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13 May 2009 : Column 778W—continued
Council of Europe
Mr. Walter:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what directions he gave to the UK Permanent Representative to the Council of Europe on voting in the meeting of Ministers' Deputies on the transmission to the Parliamentary Assembly of
the Council of Europe of the list of candidates for the post of Secretary General of the Council of Europe. [273137]
Caroline Flint [holding answer 7 May 2009]: In line with our objectives on international institutional reform we have consistently supported a robust, fair and open selection process for the next Secretary General of the Council of Europe. The UK Permanent Representative was therefore instructed to support the shortlisting of candidates on the basis of a rigorous assessment against the agreed list of criteria and competences for the post.
Mr. Walter: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the UK Permanent Representative to the Council of Europe on the short-listing of candidates for the post of Secretary General of the Council of Europe since the resolution of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe on the electoral process for the Secretary General adopted on 29 April 2009; what the UK's position at the meeting of the Committee of Ministers in Madrid on 12 May 2009 will be; and if he will make a statement. [273138]
Caroline Flint [holding answer 7 May 2009]: We have considered carefully Resolution 1665 (2009) of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) adopted on 29 April 2009. The UK stands by the draft resolution agreed by Ministers' Deputies on 23 April 2009 which will be formally adopted at the ministerial meeting in Madrid on 12 May 2009 nominating two of the four proposed candidates to PACE for election of the next Secretary General.
Mr. Walter: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he had with the right hon. Member for Kingston upon Hull East (Mr. Prescott) in his capacity as leader of the UK delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, before directing the UK Permanent Representative to the Council of Europe on the position to be taken in the meeting of Ministers' Deputies on the transmission to the Parliamentary Assembly of the list of candidates for the post of Secretary General of the Council of Europe. [273148]
Caroline Flint [holding answer 7 May 2009]: A planned consultation on this issue between the Parliamentary Assembly and the Committee of Ministers took place in Strasbourg on 29 April 2009. My right hon. Friend the Member for Kingston upon Hull, East (Mr. Prescott) and the UK Permanent Representative participated actively.
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he instructed the UK Permanent Representative to the Council of Europe to vote for a particular candidate for the post of Secretary-General of the Council of Europe. [273481]
Caroline Flint [holding answer 7 May 2009]: Following a rigorous assessment of the candidates against the agreed list of criteria and competences the UK Permanent Representation was instructed on how to vote on each of the four proposed candidates.
EU Battlegroups
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress has been made on implementation of the EU Atalanta mission; and if he will make a statement. [273843]
Caroline Flint: Operation Atalanta is achieving highly positive results in providing protection to World Food Programme and other vulnerable shipping. It has delivered a significant reduction in the number of successful attacks in the Internationally Recognised Transit Corridor in the Gulf of Aden through close co-operation with the shipping industry and close co-ordination with other military operations in the region. While successful pirate attacks continue, these are either overwhelmingly against shipping which is not following the EU’s operations advice and agreed best practice, or is in the Somali Basin further south where shipping is much more at risk given the size of the area for the military operations to cover: the military operations are rightly concentrated further north, given the much greater importance of the Gulf of Aden trade artery.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much has been spent on UK involvement in the EU Atalanta mission. [273845]
Caroline Flint: The estimated common cost of the EU operation is €8.3 million, 17 per cent. of which is met by the UK. This amounts to £1.26 million. Other costs which include running costs of ships and aircraft are met by the contributing countries nationally.
European External Action Service
Mr. Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he plans to second any staff of his Department to the proposed European external action service. [273298]
Caroline Flint: Were the Lisbon Treaty to enter into force, and EU member states to take a decision to establish the European external action service, then we would plan to second Foreign and Commonwealth Office staff to it.
Mr. Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with his European counterparts on the proposed European external action service. [273321]
Caroline Flint: I have had no recent discussions with my EU counterparts about the proposed European external action service (EEAS). This service could only be established were the Lisbon treaty to come into force and after a unanimous decision by EU member states to do so.
