Hugo Swire – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hugo Swire on 2016-09-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had on putting the Maldives on the agenda of the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group for the United Nations General Assembly.

Alok Sharma

Ministers and officials are in close contact with international partners about the situation in the Maldives. The Government welcomes the conclusion of April 2016 by the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) that its consideration of the situation in Maldives should continue. We also support its recommendations, in particular the need for the release of political leaders, the widening of space for civil society to operate in, and a swift implementation of reforms to strengthen separation of powers and independence of the judiciary in the Maldives. At its meeting in September, we hope CMAG will take firm action in line with its mandate to deal with persistent and serious violations of Commonwealth values.