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Lord Astor of Hever: My Lords, I congratulate the noble Lord, Lord Hylton, on stimulating this most interesting and much needed debate. It is with great sadness and disappointment that I notice how daily reports of violence and bombings in Iraq are currently considered the norm. It is so easy for the media and politicians to bunch all that is happening in Iraq under one hat and miss what some have called the increasingly desperate situation of the indigenous Chaldo-Assyrian Christians and other religious and ethnic minorities.

There have been significant and repeated attacks on ethnic minority groups in Iraq, both before and since the elections in January this year. I will not reiterate some of the horrors that your Lordships have mentioned tonight, but the continual reports of ethnic minorities such as the Chaldo-Assyrians suffering discrimination cannot be ignored.

I understand from the FCO website that our embassy in Baghdad and our offices in Kirkuk and Basra have been instructed to monitor the situation, especially with regard to the criminal activity based on the widespread belief that Christians are wealthy. Can the Minister update the House with the most recent reports from our offices on that issue? I hope that the noble Baroness can also reiterate Her Majesty's Government's condemnation of attacks of any kind, particularly on Christian churches.

A particular worry is the complaints over Assyrian Christian participation in the spring elections. The elections offered all Iraqis the opportunity to vote for the candidate who would best represent their interests. Groups of Assyrian Christians were registered to take part by the Independent Electoral Commission of Iraq, but there have been numerous complaints of irregularities in the voting procedures from that minority in particular. Dr Malko, president of the Assyrian National Assembly, has claimed that up to 400,000 Assyrians and other ethnic minorities, such as the Yezidis, Shabak and Turkomen were prevented from voting, as ballot boxes did not reach them, and that the Kurdish militia stopped them going to vote.

The Jubilee campaign reports that ballot boxes stored in Arbil, the stronghold of the Kurdistan Democratic Party, were blocked from being delivered from at least six major Chaldo-Assyrian towns and villages in the Nineveh plains. That left thousands of would-be voters stranded outside polling places with no opportunity to cast their vote.

Some 85 to 90 per cent of the Iraqi expatriate community are Assyrians. The Assyrian international news agency highlighted the fact that 170,000 Assyrians in the United States were left with no polling station. The International Organisation for Migration refused to add further polling stations despite there being more available in other countries such as Australia and Iran. We welcome an imperfect system rather than none at all, especially when out-of-country voting was agreed only a short time before the election, but there are lessons that need to be learnt to ensure
 
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that there are free and fair procedures for this year's constitutional referendum on 15 October and the elections for a new Iraqi government on 15 December.

The key to protecting the legitimate interests of religious and ethnic minorities in Iraq is ensuring that they are enshrined in the constitution. It is vital that it contains the necessary protections regarding the full religious rights of all individuals to freedom of religious belief and practice; that all Iraqis are equal in their rights, without regard to gender, sect, opinion, belief, nationality, religion or origin; and that they are equal before the law. It should also include what we take for granted: the protection of public and private freedoms, including the right of free expression and peaceable assembly and the right to join associations, unions and political parties freely without unlawful arrest or detention, particularly that based on religious or political belief.

What steps are the Government taking to ensure that the new Iraqi constitution will guarantee the rights of Christians and other religious minorities to full and equal citizenship? Do the Government support the call by the International Crisis Group for the deadline for the constitution to be extended until 15 September? I am sure that it would be better to take a little more time and get it right.

It is all cyclical: the more violence there is, the greater the call for equality and the claims of discrimination. The more secure the country is, the better the environment in which democratic process, personal freedom and equality can flourish. Does the noble Baroness accept that there is a need to accelerate the rate at which Iraq's indigenous security forces are trained and take further steps to reconstruct the country, at the same time giving young unemployed Iraqis a chance to make a living and not get drawn into violent groups? I look forward to the day when news of death, injury and discrimination in Iraq is no longer the norm.

8.29 pm

Baroness Royall of Blaisdon: My Lords, I thank the noble Lord, Lord Hylton, for raising this very important subject for debate and for further highlighting the situation of the Chaldo-Assyrians in Iraq. They are rightly a proud people whose culture and roots in the region can be traced back more than 2,000 years. I am grateful to all noble Lords for their very informed interventions. I will certainly answer as many questions as possible, but those to which I do not respond, I will of course respond to in writing. On behalf of Her Majesty's Government, I condemn all attacks on minorities and places of worship.

