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Colombia
Dr. Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has received concerning the development of the Urra Dam in Colombia. [99253]
Mr. Battle: We received written representations on the Urra Dam project in January and February 1999. Officials in the British Embassy in Bogota are aware of the background to the project and are monitoring developments closely.
Officials in the British Embassy in Bogota discussed this project with the Colombian authorities and an NGO representing the Embera-Katio Indians earlier this year, we have asked them to report on the latest developments
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Dr. Tonge:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has received concerning Occidental Petroleum and the indigenous U'wa of Colombia. [99254]
Mr. Battle:
We have received written representations on Occidental and the U'wa Indians of Colombia in November 1997. Officials in the British Embassy in Bogota are aware of the background to this dispute and are following developments closely.
Dr. Tonge:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to his United States counterpart with regard to United States military intervention in Colombia. [99252]
Mr. Battle:
We have regular discussions with our US counterparts on a range of foreign policy issues. Those discussions have included the situation in Colombia and the importance of international support for efforts to secure a peaceful resolution of that country's problems.
Mrs. Browning:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will place in the Library a copy of the transcript of the interviews the Metropolitan Police held with (a) Movladi Akhmetkhanov and (b) Turpal Atgerier. [99250]
Mr. Battle:
The information sought was provided in confidence (exemptions 1c and 14a of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information) and its disclosure could prejudice future cooperation in this and other cases (exemption 14b). The killings of the four hostages in Chechnya are also the subject of continuing law enforcement and possible legal proceedings by the Russian and Chechen authorities (exemption 4). It is therefore not appropriate to place records of these discussions in the Library.
Mrs. Browning:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will place in the Library a copy of the remit given by his Department to the Metropolitan Police in respect of their investigation into the murdered hostages in Chechnya. [99251]
Mr. Battle:
The British Police have no general remit to investigate the murder of British nationals overseas. However, the Metropolitan Police Service carried out certain inquiries in support of the efforts of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to establish the circumstances of the killings of British hostages in Chechnya. There was no written remit; these inquiries followed HMG's efforts during the kidnap, in which the police always play an integral part.
Mrs. Gillan:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) what contribution the United Kingdom will make to international monitoring missions to Sri Lanka to oversee the presidential elections; [99427]
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Mr. Hain:
The Elections Commissioner in Sri Lanka has not yet decided whether to invite international election monitors to oversee the Presidential Elections. We await his decision. However it is important that the elections are free and fair and the UK stands ready to assist.
Mrs. Gillan:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Nigerian Government about the imposition of Sharia laws in the state of Zamfara. [99428]
Mr. Hain:
The imposition of Sharia law in Zamfara State is a matter for the Nigerian authorities. The Nigerian Constitution allows for civil cases to be considered under Sharia law. But there is still some confusion over the scope of the Zamfara provisions, and over the interpretation of the Constitution. We are monitoring the situation closely.
Mrs. Gillan:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations he has made to the Sudanese Government concerning human rights abuses in the Sudan. [99429]
Mr. Hain:
We regularly make representations to the Government of Sudan both on human rights concerns in general and on individual cases; bilaterally and through the EU. For example, human rights issues were one of the key areas of discussion when the EU resumed a political dialogue with the Government of Sudan on 10 November.
Dr. Tonge:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the implementation of the Wunlit Peace Accords signed in March 1999 in southern Sudan. [99240]
Mr. Hain:
We have kept in regular touch with the New Sudan Council of Churches, the co-ordinators of the Wunlit Conference, and others involved. Our understanding is that the Conference had considerable success in tackling a number of Nuer/Dinka conflicts and that concrete change is now evident on the ground. This is welcome news.
Dr. Tonge:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations he has made to his (a) European and (b) American counterparts concerning the peace process in Sudan; and if he will make a statement. [99241]
Mr. Hain:
We continue to give priority to peace work in the Sudan. We have been active members of the IGAD Partners Forum (IPF) and helped put together the proposal for a permanent Secretariat in Nairobi which is now operational. We have pledged a financial contribution to the Secretariat and will continue to give the peace process political backing working with many colleagues including the EU and US.
Dr. Tonge:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the political situation in Western Sahara. [99257]
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Mr. Hain:
UN efforts to find a lasting solution to the conflict in Western Sahara continue. Progress has been slowed by the large number of appeals against voter identification process. We expect the US Secretary- General to issue his report on the current situation there in early December.
Mr. Nigel Jones:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on progress in clearing land mines in Mozambique. [98743]
Clare Short:
I have been asked to reply.
Good progress in the clearance of land mines in Mozambique is being made with support from several donors. My Department has funded the clearance of over 200km of road, 2 million square metres of land and destruction of over 10,000 explosive devices in Zambezia Province. This programme will continue until March 2001.
Ann Clwyd:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what actions his Department has taken to implement the measures outlined in his speech of 28 July 1997, Official Report, columns 65-66, on action taken to ban the export of electro-shock weapons. [98543]
Dr. Howells
[holding answer 22 November 1999]: I have been asked to reply.
The export to any destination of all of the items covered by the ban announced by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on 28 July 1997, Official Report, columns 65-66, is controlled under entry PL5001 in Part III of Schedule 1 to the Export of Goods (Control) Order 1994, as amended. As my right hon. Friend made clear in his announcement, the export of some of the items covered by the ban was not at that time subject to control. The export of these items was brought under control by article 7(8) of the Export of Goods (Control) (Amendment No 3) Order 1997 [SI 1997/2758], which came into force on 15 December 1997.
No licences have been issued for any of the items covered by the ban since 2 May 1997.
Mr. Loughton:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will define new renewable sources of energy, as set out in his pre-Budget report for exemption from the proposed climate change levy. [99191]
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Mr. Timms
[holding answer 22 November 1999]: The technologies within the proposed definition and eligible for exemption from the climate change levy when used to generate electricity are:
(2) what steps he will ask the Commonwealth to take to oversee the presidential elections in Sri Lanka. [99426]
Wind Energy
Hydro Power (excluding those exceeding 5MW)
Tidal Power
Wave Energy
Photovoltaics
Photoconversion
Geothermal Hot Dry Rock
Geothermal Aquifers
Municipal and Industrial Wastes
Landfill Gas
Agriculture and Forestry Wastes
Energy Crops.
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