European Union
Mr. Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on what dates he had (a) discussions and (b) meetings with the European Union Special Representative for the South Caucasus on the situation in the region in the last 12 months. [274804]
Bill Rammell [holding answer 12 May 2009]: There has been no ministerial contact with the EU Special Representative for the South Caucasus (EUSR) in the last 12 months. However, senior officials have continued to meet the EUSR on a regular basis.
Mr. Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on what dates he had (a) discussions and (b) meetings with the European Union Special Representative for the Middle East peace process on the status of the process in the last 12 months. [274807]
Bill Rammell [holding answer 12 May 2009]: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary and the EU Special Representative for the Middle East peace process have shared their views on a number of occasions in the last 12 months. This includes at General Affairs and External Relations Council (GAERC) and Gymnich meetings.
India: Religious Freedom
Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will encourage the Indian Government to implement the recommendations of UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief in her report of her 2008 mission to India. [274096]
Bill Rammell: The UK continues to work through the EU on a number of human rights issues as part of a continuing EU-India Human Rights Dialogue. The recommendations of the UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief were identified by EU colleagues as a subject for discussion at the EU-India Human Rights Dialogue meeting in February 2009. It was agreed by both sides that there would be continued exchanges about discrimination, including on religious grounds. The recommendations will be a useful point of reference for future engagement with India on human rights issues.
Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received on levels of religiously-motivated violence in India in 2008; and if he will make a statement. [274097]
Bill Rammell: We have received reports of communal violence in Orissa and Karnataka where Hindu extremists waged a campaign of violence against Christians in August and September 2008. At about the same time in Assam, violent clashes occurred between Bodo tribes and Muslims; in Maharastra, between Hindus and Muslims and in Andra Pradesh, between Hindus and Muslims.
We have raised the issue of freedom of religion with the Indian authorities on several occasions, most recently at the EU-India Human Rights Dialogue which took place on 27 February 2009 in New Delhi.
Mauritania: Elections
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs for what reasons the (a) EU and (b) UK decided not to send observers to the presidential elections in Mauritania. [275098]
Bill Rammell: The EU was invited by the Mauritanian junta to send an Election Observation Mission (EOM) to monitor the proposed 6 June 2009 elections in Mauritania. The EU agreed to suspend non-humanitarian assistance to Mauritania under Article 96 of the Cotonou Agreement on 2 April 2009 because of insufficient progress towards the restoration of democratic rule, following the 6 August 2008 coup. The request by the Mauritanian coup leaders for an EU EOM was declined on the grounds that the elections are currently envisaged not to be representative, free or fair. There are a number of political parties boycotting the elections on this basis.
The UK has not been invited to send any observers to the presidential elections.
Mikhail Khodorkovsky
Mr. Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with (a) his Russian counterpart and (b) HM Ambassador in Moscow on the imprisonment of Mikhail Khodorkovsky. [274676]
Caroline Flint: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has not specifically raised Mikhail Khodorkovsky’s situation in his recent conversations with Foreign Minister Lavrov. However, we have made clear our concerns about the treatment of Mr. Khodorkovsky, and others who have been arrested or prosecuted in the Yukos affair, both bilaterally and through the EU. The issue was raised bilaterally at the UK-Russia human rights consultations in January 2009 in Moscow. Our concerns relate to due process and fair treatment in the Yukos cases, and they include the arbitrary application of the rule of law, access to lawyers and medical care, conditions of detention and the alleged harassment of defence teams and witnesses.
Our embassy in Moscow is watching current developments in Mr. Khodorkovsky’s case closely, and is participating in trial monitoring with EU partners and the US. We will continue to follow the progress of Mr. Khodorkovsky’s case.
Middle East: Armed Conflict
Mrs. Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions (a) he and (b) his officials have had with their counterparts in the (i) European Union and (ii) UN Security Council on efforts to secure the release of kidnapped Israeli soldier Corporal Shalit. [275402]
Bill Rammell: We along with the EU have made our position clear ever since the kidnapping of Gilad Shalit, and we continue to call for his immediate, unconditional, and safe release. The EU High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy, Javier Solana, made this clear in his press statement on the Gaza crisis in January 2009, and my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary last reiterated this message during his intervention at the UN Security Council on 11 May 2009.
