| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
4 Oct 2004 : Column 1826W—continued
Colombia
Julie Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on UK relations with Colombia. [188583]
Mr. Rammell: The UK has good relations with Colombia. We support the efforts that President Uribe is making to bring peace and security to his country in the face of the huge problems that Colombia faces. The armed conflict, fuelled by the illegal drugs trade, causes great suffering to the Colombian people. Cocaine from Colombia also causes great harm in the UK. Human rights form a central component of our policy on Colombia. We consistently urge the Colombian Government to take stronger action to improve the human rights situation in the country, and in particular to ensure that UN recommendations regarding human rights are implemented. To achieve this goal, we are working closely with the Colombian Government and other partners, including the UN, EU, NGOs and the trades unions.
Julie Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on (a) the killing of the trade unionists Leonel Goyeneche, Hector Alirio Martinez and Jorge Prieto Chamucero in Arauca, Colombia this year and (b) the implications for human rights in that country. [188584]
Mr. Hancock:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Government of
4 Oct 2004 : Column 1827W
Colombia on the murder on 5 August of trade unionists Jorge Chamucero, Hector Martinez and Leonel Goyeneche; and if he will make a statement. [189382]
Mr. Rammell: I have expressed our concerns about the deaths in Arauca personally with President Uribe of Colombia when we met at the Panamanian presidential inauguration on 1 September. I raised them again with the Colombian Foreign Minister when we met in London on 8 September 2004. Our Embassy in Bogota has also raised the case at the highest level. We made it clear at the outset that in our view, given the circumstances, a civil investigation, rather than a military one, should be undertaken into these deaths. As I told President Uribe, we were therefore pleased that the Colombian Government did decide to pursue this course of action, and that NGOs and trades unionists locally were kept informed of the process. The Colombian Government made it clear that if a human rights abuse had been committed, they too would find it unacceptable and would take strong measures against the perpetrators. We note that, following the investigation, the Prosecutor General has ordered the arrest of the military personnel involved in the deaths.
We continue to urge the Colombian Government to implement all outstanding UN human rights recommendations. We have made it plain that we are very willing to assist in this process, and with other partners are in close touch with the Colombian Government, the UNHCHR Representative, NGOs and trades unions to help carry matters forward.
Correspondence
Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he expects to reply to a letter from the hon. Member for Kingston upon Hull, North forwarded to the Foreign Office by the Prime Minister's Communications Unit on 18 August. [189327]
Mr. Rammell [holding answer 16 September 2004]: My noble Friend the Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean replied to my hon. Friend on 17 September 2007.
Cuba
Mr. Wood: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations the UK has made to the (a) US Administration and (b) United Nations on lifting the US trade embargo against Cuba. [189495]
Mr. Rammell:
The UK's policy on Cuba, and its position on the embargo, is well understood by the US Administration. We—and our EU partners—believe in constructive engagement and dialogue with the Cuban authorities, and we make our objections against the US embargo known every year at the United Nations General Assembly. On 4 November 2003, we again voted to adopt the resolution on the necessity of ending the economic, commercial and financial embargo imposed by the USA against Cuba.
4 Oct 2004 : Column 1828W
Departmental Services
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which services within his Department will be (a) affected by and (b) subject to job losses consequent on the cuts in the civil service announced in the Spending Review. [189633]
Mr. Alexander: I refer the hon. Member to the reply my right hon. Friend the Chief Secretary to the Treasury (Mr. Boateng) gave him on 16 September 2004, Official Report, column 1659W.
EU Constitution
Mr. Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the cost was of printing the Government's recent White Paper on the EU Constitution; whether this document will be posted with the proposed Constitution to every household in the UK; and what estimate he has made of the cost of printing 30 million copies of the White Paper. [189346]
Mr. Straw: The cost of printing 1,500 copies of the Government's White Paper on the Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe was £2,385. There are no plans currently to send the White Paper to every household in the UK. As no tendering process has yet been entered into for this work a cost estimate is not available at this time. A copy of the White Paper is available online at www.europe.gov.uk.
Mr. Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate his Department has made of the cost of posting a copy of the proposed EU Constitution to every household in the UK; whether other Government literature will be enclosed; and when he expects this mass-mailing to take place. [189347]
Mr. Straw: No decisions have yet been made on the distribution of the proposed EU Constitutional Treaty. As no tendering process has yet been entered into for sending a copy to every household a cost estimate is not available at this time. A copy of the Provisional Treaty text is available online at www.europe.gov.uk.
