Tag: Baroness Tonge

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-01-11.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Israel regarding the destruction of structures in al Hadidiya in November 2015, despite an injunction by the Israeli Civil Administration, in particular a one-kilometre section of road serving that community and funded by an international donor.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

We have not made representations on these specific issues to the Israeli authorities. We do, however, regularly raise our concerns with the Israeli authorities over demolitions and settlement-building.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-02-02.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they plan to take to help to ensure that women have access to safe and legal abortion services throughout Latin America and the Caribbean in the light of the spread of the Zika virus and its potential link to birth defects.

Baroness Verma

As the main public health threat of Zika is to the unborn babies of infected pregnant women in affected countries it is important that responses to Zika include vector and infection control with a focus on pregnant women or women of child-bearing age and strengthened reproductive and sexual health services (for women who do not want to get pregnant). The importance of comprehensive sexual and reproductive health services for all women is brought home by the emergence of Zika. There may be increased demand for voluntary rights based family planning from women in affected countries seeking to avoid pregnancy, and there is a risk of a rise in unsafe abortion in some countries. DFID has a track record of promoting rights based family planning and in highlighting the contribution safe abortion makes to saving women’s lives. We are in close contact with DFID-funded partners, including in the UN system and civil society, active in affected regions although DFID has not been asked to provide specific sexual and reproductive health and rights assistance to countries in Latin America and the Caribbean affected by the Zika virus.

New guidelines covering maternal surveillance and neonatal health are being rolled out across the region, developed by the Latin American Centre for Perinatology, Women and Reproductive Health.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-02-25.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government who will represent them at the forthcoming World Humanitarian Summit in May.

Baroness Verma

Final decisions on who will be in the delegation will be taken nearer the time.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-03-07.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Israel concerning unexploded ordnance left after military training close to Palestinian property.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

We have not made any representations to the Israeli authorities on this issue.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-03-22.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Israel about the appropriation of 234 hectares of Palestinian land near Jericho by Israel on 10 March.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office issued a press statement on 16 March condemning the Israeli government’s decision to take over 585 acres of land in the West Bank as ‘state land’.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-04-18.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they are making to the government of Israel in the light of the dawn raid on a currency exchange shop in Ramallah.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

No representations have been made to the Government of Israel on this issue.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-05-19.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they are making to the government of Israel following reports from Physicians for Human Rights in Israel that wounded Palestinians have been deliberately left untreated by Israeli medical orderlies for as long as two hours.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

While we have not made representations to the Government of Israel about this particular issue, we have concerns about treatment of Palestinian detainees. We have raised these concerns with the Israeli authorities on many occasions, including at Foreign Minister, Attorney General and National Security Adviser levels. Our Embassy in Tel Aviv regularly monitors this issue and meets with Physicians for Human Rights in Israel (PHRI). Our Ambassador in Tel Aviv met a group of Israeli civil society organisations, including PHRI, on 3 February.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-05-23.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they are making to the government of Israel regarding the targeting of Palestinian fishermen in the Gaza strip, including the sinking and confiscation of fishing boats on 15 May north of the Gaza strip.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

Whilst we have not raised this specific issue with the Government of Israel, officials from our Embassy in Tel Aviv have expressed our concern previously over the Israel Defence Forces’ use of live fire against fishermen and also about the confiscation of their boats.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-06-13.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have instigated, or plan to instigate, undercover police investigations into potential female genital mutilation perpetrators in the UK.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

How the police enforce the law in any particular case, including decisions on arrests, is an operational matter. This is in line with their duties to keep the peace, protect communities and prevent the commission of offences, working within the provisions of the legal framework set by Parliament. It is for the police to decide what might assist them in enforcement. The instigation of undercover investigations and the deployment of undercover officers is an operational matter for chief officers. Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is a crime and it is child abuse. We will not tolerate a practice that can cause extreme and lifelong physical and psychological suffering to women and girls. To support the police in investigating cases of FGM, in March 2015 the College of Policing published Authorised Professional Practice and on 1 April we published updated multi-agency guidance on FGM for all professions, which we have put on a statutory footing to support compliance.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-07-19.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they are supporting the government of Rwanda in its work to provide civil and political rights for its citizens.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

Rwanda has made impressive gains in securing economic and social rights; we want to see these continue. We support the Government of Rwanda’s Vision 2020 development programme which sets out their commitment to “the rule of law and the protection of human rights”.

We speak candidly with Rwanda, publicly and privately, and have been clear that Rwanda needs to do more to make these aspirations a reality. For example, we submitted recommendations on media freedoms and political space during the Universal Periodic Review on Rwanda. The Department for International Development’s work in Rwanda is underpinned by an agreement on four Partnership Principles, which include respect for human rights and promoting good governance. Our regular private discussions with the Government of Rwanda are reinforced at Ministerial level, including during visits to Kigali by the former Minister of State at the Department for International Development, my Rt Hon Friend the Member for Welwyn Hatfied (Grant Shapps), in September and the former Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Hon. Friend the Member for Rochford and Southend East (James Duddridge) in December last year.

We are also delivering training in partnership with the Rwandan National Police on a range of topics from public order management to gender based violence. This training supports the security forces to carry out their role of protecting the population in a human rights compliant manner.