From the endless media diet of violent attacks in Iraq, Iraq's political process continues to move forward. In his speech to the international conference on Iraq in Brussels on 22 June, the Iraqi Prime Minister confirmed that the inclusion of all Iraqis in the political process is key. That, he said, will undermine those trying to destroy the unity of Iraq. That is particularly important.
 
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The Government wholeheartedly support those sentiments. We want to see an inclusive constitutional process in which the final product enshrines the rights of all Iraqis, protecting their interests. Key to securing that is the participation of all Iraq's communities in the process. Behind the scenes, we encourage the Transitional National Assembly's constitutional committee to expand its membership to ensure the broadest possible inclusion. We are pleased that that has now been agreed. We now urge the committee and the transitional Government to pursue aggressive public outreach programmes, further increasing the participation of Iraq's diverse communities.

In answer to questions from my noble friend Lord Rea and other noble Lords on voting irregularities, the Independent Electoral Commission of Iraq investigated all complaints of irregularities in voting procedures, including those made by the Chaldo-Assyrians in the 30 January elections. The Independent Electoral Commission wrote to each complainant with its findings. It has conducted a major lessons-learnt exercise with the UN to ensure that in future elections there will be fewer irregularities.

The noble Lord, Lord Hylton, rightly mentioned the return of Chaldo-Assyrians to their land and villages. Our posts report that relations between the Kurds and the Chaldo-Assyrians in the north are good. A successful resettlement programme is under way in the north—for example, in Faysh Khabour.

The noble Baroness, Lady Northover, and the noble Lord, Lord Hylton, raised construction and funds for Chaldo-Assyrians. After decades of damage by a repressive regime, it will of course take time to build Iraqi institutions, improve the infrastructure and for the public sector to flourish. The Iraqi transitional Government are firmly in the lead on reconstruction. They have massive international support: $32 billion was pledged in Madrid in October in grants and concessional loans. But it is of course up to the Iraqi Government to co-ordinate with the Kurdish regional government to afford an equitable redistribution of resources to all the Iraqi people for construction.

In answer to questions from the noble Baroness, Lady Cox, and the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Rochester, on freedom of worship and the constitution, it would be premature to judge what the contents of the constitution will be, but we must welcome the decision on 4 July to expand the constitutional committee to a commission that includes the broadest possible participation. The Transitional Administrative Law guarantees the full religious rights of all individuals to freedom of religious belief and practices. Her Majesty's Government very much hope that the constitutional drafters will respect that principle. It is of course for Iraqis themselves to decide their constitution.

I return now to the constitutional process, which will not succeed through force of Iraqi will alone. Iraq needs the international community's support, which is why the Government welcome the occasion of the international conference, where more than 80 states and international organisations underscored their willingness to help Iraq rebuild. The United Nations
 
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has the lead role in co-ordinating international assistance to this constitutional process. We work closely with the UN team on the ground to identify the constitutional committee's priorities and to see how best we can give direct help.

There is only so much that good process and support from Iraq's friends can achieve. Ultimately, Iraqis will debate and decide on the future constitution and the structure of the state. Brave decisions will have to be made. Compromises will have to be struck. But one tenet that must be preserved is the protection of fundamental human rights. Chaldo-Assyrians, along with the Turkomen, Yazidi and Mandaens, have representatives on the Constitutional Committee. These representatives have been tasked with ensuring that their communities' concerns are reflected and their fundamental rights enshrined. They are playing an active part in contributing to the final draft. In this way we hope that all Iraq's communities, including the Chaldo-Assyrians, will be able to identify with the values and institutions enshrined in the constitution.

As noble Lords have said, until a permanent constitution is put in place, all Iraqis remain subject to Iraq's Transitional Administrative Law. I commend the document to the House. To that end, Article 53(D) guarantees,

"the administrative, cultural, and political rights of the Turcomans, ChaldoAssyrians, and all other citizens".

