Conclusions and recommendations
1. We
conclude that the new allocation of Ministerial responsibilities
within the FCO is to be welcomed and that it will allow the Government
to pursue its human rights agenda more effectively. We further
conclude that the Human Rights Annual Report 2007 is an improvement
on its predecessors in its accessibility. (Paragraph 8)
2. We recommend that
the Government should ensure that the key issues of women's rights,
children's rights and the promotion of democracy are given greater
prominence in next year's edition of the FCO report. We further
recommend that the report should set out clearly how these three
issues have been factored in to the Government's overall strategy
towards individual countries of concern. We also recommend that
it should bring out the important role of free trade unions and
a free media in the promotion of democracy. (Paragraph 12)
3. We conclude that
the Government has demonstrated commendable commitment to the
Human Rights Council. We welcome its decision to stand for re-election,
and its success in achieving this. We recommend that, in its response
to this Report, the Government should set out its priorities for
strengthening the work of the Council. (Paragraph 19)
4. We conclude that
the Government has played a leading role in building support for
an Arms Trade Treaty. We recommend that the Government should
continue its efforts with vigour and determination, in particular
by aiming to convince sceptical states that the treaty will be
most effective if it includes all conventional arms. (Paragraph
23)
5. We conclude that
the Government's eventual support for the prohibition of all current
cluster munitions is very welcome. We recommend that, in its response
to this Report, the Government should set out its strategy for
obtaining the support of the US Government and other non-signatories
to a ban on cluster munitions, and the implications of the Convention
for future military co-operation with such states. (Paragraph
30)
6. We conclude that
the Government has made a good start to its work on corporate
social responsibility. (Paragraph 35)
7. We conclude that
the progress made by the International Criminal Court is to be
welcomed. However, international criminal law will only be effective
in preventing human rights abuses if applied in a systematic and
consistent way. We recommend that the Government should continue
to urge the next President and Congress of the United States to
accede to the Rome Statute of the ICC. We further recommend that
the Government should seek to extend the ambit of the role of
the ICC so that any individual who clearly and deliberately commits
gross life-taking and life-threatening violations of human rights
can be brought before it. (Paragraph 41)
8. We conclude that
the Government has a moral and legal obligation to ensure that
flights that enter UK airspace or land at UK airports are not
part of the "rendition circuit", even if they do not
have a detainee on board during the time they are in UK territory.
We recommend that the Government should immediately raise questions
about such flights with the US authorities in order to ascertain
the full scale of the rendition problem, and inform the Committee
of the replies it receives in its response to this Report. (Paragraph
47)
9. We conclude that
the Foreign Secretary's view that water-boarding is an instrument
of torture is to be welcomed. However, given the recent practice
of water-boarding by the US, there are serious implications arising
from the Foreign Secretary's stated position. We conclude that,
given the clear differences in definition, the UK can no longer
rely on US assurances that it does not use torture, and we recommend
that the Government does not rely on such assurances in the future.
We also recommend that the Government should immediately carry
out an exhaustive analysis of current US interrogation techniques
on the basis of such information as is publicly available or which
can be supplied by the US. We further recommend that, once its
analysis is completed, the Government should inform this Committee
and Parliament as to its view on whether there are any other interrogation
techniques that may be approved for use by the US Administration
which it considers to constitute torture. (Paragraph 53)
10. We conclude that
it is extremely important that the veracity of allegations that
the Government has "outsourced" interrogation techniques
involving the torture of British nationals by Pakistani authorities
should be investigated. Irrespective of these allegations, we
recommend that the FCO should immediately seek full consular access
in all cases where it is aware of mono- or dual-national British
citizens being detained by the Pakistani authorities, and in particular
by the Inter-Services Intelligence agency. We conclude that it
is not acceptable for the Government to use an individual's dual
nationality as an excuse to leave him or her vulnerable to the
prospect of possible torture. (Paragraph 62)
11. We recommend that,
in its response to this Report, the Government should explicitly
state whether UK officials met any of the four dual nationals
to discuss non-consular matters and should also state why non-consular
access was granted to one UK national, but not consular access.