EU Directives
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the EU directives outstanding without implementation (a) over two years, (b) over three years, (c) over four years and (d) over five years for each member state. [189520]
Mr. MacShane: The European Commission is responsible for monitoring and enforcing the implementation of Directives in EU member states. The best available data on member states progress in implementing Directives is therefore available on the Commission's own website at: http://www.europa.eu.int/comm/secretariat general/sgb/droit com/pdf/mne country 20040831 en.pdf).
The European Commission's Single Market Scoreboard also records implementation relating to the Internal Market. The full text of the latest Internal Market Scoreboard is at: http://www.europa.eu.int/comm/internal market/score/index en.htm.
4 Oct 2004 : Column 1829W
Explosion (Yanggang Province)
Mr. Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on reports of a large explosion in Yanggang Province in North Korea on North Korea's National Day this year. [189345]
Mr. Straw: I refer the right hon. and learned Gentleman to the written statement made by my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Bill Rammell) on 16 September 2004, Official Report, columns 186–88WS, concerning his visit to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
General Affairs and External Relations Council
Mr. Hood: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the outcome was of the General Affairs and External Relations Council held on 13 September; what the Government's stance was on the issues discussed, including its voting record; and if he will make a statement. [189216]
Mr. MacShane: The answer is as follows:
Outcome of the 13 September 2004 General Affairs and External Relations Council
My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary, John Grant (UK's Permanent Representative to the EU) and I represented the UK at the General Affairs and External Relations Council (GAERC) in Brussels on 13 September.
Conclusions were agreed on Sudan/Darfur, Great Lakes Region, ASEM, Iraq and Belarus.
EU Financial Framework For 2007–2013
The Council held a policy debate on the proposed EU financial framework for the 2007–13 period, endorsing the methodology proposed by the Presidency for work on the dossier until the end of the year with the aim of enabling agreement to be reached during 2005.
The Council also took a number of decisions without debate, such as the conclusions on progress in planning operation ALTHEA in Bosnia-Herzegovina, and a list of the 24 persons it intends to appoint as Members of the Commission for the 2009 period.
The Council remained concerned about the situation in Darfur. It expressed readiness to support the African Union (AU) mission in the region and to contribute to an expanded mission. It also agreed that the EU will take appropriate measures, including sanctions, against the Government of Sudan and all other parties if no tangible progress is achieved in meeting the Council's and the UN Security Council's demands. Conclusions were agreed.
The Council expressed concern over the recent increase in tension in the region and urged the leaders of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Burundi as well as neighbouring countries, in particular Rwanda and Uganda, to continue implementation of their respective peace accords. The Council reaffirmed its
4 Oct 2004 : Column 1830W
conviction that the resolution of conflicts in the Great Lakes Region requires a regional approach. The Council also supported a more focused and robust mandate of MONUC (United Nations Mission in the DRC). Conclusions were agreed.
The Council reviewed the issue of ASEM (Asia-Europe meeting) enlargement from the perspective of the upcoming ASEM Summit in Hanoi (8 October) and underlined the importance it attached to EU-Asia relations. It decided that, in the absence of progress in Burma by the time of the Summit, it would tighten restrictive measures against the regime and increase support to the Burmese people. Conclusions were agreed.
Ministers discussed the Iranian nuclear issue over lunch. They confirmed their full support for the efforts undertaken by France, Germany and the UK and reiterated their request to Iran to comply with suspension commitments. Ministers also discussed human rights in Iran.
The Council expressed its strong condemnation of the continued kidnappings and acts of terrorism in Iraq and called for all hostages to be immediately released unharmed. Endorsing the preliminary findings of an EU exploratory mission in Iraq concerning possible EU activities in the field of civilian crisis management, it asked for these findings to be further examined and elaborated with a view to assistance proposals being prepared in good time for the 5 November European Council. Conclusions were agreed.
The Council discussed its concerns over the proposed presidential referendum, which is to be held in parallel with the parliamentary elections on 17 October 2004. This change to the constitution will allow the president to run without limitation in future presidential elections. The Council stressed the need to hold such a referendum in accordance with OSCE and Council of Europe standards and norms. It underlined the need for a fair and constructive dialogue with the opposition before any referendum on changing the constitution could be conducted. Furthermore, there should be an improvement in the freedom of access to the media for all political groupings.
The Council once again reiterated its hope that Belarus will take its rightful place among European democratic countries. Conclusions were agreed.
The Hungarian delegation raised the question of violent incidents in Vojvodina (Serbia). The Presidency asked EU Heads of Mission and the EU Monitoring Mission to report on these developments.
The Italian delegation asked for a possible derogation to the arms embargo against Libya to allow for co-operation in the field of illegal immigration to be taken up in the Council bodies.
4 Oct 2004 : Column 1831W
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |