Previous Section Index Home Page


1 Mar 2004 : Column 683W—continued

Gallipoli

Mr. Djanogly: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations the Government has made to the Turkish Government and relevant authorities regarding plans to charge an admission fee to Gallipoli battlefields in the Gelibolu Historic National Park; and if he will make a statement. [156963]

Mr. MacShane: The Turkish authorities have confirmed to the organisers of ANZAC day that there will be no entry or administration fee to enter the Gallipoli battlefields in the Gelibolu Historic National Park.

Indonesia

Mr. Dhanda: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the Indonesian Ambassador to the Court of St. James's in connection with freedom of religion in Indonesia. [156815]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: I met with the Indonesian Ambassador on 6 October and 10 November 2003 and on both occasions we discussed a wide range of issues, including religion.

The Government are committed to working with Indonesia to encourage religious tolerance. Together with the Department for International Development, we have committed over £4 million to help establish the United Nations Development Programme Conflict Prevention and Recovery Unit in Jakarta. The Unit will build up capacity in conflict reduction and recovery in the provinces affected by religious conflict. This includes funding projects like the Maluku Reconciliation Conference, which was held in London and Brussels in January 2004 and brought together Muslim and Christians leaders from Maluku to discuss how to establish peace in the province.

Mr. Dhanda: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment his Department has made of the extent of freedom of religion in Indonesia. [156816]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: The many ethnic and religious communities of the Indonesian archipelago have a long history of generally peaceful co-existence. The majority

1 Mar 2004 : Column 684W

of Indonesians are Muslim and most are moderate and tolerant of other religions. Religious freedom in Indonesia is enshrined in the constitution.

Iraq

Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what factors underlay the decision by coalition forces in Iraq to reject a plan by the Iraqi Census Board to take a nationwide census on 30th June and then make an electoral roll available by 1 September. [154246]

Mr. Rammell: There is no Iraqi Census Board. The Iraqi Central Statistical Organisation did propose a plan last year to conduct a census upon the basis of which elections could be held. The plan was rejected by the Iraqi Minister of Planning, to whom the Central Statistical Organisation reports. No decision was ever taken on this matter by any Coalition body.

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement about control of the oil supply and revenues in Iraq. [156198]

Mr. Rammell: Iraqi oil and the revenue it generates are both governed by UN Security Council Resolution 1483. This stresses the right of the Iraqi people to control their own natural resources. It also states that in the interim period, 95 per cent. of the proceeds from export sales of petroleum, petroleum products and natural gas shall be deposited into the Development Fund for Iraq (DFI). The remaining 5 per cent. is deposited into the UN Compensation Fund (to meet outstanding claims for reparations against Iraq). UNSCR 1483 also makes it clear that sale of Iraqi oil is to be in line with best international practice.

The DFI balance is available on the Coalition Provisional Authority website www.cpa-iraq.org and both the DFI and the practice of selling Iraqi oil are to be audited by independent public accountants under supervision by the International Advisory and Monitoring Board. This body contains representatives from the UN, the World Bank, the IMF and the Arab Fund for Social and Economic Development.

Libya

Mr. Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the Libyan authorities regarding that country's relationship with the IRA. [155650]

Mr. Rammell: During the visit to the United Kingdom of 9–10 February 2004 by the Libyan Foreign Minister, Mr. Abdurrahman Shalgam, my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary raised Libya's past links with the Provisional IRA as part of a discussion covering a broad range of bilateral and regional issues.

North Korea

Mr. Best: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what role the UK is playing in assessing what nuclear threat is presented by North Korea. [157019]

1 Mar 2004 : Column 685W

Mr. Rammell: As a permanent member of the UN Security Council and as a Depositary State of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, the UK has held discussions with the UN, the US, EU partners and regional governments so as to inform our assessment of the threat posed by North Korea's nuclear programmes. We monitor developments closely and remain in close contact with members of the international community.

Somalia

Mr. Robathan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answers of 23 February 2004, Official Report, column 92W, on the Somali National Reconciliation Conference, if he will list by name the attendees at the Somali National Reconciliation Conference at the Safari Park Hotel outside Nairobi; and whose attendance was supported by the British Government. [157606]

Mr. Mullin: The list of participants in the consultations is given as follows. A number of support staff to the leaders were also accommodated at the venue. The United Kingdom did not support the attendance of any specific leader but pooled funds with other donors.





































1 Mar 2004 : Column 686W












Sri Lanka

Linda Perham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the situation in Sri Lanka. [156248]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: We support the Sri Lankan peace process politically and practically and welcome the progress made since February 2002 when the ceasefire came into effect. The parliamentary election in Sri Lanka on 2 April comes at a crucial moment for the peace process. We urge all Sri Lanka's political leaders to ensure that their, and their supporters', actions and rhetoric during the election campaign do nothing to undermine the important gains made in the peace process or to make it more difficult to resume peace process talks after the election. It is also essential that the election is free of intimidation, fair and non-violent throughout Sri Lanka. We urge all political parties and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam to commit themselves to supporting the early resumption of peace negotiations after the election so that they can move forward together in building a peaceful and prosperous country. We are working closely with international partners to reinforce these messages.

UN Security Council

Mr. Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the Government's policy is on (a) the size of the UN Security Council and (b) the limitations of its members' veto rights. [157109]

Mr. Rammell: The Government are long-standing supporters of enlargement of the Security Council in order to ensure that it better represents the modern world. We support an increase in the membership of the Council from 15 to 24, with five additional permanent members and four additional non-permanent members. In particular, we have supported permanent membership for Japan and Germany, and for developing countries from Africa, Asia and Latin America. In the latter two regions, we have said that we see India and Brazil as the pre-eminent candidates. It is, however, primarily for the countries and regions concerned to make their case to the wider UN membership.

The Government believe that the veto should be used with restraint and in accordance with the principles of the Charter.


Next Section Index Home Page