We also recommend that the Government should further tell us whether
it was aware of all six individuals at the time of their detention,
and whether intelligence or evidence gained by the Pakistani authorities
in its interrogation of any of these men led in whole, or in part,
to further investigations or charges in the UK. We further recommend
that the Government should describe its collaboration with the
Inter-Services Intelligence agency, and its human rights concerns
about this organisation, in its response to this Report. (Paragraph
63)
12. We conclude that,
in the case of Saadi v. Italy, the Government clearly attempted
to water down its anti-torture commitments. We also conclude that
it is disturbing and surprising that such arguments were made
in the name of the United Kingdom and we believe this gives cause
for serious concern. (Paragraph 72)
13. We conclude that
the European Union can and must do more to help the United States
in bringing about the overdue closure of the detention facilities
at Guantánamo Bay. We welcome the Government's representations
on behalf of the five British residents in Guantanamo Bay. Given
its decision to intervene in their cases, we recommend that the
Government should express particular concern over the prospective
trial of Binyam Mohamed under the Military Commissions Act and
lobby strongly against any use of the death penalty if he is found
guilty. We recommend that the Government should continue to press
for the return of Binyam Mohamed and Shaker Aamer to the UK. (Paragraph
77)
14. We conclude that
the Minister's commitment to introducing regulation for private
security companies is to be welcomed. We further conclude that
the delay in introducing regulation has been unacceptable. We
are disappointed that there was no mention of legislation on private
security companies in the Prime Minister's Draft Legislative Programme
2008-09, and we recommend that the Government should announce
its intention to introduce the relevant legislation in the forthcoming
Queen's Speech. We further recommend that such legislation should
impose strict regulation on private security companies, and ensures
that these companies can be prosecuted in British courts for serious
human rights abuses committed abroad. (Paragraph 82)
15. We conclude that
the overall human rights situation in Afghanistan is difficult
and in some areas appears to be worse than at any point since
the fall of the Taliban. The failure of transitional justice,
backsliding on women's rights, and the deteriorating security
situation are of particular concern. We recommend that the Government
should devote greater attention to the peace, reconciliation and
justice action plan in Afghanistan, and be more open about the
failures of the Afghan authorities. We further recommend that
next year's report should include a specific section on the action
being taken by the British Government to stop poppy cultivation,
on which the UK has lead responsibility in Afghanistan, and an
analysis of how good governance is being undermined by the most
prominent warlords in the country. (Paragraph 88)
16. We conclude that
the human rights record of the Burmese junta, evidenced by its
response to pro-democracy protests and the devastation of Cyclone
Nargis, is reprehensible. We strongly support the Government's
efforts to promote human rights in Burma, and we praise its generous
donation for the victims of the storm. We recommend that the Government
should put in place very strict measures to ensure that its aid
cannot be misused by the regime, and inform us of these measures
in its response to this Report. We further recommend that, in
principle, the Government should not rule out invoking the "responsibility
to protect" in situations such as Burma, but that this should
be guided by a practical assessment of the situation on the ground,
and the likely wider consequences of such intervention. (Paragraph
96)
17. We conclude that
there continues to be little evidence that the Government's Human
Rights Dialogue with China is achieving significant results. We
conclude that, as at the time of our agreeing this Report, the
Prime Minister is correct to attend the Olympic Games. However,
the Olympics represent a unique opportunity to advance the cause
of human rights in China. We conclude that there is mounting evidence
that the Chinese authorities are taking repressive measures to
prevent any of their citizens from expressing visible dissent
in the run up to or during the Games. We recommend that the Government
makes immediate public and very strong condemnation of this. We
further recommend that the Government should be ready to discontinue
the UK-China Human Rights Dialogue if substantial progress is
not made in the coming year. (Paragraph 103)
18. We conclude that
China's policies towards Tibet have fostered a culture of repression.
We condemn the use of violence either by Tibetans or the Chinese
Government during the recent disturbances. We welcome the British
Government's calls for restraint and dialogue between the two
parties. We recommend that the British Government should press
the Chinese authorities to allow an independent and international
investigation to take place in Tibet, and to impress on the Chinese
Government that they should recognise that there is currently
a significant window of opportunity to make progress in resolving
the dispute over Tibet based on the demand by the Dalai Lama for
"genuine autonomy", not independence. (Paragraph 112)
19. We conclude that
the human rights situation in Colombia is serious and shows little
sign of improvement. We further conclude that allegations of extra-judicial
executions by the Colombian military, and the continued targeting
of trade unionists, cannot be ignored. We therefore believe it
is inappropriate for the Government to provide military aid to
Colombia without any reference to human rights improvements. Noting
recent moves by the US Congress to freeze some aid to Colombia
on human rights grounds, we recommend that the Government should
request the Colombian military to demonstrate measurable and verifiable
human rights improvements in exchange for future assistance. We
further recommend that in its response to this Report, the Government
should set out a range of possible measures that could be used
for this purpose. (Paragraph 117)
20. We conclude that
Iran's human rights record remains shocking and appears to be
deteriorating. We welcome the Government's recognition that treating
human rights in Iran as an issue of secondary concern would be
counter-productive. We recommend that, in its response to this
Report, the Government should set out where it believes progress
can realistically be made in advancing human rights in Iran and
the further action that the Government itself is taking to achieve
such progress. (Paragraph 122)
21. We conclude that
despite improvements in security, the human rights situation in
Iraq remains very difficult. We believe that the deteriorating
human rights situation faced by women in many parts of Iraq is
unacceptable, and we recommend that the Government should use
all its leverage to press the Iraqi Government to ensure women
are afforded security and the legal equality provided for in the
Iraqi constitution. (Paragraph 128)
22. We conclude that
the Government and the international community must do much more
to help Iraqi refugees in neighbouring countries. We recommend
that the Government should provide bilateral financial assistance
to help Syria and Jordan cope with their refugee burden. We welcome
the Government's resettlement programme for some of its Iraqi
employees, but we are concerned that former employees and their
families perversely need to face the dangers involved in leaving
Iraq to become refugees in neighbouring countries before being
able to apply for the Gateway programme. We recommend that the
Government should allow its eligible former employees to apply
for relocation to the United Kingdom without first having to register
as a refugee. (Paragraph 132)
23. We agree with
the Minister that some of Israel's actions against the Palestinians
have been disproportionate and we conclude that Israeli policies
towards the population of the Gaza Strip as a whole have been
a form of collective punishment. We recommend that the Government
should urge Israel in the strongest possible terms to desist from
activities that violate international law. We further conclude
that the Government is absolutely correct to condemn all forms
of violence committed by Palestinians against the Israeli population.
