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HMS Mauritius

Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many UK personnel are stationed at HMS Mauritius; and at what annual cost in the last five years. [100892]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: HMS Mauritius was a Royal Navy Communications Centre in Mauritius. It was established under an Agreement on Mutual Defence and Assistance that came into force on 12 March 1968 when Mauritius became independent. HMS Mauritius closed at the end of March 1976 and all personnel were withdrawn.

Iran

Valerie Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will press European Union partners to introduce a censure resolution on human rights abuses in Iran at the next session of the UN Human Rights Commission. [100942]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: All EU partners are concerned about the human rights situation in Iran and we are currently consulting on how to encourage positive change. A resolution is one of a number of possibilities, which are being discussed.

Ituri Pacification Commission

Ms Oona King: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representation he has made to the Governments of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda to ensure the effectiveness of the Ituri Pacification

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Commission; and if he will make a statement on the humanitarian situation in Ituri province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. [101027]

Mr. Rammell: The humanitarian situation in Ituri (north-eastern DRC) remains serious. We have urged all Congolese parties and the Governments of Rwanda and Uganda to play their part in stabilising the situation, and to give their full support to the Ituri Pacification Commission. But we believe that the real key to bringing stability to the region is the formation of a transitional national government in Kinshasa.

We are working closely with our partners on the UN Security Council and at the EU to maintain pressure on the parties to address the situation in Ituri, and to take forward the formation of the transitional national government.

Myanmar

Mr. Horam: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what his policy is on trade sanctions against the Government of Myanmar; and if he will make a statement. [101383]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: We do not encourage trade or investment in Burma. We offer no assistance at all to companies wishing to pursue trade or investment with Burma. Companies asking for our advice are told of our policy, the regime's appalling human rights record and its economic mismanagement.

Due to a combination of these factors, there is virtually no new foreign investment in Burma and Burma's international trade is falling.

Rwanda

Ms Oona King: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports his Department has received regarding the arrest of the Rwandan journalist Ismail Mbonigaba; and if he will make a statement. [101026]

Mr. Rammell: We received a report in January that Ismail Mbonigaba (editor of the Rwandan newspaper Umuseso) had been arrested for allegedly inciting "divisionism and discrimination" through an article and cartoon which appeared in his paper. On 27 February the Court of Appeal released Mr. Mbonigaba provisionally pending a further hearing. No date has yet been set for this hearing.

We will continue to monitor events closely and to urge the Government of Rwanda to respect the principle of freedom of the press and free speech. I, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for International Development and my noble Friend Baroness Amos discussed this with President Kagame in January.

Smoking

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what policy his Department has adopted on smoking in the workplace. [100951]

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Mr. Mike O'Brien: Smoking is only allowed in designated smoking areas in Foreign and Commonwealth Office buildings in the UK. The same principle is applied in overseas missions where feasible.

Terrorist Incidents

Sir Teddy Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate he has made of the number of terrorist incidents which have taken place in each of the past five years. [102085]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office does not keep this kind of statistical record of world-wide terrorist incidents. A number of academic institutions compile such statistics. Another useful reference is the United States Department of State's Annual Report on "Patterns of Global Terrorism".

UN Resolutions

Mr. Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans the British Government has to sponsor a resolution against (a) Libya, (b) Zimbabwe and (c) Iraq at the UN Commission on Human Rights Session in Geneva, Switzerland, on 17 March; and if he will make a statement. [101802]

Mr. Rammell: The UK is committed to playing an active role in the forthcoming meeting of the UN Commission on Human Rights. The UK does not table resolutions at CHR on a national basis. We are currently discussing with EU partners which resolutions the EU will sponsor at this year's CHR. Decisions on EU initiatives at CHR are taken by consensus. At last year's CHR, the EU tabled resolutions on Zimbabwe and Iraq and it is likely the EU will do so again this year. We are discussing with EU partners whether to make reference to Libya at this year's CHR.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Turkey

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much aid has been provided by the Government to Turkey to assist in dealing with Kurdish refugees from Iraq in the last 10 years. [101144]

Clare Short: My Department has not provided assistance to the Government of Turkey to assist with Kurdish refugees. UNHCR, for whom we provide annual core funding, has a regional programme that includes some support to Kurdish refugees in Turkey.

Afghanistan

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what estimate she has made of the number of civilian deaths which occurred (a) directly and (b) indirectly as a result of military action in Afghanistan since 11 September 2001. [101023]

Mr. Ingram: I have been asked to reply.

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It is impossible to know for certain how many casualties, either military or civilian, there have been as a result of coalition action in Afghanistan. The Taliban's claims of casualties cannot be taken at face value.

Military action inevitably carries risks, but as my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has made clear in the House, our targeting and weapons selection processes are rigorous. Every effort is made to avoid civilian casualties.

Award Schemes

Annabelle Ewing: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will list the award schemes in (a) 2001 and (b) 2002 promoted by her Department; what their scope was; when the relevant participating organisations are scheduled to be sent results; and whether other parties will be given notification of the results at the same time. [102051]

Clare Short: None.

Contingency Reserve

Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much of the Department's contingency reserve for this financial year has not been spent. [101999]

Clare Short: DFID's contingency reserve for 2002–03 has been fully committed, mainly to strengthen our response to emergencies in Africa and the Palestinian territories.

Developing Countries (Water Supplies)

Mr. Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what discussions she has had with other EU governments about (a) the management of water and (b) the control of water supplies in developing countries; and if she will make a statement. [101872]

Clare Short: My department is currently working with other EU member states on a joint water initiative, which is addressing these issues.

The European Commission and the EU Member States set up the water initiative in order to respond to the demand of the partners in developing countries and create a platform for better co-ordination of water related development aid and for new partnerships.

Although involved in many aspects of the initiative, my department is leading the financing component, working on management and control issues through a multi-stakeholder process. The finance working group is currently developing a set of guiding principles that recognises the important contribution of the many stakeholders to the provision and management of water and sanitation services, and the need for effective governance in the water and sanitation sector.

Israel

Mr. Dhanda: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what representations she has received from NGOs regarding access to water supply in Jayyous. [101200]

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Clare Short: I have not received any representations from NGOs regarding access to water supply in Jayyous.

Mr. Dhanda: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what representations she has made to (a) the Israeli authorities and (b) the United Nations regarding (i) the potential separation of Jayyous from its water supply and (ii) alternative water supply options. [101204]

Clare Short: The route of the security fence and its effects on the Palestinian people are unacceptable. The route taken will have a severe impact on Palestinian water rights and access to water resources in Jayyous and other towns and villages near the Green Line. We have made representations at the highest level, both bilaterally and through the EU, to the Government of Israel.

Mr. Dhanda: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assistance her Department has given to charitable work and projects in the Occupied Territories that have been, or may be, demolished by the Israeli authorities to make way for the concrete separation wall. [101205]

Clare Short: The security fence has already severely disrupted the lives of many Palestinians, separating them from their land, water and communities. British funded development projects have not so far been affected, but we will continue to monitor closely this aspect, and the situation more generally.

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