Mrs. Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with representatives of the Israeli government on the kidnapped Israeli soldier, Corporal Shalit. [275403]
Bill Rammell: The UK continues to call for the immediate, unconditional, and safe release of Gilad Shalit, in public and in private, including in our discussions with the Israeli Government. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary reiterated this most recently in his statement to the UN Security Council on 11 May 2009.
Papua: Human Rights
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the Indonesian authorities on allegations of human rights abuses in West Papua. [275130]
Bill Rammell: I raised UK concerns with the situation in Papua and West Papua provinces in discussions with the Indonesian Foreign Minister, Hassan Wirajuda, on 10 February 2009. I stressed that greater transparency was an important element to building trust and ensuring greater peace and prosperity for the region. Embassy officials continue to monitor the situation closely and to discuss the human rights situation with Indonesian Government officials—most recently on 6 May 2009—as well as civil society and community representatives from the Papuan provinces.
Papua: International Red Cross
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make representations to the government of Indonesia on its recent decision to expel the International Committee of the Red Cross from West Papua. [275129]
Bill Rammell: We have sought clarification of the reports regarding the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and their presence in West Papua from the Government of Indonesia. Our embassy have been told that the ICRC field office in Papua has been closed and that the status agreements governing the ICRC’s activities in Indonesia need to be renegotiated. We hope that this can be concluded speedily. The government of Indonesia told us that ICRC officials may still visit Papua. Our embassy are also in touch with ICRC officials in Indonesia and will continue to monitor the situation closely. We are meeting with the Indonesian ambassador in London to register our concerns. I discussed access to Papua and West Papua provinces with Indonesia’s Foreign Minister, Hassan Wirajuda, most recently on 10 February 2009 in Jakarta.
Rizana Nafeek
Mr. Mullin: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs with reference to the answer of 14 January 2008, Official Report, column 1855W, on Rizana Nafeek, if he will direct HM Ambassador to Saudi Arabia to report on Rizana Nafeek; and if he will make a statement. [273766]
Bill Rammell:
Ms Nafeek is currently held in a prison north, of Riyadh. The appeal against her conviction is outstanding. The Sri Lankan embassy in Riyadh have regular consular access. The Saudi Human Rights Commission are aware of Ms Nafeek’s case. The Government oppose the death penalty in all cases. We are particularly opposed to the execution of people who
are convicted of crimes committed when they were minors. In February 2009 the UK recommended that Saudi Arabia set an age of legal majority at 18 during the Universal Periodic Review of Saudi Arabia in Geneva. This recommendation was repeated by my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary to the Saudi Foreign Minister during his visit to Riyadh in April 2009.
Russia: Nuclear Power Stations
Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received of proposals by the Russian Government to build and operate nuclear power stations in Arctic waters. [274776]
Caroline Flint: We have received no formal approach by the Russian Government about proposals to build and operate nuclear power stations in Arctic Waters.
Sri Lanka: Armed Conflict
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations he has made to the Government of Sri Lanka on allegations of human rights abuses in the conflict in that country. [275081]
Bill Rammell: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary visited Sri Lanka on 29 April 2009. Most recently he spoke to Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Bogllogama on 10 May 2009 to express our concerns about the situation in Sri Lanka.
The Foreign Secretary has consistently pressed the Sri Lankan Government to abide by its obligations under international humanitarian law and to take all possible steps to safeguard civilian lives, including allowing UN and international aid agencies to deliver food, water and medicine into the conflict zone and to allow civilians allowed to move to safety. It is vital that the conditions for those civilians in the IDP camps meet international standards.
We have made clear to the Sri Lankan Government the need to guarantee press freedoms. Given the restrictions placed on the media and non-governmental organisations, it has been difficult to verify reports and accusations by both sides of the conflict. The Foreign Secretary has also expressed the need for transparency.
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