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Nuclear Weapons

Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent meetings John Freeman, UK Ambassador to the Conference on Disarmament, has had with non-governmental organisations in respect of the forthcoming review conference of the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty; what matters were raised by each organisation; and what steps the Government plans as a result of the meetings. [214328]

 
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Mr. MacShane: John Freeman met representatives of the Mayors for Peace organisation on 21 January 2005 to discuss Government policy and issues relevant to the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty review conference. On 24 January 2005, he chaired a roundtable meeting attended by representatives of 12 non-governmental organisations for further discussions on these issues. Those represented at the roundtable meeting were: Abolition 2000, Acronym Institute/Disarmament Diplomacy, British American Security Information Council, Christian CND, CND, Oxford Research Group, Peace and Security Liaison Group, Pugwash, Quaker Peace and Social Witness, VERTIC, Weapons of Mass Destruction Awareness Programme, and World Court Project. A presentation was also given at this meeting on behalf of the Nuclear Issues Working Group and Peace and Security Liaison Group, umbrellagroups for a number of non-governmental organisations.

There is an understanding that comments made during these meetings between officials and non-governmental organisations are not attributed but, in each case, those attending took the opportunity to discuss a range of issues about the international non-proliferation and disarmament regime and possible outcomes at the review conference. The points made in the meetings will be considered as part of the dialogue with non-governmental organisations (NGOs). Further meetings will be held during the conference between officials and the representatives of NGOs attending.

Pakistan

Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Government of Pakistan about Mrs.Hanifan Bibi. [211866]

Mr. Alexander: We are aware of the attack on Mrs.Hanifan Bibi in January this year. Although we have made no representations to the Pakistani authorities regarding this particular incident, the British Government continues to take a serious view of all aspects of religious intolerance and discrimination in Pakistan. We continue to raise our concerns with the Pakistani authorities on issues such as this and other Human Rights concerns in concert with our EU partners, most recently in December 2004.

Rio Tinto/Mittal Steel

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the actions and interests of Rio Tinto or Mittal Steel have been brought to his or his Department's attention since January 2004; and if he will make a statement. [210719]

Mr. Alexander: Rio Tinto has been involved in a number of Corporate Social Responsibility activities, including the UK-US led Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights. The company is also actively involved in the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative and the UN Global Compact, in whose UK Forum the company participates.

In addition, Rio Tinto is, like other UK companies, in periodic contact with officials at our overseas missions concerning existing and possible future investment
 
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projects, in, for example, Latin America and Africa. The details of these contacts are subject to commercial confidence.

During Romania's EU accession negotiations, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office was kept informed of discussions about Romania's steel industry, which included Mittal Steel.

Saddam Hussein

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether officials of the UK Government have visited Saddam Hussein since he has been in custody; what reports he has received on (a) Saddam Hussein's health and (b) the prison conditions in which Saddam Hussein is being held; and if he will make a statement. [213913]

Mr. MacShane: Saddam Hussein was transferred into the Iraqi criminal justice system on 1 July 2004, and is currently awaiting trial. At the request of Prime Minster Allawi, the US will maintain physical custody of Saddam Hussein until such time as the Iraqi Correctional Service is able to provide for his safe and secure detention.

UK Government officials have not visited Saddam Hussein but the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has regular access to him. The ICRC would raise any concerns it has about Saddam Hussein's health and conditions of detention in confidential reports to the US and Iraqi authorities.

Singapore

Mr. Gummer: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the Singapore Authorities to encourage them not to agree to restrictions on their right to sign international environmental agreements as a condition of a bilateral US trade agreement. [213252]

Mr. Alexander: None.

Tim Spicer

Andrew Mackinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the occasions on which his Department's staff have met Tim Spicer in the past 24 months in their official capacity, broken down by date; and if he will make a statement. [205526]

Mr. Rammell [holding answer 16 December 2004]: Our records indicate that in 2003 officials met Tim Spicer once overseas, and that during 2004 there were two meetings in the UK and six overseas. We are not aware of any meetings during 2005.

Turkey

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment his Department has made of the number of (a) allegations of police mistreatment, (b) charges brought against police officers and (c) dismissals of police officers following allegations of mistreatment in each year since 1997 in Turkey; and if he will make a statement. [212274]

 
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Mr. MacShane: Our Embassy in Ankara monitors the human rights situation in Turkey closely, including implementation of the Turkish Government's reforms introduced to eradicate torture.

According to NGO statistics, the number of allegations of police mistreatment for 2003 increased compared to previous years. However, NGOs attributed this to a greater inclination to report incidents of torture rather than an actual increase in the number of incidents. In the first six months of 2004 the Turkish NGO, the Human Rights Association, recorded 202 allegations of torture arid ill treatment under police custody compared with 818 in the whole of 2003. The European Commission's 2004 Progress Report on Turkey states that:

the Government's serious efforts to implement the legislative reforms have lead to a decline in instances of torture".

We believe that the number of police officers charged with mistreatment, and the number who have been dismissed following allegations of mistreatment has risen, but the numbers of cases opened and the number of successful prosecutions remains very low.

There is growing evidence of improved implementation of the Turkish Government's reforms introduced to eradicate torture. However, allegations of torture continue, and it is clear that more needs to be done.

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment his Department has made of the death toll in Turkey in each year since 1984 due directly to (a) Kurdish action, (b) Government action aimed at Kurdish groups and (c) other violent causes; and if he will make a statement. [213070]

Mr. MacShane: Figures released by the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs indicate that more than 30,000 people have died as a result of terrorist activities perpetrated by the Kurdish Worker's Party (PKK/KADEK/KONGRA-GEL) since 1984. Press and NGO estimates of the number of fatalities that have resulted from the conflict in the South East of Turkey range between 30,000 and 40,000.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has made no independent assessment of these figures.

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment his Department has made of the statement released on 25 January by the Turkish Human Rights Association Ynsan Haklari DerneDy" regarding the number of honour killings in Turkey; and if he will make a statement. [213240]

Mr. MacShane: The Turkish Human Rights Association (HRA) released a press statement on 18 January detailing four separate cases of honour killings. In the statement the HRA called on state officials to take all necessary measures to stop honour killings and to protect women.

The Turkish Government's domestic reform programme has strengthened the rights of women in Turkey. The Turkish Government adopted a new Penal Code in September 2004 that removes sentence reductions for honour killings. The last few months have seen several landmark sentences handed down for
 
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honour killings. The Turkish Government passed a new Municipalities Law in December 2004 requiring municipalities to open shelters for women in communities of more than 50,000 people, and a package of constitutional amendments was passed in May 2004 that confirms equality between men and women.

The Turkish Government's commitment to address honour crimes and ensure the full protection of women's rights was demonstrated by their decision to co-table with the UK a successful resolution in the UN General Assembly on 'honour crimes'.

According to Ka-Mer (Turkey's largest women's NGO) at least 200 females are murdered by their families in Turkey each year. Accurate official statistics do not exist, as police records do not show whether 'honour' was a contributing factor in a murder.

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