We recommend that, in its response to this Report, the Government
should provide an assessment as to what policy options are available
to prevent the indiscriminate firing of rockets into Israel. We
repeat our condemnation of violence between Palestinians, and
we welcome the Government's provision of significant financial
support to the Palestinian Authority. (Paragraph 144)
24. We conclude that
the human rights situation in North Korea is extremely grave.
We will consider the country's human rights abuses, and the response
of the British Government, in detail in our Report on Global Security:
Japan and Korea. (Paragraph 148)
25. We conclude that
there are serious and wide-ranging human rights abuses in Pakistan.
We further conclude that the FCO report should have been more
critical of the imposition of the state of emergency, in particular
by considering whether it was introduced to prevent the judiciary
from considering the validity of President Musharraf's re-election.
We unreservedly condemn the assassination of Benazir Bhutto and
we welcome the relatively free parliamentary elections in February
2008. We recommend that, in its response to this Report, the Government
should set out more clearly what steps it is taking to support
women's rights and other international human rights norms in Pakistan.
(Paragraph 155)
26. We conclude that
the Russian parliamentary and Presidential elections demonstrated
democratic deficiencies and were a missed opportunity for the
advancement of democracy in Russia. We recommend that the Government,
both bilaterally and using the mechanisms of the EU, OSCE and
the Council of Europe, should continue to emphasise to Russia
that its media and NGO restrictions are steps in the wrong direction.
We further recommend that the Government should encourage President
Medvedev to honour the pledges he has made to uphold the rule
of law. (Paragraph 160)
27. We conclude that
the human rights situation in Saudi Arabia is one of the worst
in the world. The Government's stated policy of assisting with
gradual reform is simply not adequate in the face of the dramatically
increased use of the death penalty and the continued repression
of women's rights. We accept there is a balance to be struck in
any relationship with a strategic ally, but we do not see how
the Government's current policies are presenting sufficient incentives
to the Saudi regime to curtail its most severe abuses. We recommend
that the "Two Kingdoms Dialogue" should explicitly address
issues such as the death penalty, and, as last year, we recommend
that this dialogue should have measurable and time-limited objectives.
We understand the Government's reasoning in not making such objectives
public knowledge. However, we recommend that if the Government
believes that these objectives should be kept private, the Foreign
Secretary should write to us in confidence when he responds to
this Report to outline what progress has been made. (Paragraph
167)
28. We conclude that
the FCO's report fails to pay sufficient attention to the severe
human rights crisis in Somalia. We are particularly concerned
by the absence of any mention of alleged abuses carried out by
Ethiopian troops in the country. Strong denials by the Ethiopian
Government are not sufficient cause for omitting these allegations.
We recommend that the Government should ensure human rights are
central to its approach in Somalia, and we further recommend that
it is included as a major country of concern in next year's report.
(Paragraph 174)
29. We conclude that
the human rights situation in Sudan remains of paramount concern.
We are disappointed that the UN-African Union hybrid peacekeeping
force for Darfur has yet to fully deploy. We welcome the Government's
support for a political solution in Darfur and its financial assistance
to the peacekeeping mission. We recommend that the Government
should consider again whether it has any spare capacity to meet
the need for helicopters or other equipment. We further recommend
that the Government should provide the necessary diplomatic assistance
to NGOs in their efforts to gain access into Sudan. (Paragraph
180)
30. We conclude that
the repression of civil liberties in Syria continues to give cause
for concern. We recommend that the Government should ensure that
human rights remains central to its, and the EU's, approach towards
Damascus. We further recommend that the international community
does not relax the pressure on Syria to improve its human rights
record even if progress is achieved on other political and foreign
policy fronts. (Paragraph 185)
31. We conclude that
Robert Mugabe's human rights record is utterly appalling. The
first round of the Presidential election in March 2008 was deeply
flawed, and the delay in announcing the results was unacceptable.
We are concerned that South Africa appears to have maintained
its patently ineffectual policy of "quiet diplomacy"
with Zimbabwe, but we are encouraged that other regional states
such as Zambia are beginning to speak out more forcefully against
the brutality of the Mugabe regime. We conclude that the decision
to remove Robert Mugabe's honorary knighthood was correct. We
recommend that the Government should continue to urge regional
states to take the diplomatic lead against Zimbabwe, and should
not recognise any regime led by Mugabe. We further recommend that
the Government should set out in its response to this Report what
action is being taken against British businesses whose presence
in Zimbabwe is helping to prop up the regime. (Paragraph 197)
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