Tag: Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2016-03-16.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will call for the inclusion of women in the peace negotiations between the government of Burma and the ethnic armed political groups to ensure that the issue of rape and sexual violence in conflict is properly addressed.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

We are clear that women should have a critical role in the Burmese peace process, not only to ensure that the use of sexual violence is addressed but also so that women’s voices are heard in what is a key element of the country’s transition to peace and democracy. Several lead negotiators are women, including the head of the Senior Delegation of Ethnic leaders, Naw Zipporah Sein, and we encourage all sides to ensure equitable representation in the peace process. We welcome the inclusion of explicit provisions in the National Ceasefire Agreement, signed last October, prohibiting, ‘…any form of sexual attack on women, including sexual molestation, sexual assault or violence, rape and sex slavery’.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2016-04-28.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what provision for language interpretation services has been provided for Eritrean nationals in Calais who may lack the necessary level of English to complete an asylum request.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

Responsibility for the processing of asylum claims in Calais is a matter for the French Government.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2016-06-06.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the scale and frequency of extrajudicial killings in Nigeria.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

There are credible reports that human rights violations, including extra-judicial killings, have been committed by Nigerian security forces during its operations against Boko Haram. We welcome President Buhari’s commitment to overhaul the Nigerian armed force’s rules of engagement, to investigate credible allegations of human rights violations and to take appropriate action. We regularly stress to the Nigerian authorities the importance of protecting civilians in conflict and detention, and that, whilst we support their fight against terrorism, any action taken by the Nigerian Security Forces should fully comply with human rights standards and international law. Any member of the Nigerian security forces found to have been involved in human rights violations must be held accountable.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2015-11-10.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what efforts are being made to tackle rape and sexual and gender-based violence in the Darfur region of Sudan, in the light of the previous attacks on women and girls in that region.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

We continue to press the Government of Sudan to tackle sexual and gender-based violence. We raised the situation with the Director of Human Rights at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in late October. At the UN, the UK led on Security Council Resolution 2228 which called on all parties to the conflict in Darfur to make and implement specific and time-bound commitments to combat sexual violence. At the Human Rights Council in September we supported the Sudan resolution which condemned violations or abuses of international human rights and humanitarian law with specific reference to sexual and gender-based violence. In addition, UK-funded project work has provided support to over 150 survivors of rape in Darfur and contributed to the successful prosecution of members of the police and armed forces. We will continue to monitor the situation closely.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2015-12-17.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the case for pressing the government of the Central African Republic to delay the planned election until there is confidence that that election can be held safely and that all eligible voters will be on the electoral roll.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The British Government remains supportive of the elections planned for 27 December in the Central African Republic (CAR). This date has been agreed by the transitional government and the international community. Elections in CAR have already been delayed this year. Further delays would allow armed groups and spoilers to enhance their position and strengthen their rhetoric. There must be an end to the transition phase in order to secure a stable peace, and allow reconciliation to begin. By 16 November, when voter registration closed, approximately 95 per cent of the estimated electorate were registered, which is a significant success for the CAR transitional authorities. Out-of-country voter registration of Central African refugees and diaspora progressed more slowly, with approximately one third of the estimated refugee electorate registered. In the referendum on 13 December, judged a success by a UN Security Council assessment, many of CAR’s population turned out determined to vote. Through the international community, we will work to ensure that an elected president appoints an inclusive government representative of CAR’s population. Due to the commitment of the international community to the election date, agreement was found for some 300 extra UN troops to be provided to ensure security during the election period.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2016-02-29.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the evidence that recent attacks on the north-east Borna State in Nigeria, and attacks in neighbouring Chad and Cameroon, are being carried out by Boko Haram.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

Boko Haram usually do not claim responsibility for individual attacks, which often take place in remote areas with no international presence. However, they are the only terrorist organisation conducting this type and scale of attack in North East Nigeria and the wider Lake Chad Basin region, including in Chad and Cameroon. This assessment is shared by Nigerian National and State-level authorities as well as civil society across the region.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2016-03-16.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will consider providing funding to the Women’s League of Burma and its members to support ongoing work documenting cases of rape and providing support for victims of sexual violence.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The UK has previously provided funding support to the Women’s League of Burma, including towards the publication of some of their research into sexual violence in Burma. The organisation is invited to contact our Embassy in Rangoon directly if they have specific requests for future support.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2016-04-28.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many Eritrean nationals were required to pay fees for their asylum appeals in (1) 2013, (2) 2014, and (3) 2015.

Lord Faulks

The numbers of Eritrean nationals who lodged an asylum appeal in the UK or from overseas in the three years up to December 2015 are:

	Total	Within the UK	Outside the UK
2013	122	122	0
2014	241	240	1
2015	1,856	1,854	2

The numbers of Eritrean nationals who were required to pay a fee for their asylum appeal in the three years up to December 2015 are:

	Total
2013	1
2014	2
2015	23

Notes to tables:

1. Figures include Asylum, Protection and Revocation of Protection appeals.

2. Figures provided are taken from internal management information and not subject to the same quality checks as Official Statistics.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2016-07-11.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of Amnesty International’s report Our Hearts Have Gone Dark, what steps they have taken to ensure that the victims of serious health issues, including mental health, as a result of the conflict in South Sudan receive urgent and adequate care.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The UK is the second largest aid donor in South Sudan and leads the £200 million, five year, multi-donor Health Pooled Fund which provides primary health services, including mental health care, to over 8million people in eight states across South Sudan. The fund also supports the South Sudan Healthcare system to deliver lifesaving care, ranging from Primary Health Units in more remote areas to State Hospitals. Patients with serious illnesses, including mental health cases, are referred to the nearest centre able to provide care for them.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2015-11-18.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, FCO, Tobias Ellwood MP on 20 July (HC6867), what assessment they have made of the legality of coalition airstrikes in Yemen, and to what extent that assessment differs from those produced by Human Rights Watch.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The UK supports the Saudi Arabian-led Coalition military intervention in Yemen, which came at the request of legitimate President Hadi to the UN Security Council, the Gulf Co-operation Council, and the Arab League for support by ‘all means and measures to protect Yemen and deter Houthi aggression’. We are aware of reports, including from Human Rights Watch, of alleged violations of International Humanitarian Law by the Coalition. We have received repeated assurances from the Saudi Arabian-led coalition that they are complying with International Humanitarian Law and we continue to engage with them on those assurances. The Saudi Arabian authorities have their own internal procedures for investigations and we encourage them to be open and transparent in this. We have also raised our concerns with the Houthis on the importance of compliance with International Humanitarian Law and international human rights law.