Interpretation of this article is ultimately a matter for the Iraqi authorities to determine. However, we maintain the view that Article 53(D) does not include the right to an autonomous administrative region for one particular group. It is our understanding that the intention of this provision was not to grant self-governing status to the Chaldo-Assyrians, but to ensure administrative, cultural and political rights to them as well as to all other citizens. Furthermore, Article 4 of the Transitional Administrative Law makes clear that the federal system shall be based on geographic and historical realities and the separation of powers and not on origin, race, ethnicity, nationality or confession.

While it is clear that voices among the Chaldo-Assyrians are calling for a separate, autonomous administrative region, it is not clear how widespread is this view. I note, of course, the comments of the noble Lord, Lord Hylton. He mentioned the letter that has been sent to the Prime Minister. It has been received and a response will be issued shortly. I can assure the noble Lord that the three points raised in the letter have been noted and will be carefully considered. FCO officials in Iraq have recently spoken to Mr Kanna about this matter, and he is aware that the letter has been received.

On the final declaration of the Chaldo-Assyrian Conference, it stressed the unity of Iraq. The UK supports an inclusive and practical process which will unite the people of Iraq, giving them stability. The aim of the international community must remain to help all Iraqis to create a united, federal, pluralist Iraq where all Iraqi citizens are secure wherever they may reside in the country and irrespective of race or religious beliefs.
 
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In response to the noble Baroness, Lady Cox, the new sovereign Iraq is responsible for ensuring that human rights are respected in all areas of Iraqi society. We are working with the Iraqi government and our international partners to development human rights awareness through capacity building, awareness programmes and other training.

The Transitional Administrative Law has committed Iraq's Interim Government to some form of federal structure, with power shared,

"between federal and regional governments, governorates, municipalities, and localities".

The details of much of the federal settlement are undecided and will be resolved by the Constitutional Committee. We will continue our contacts with the committee and the broader Transitional National Assembly to urge that the rights of all minority groups, including the Chaldo-Assyrians, are accorded their due priority and will remain in close contact with committee representatives from minority groups to ensure that they are being given every right to contribute fully to discussion and to participate in decisions on Iraq's federal structure. We believe that the boundaries and powers of any federal regions are a matter for the Iraqis alone to resolve.

The reports of human rights abuses against Chaldo-Assyrians, which have been so properly but horrifically catalogued this evening, are of deep and grave concern. Our officials in Iraq meet regularly with leaders of the Christian communities to gauge their views and raise our concerns with the Iraqi authorities.

The Transitional Administrative Law recognises the human rights of all minorities in Iraq. We maintain a dialogue with the Iraqi Transitional Government at all levels, making clear our support for the human rights of all Iraqis, and we will continue to lobby for the appointment of a human rights Minister as soon as possible.

We welcome the statement from Iraq's Shia Muslim leader, Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, calling for an end to the attacks and for the need to respect the rights of Chaldo-Assyrians and those of other religious faiths and their right to live in Iraq peacefully. In Basra, where the British deployment in Iraq is centred, we have good relations with Archbishop Kassab, who supports close integration with the Muslim community in the south. In the north, there is evidence of successful integration where Chaldo-Assyrians chose to resettle.

The noble Lord, Lord Rea, referred to the role of the EU presidency. This will give us the added advantage of speaking for all member states, which, like us, continue to encourage Iraqis to work to ensure that the fundamental rights of all its citizens are protected, regardless of their race or ethnicity.

The noble Lord also mentioned the démarche and the actions being taken by the European Parliament representative in Iraq. I undertake to follow up on this issue to see what is happening.
 
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The noble Baroness, Lady Northover, referred to the Turkomen. The UK is fully aware of the sufferings of the Turkomen under Saddam Hussein and we regularly meet with the Iraqi Turkomen Front representatives in both London and Iraq.

The Government remain committed to helping Iraq see the transitional process through to a successful conclusion. There are landmarks ahead: agreeing the draft constitution in August; a referendum on it in October; elections and the formation of a constitutional government by the end of December. But that will not be the end of the process. Iraq will continue to need our help. In providing that help, uppermost in our minds will be the need for Iraqis to ensure that the fundamental rights of all its citizens are protected, regardless of their sect or ethnicity, allowing Iraq to turn decisively away from the horrific years of the Ba'athist rule.

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