to the advertisement, only 4 formally applied for the appointment. Three of these 4 applicants were short-listed for interview. Candidates for this and another police post in the Turks and Caicos Islands were interviewed on Monday 18 and Tuesday 19 January. Robert Turnbull was
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interviewed on Tuesday 19 January. Mr. Turnbull was informed that he had been selected for the position on 3 February 1999, and his contract with DFID commenced on 20 March 1999.
(2) if he intends to support the draft resolution on China and Tibet tabled by the United States at the 55 UNCHR; [82146]
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