Tag: Foreign Office

It’s now three years since the fraudulent August 2020 presidential elections in Belarus. Three years of brutal repression – of civil society groups, political opponents, journalists and ordinary citizens.

Repression that continues to intensify with the introduction of further legislation to restrict freedoms, punish dissent and neutralise democratic opposition.

There are now over 1,500 political prisoners in Belarus, often held in appalling conditions, denied access to basic medical care, starved of contact with their families, and subject to degrading treatment, including torture. Let me highlight the recent tragic death of Ales Pushkin, a prominent Belarusian activist arrested for his political artwork, who died in detention in unclear circumstances.

Once again, we call on the Belarusian authorities to put an end to their policy of repression and immediately to release political prisoners. While they are it, they should also end their support to Russia’s illegal war against their Ukrainian neighbours.

High Commissioner,

Three years on from the flawed and fraudulent elections, how can the international community best support human rights defenders and ensure Belarusian officials are held to account for their crimes?

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr President.

The United Kingdom thanks the Special Rapporteur for his report, which recognises that the Government of Burundi has taken some steps in line with their commitment to improving human rights. We welcome these, but also note that the Government has further progress to make before this objective is fully realised.

In particular, we remain concerned about the ability of the people of Burundi to access and enjoy their civil and political rights. We call on Burundi to make genuine reforms to guarantee the rights to freedom of opinion, expression, peaceful assembly and association. An active civil society and free media are cornerstones of democracy, and the government of Burundi should work to ensure civil society, human rights defenders, journalists, bloggers and other media workers can carry out their work safely and independently.

We were also deeply concerned by Burundi’s decision to withdraw its participation during its recent regular review of its adherence to the ICCPR by the Human Rights Committee.

Special Rapporteur,

Your findings show that continued scrutiny by this Council is both justified, and necessary. We again call on the government to cooperate fully with this Council, with your mandate, and with the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and other UN bodies working to improve the human rights situation in Burundi, including by reopening the OHCHR country office. What possibility, if any, do you see for a resumption of cooperation through any of these channels?

Thank you.

Mr President,

This statement is made on behalf of a cross regional group of 53 countries.

We support the important work of the Commissioners and the role they play together with the International, Impartial and Independent Mechanism, in ensuring accountability for the ongoing serious violations of international law in Syria.

We are alarmed by the increase in hostilities resulting in civilian casualties, and by the absence of a long-term solution to ensuring the uninterrupted delivery of humanitarian aid to all those in need, and call on all parties to facilitate immediate and unhindered humanitarian assistance.

We note with concern, and condemn, the persistence of arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances, torture and deaths in detention, including for returnees. We demand that the Syrian authorities cease these violations, ensure the protection of civilians, respect the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly without discrimination. We urge them to engage, in good faith, with the Independent Institution on Missing Persons.

We recall the Commissioners’ findings that Syria does not yet offer a safe and stable environment for returns, and support UNHCR’s call for to the Syrian authorities to create this.

Mr President,

Recent protests demonstrate the despair, and continued bravery, of the Syrian people and we urge Damascus to acknowledge their legitimate demands.

We support all efforts to progress the political process and urge the Syrian authorities, and all parties, to engage meaningfully and, in good faith, to advance all aspects of Security Council resolution 2254.

Joint Statement by the United Kingdom on behalf of 53 countries:

Albania, Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ecuador, Estonia, France, Finland, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Marshall Islands, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, New Zealand, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, ROK, Romania, San Marino, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, UK, Ukraine, USA,

Thank you Vice President,

Special Rapporteur,

Your report visibly demonstrates the rapid increase in repression since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Repression at home, aggression abroad.

Recent legislation adopted with little public scrutiny has further restricted the fundamental rights that Russians should enjoy under international law.

Criminal sentences have become harsher and longer. Judges are subject to political influence. Anti-war speech is criminalised.

More than half of those arrested for anti-war activism are women, and you noted, determined to advocate for peace in the face of gender-based violence and increased restrictions on their roles in public life.

A prohibitively hostile legal framework makes it almost impossible for non-government controlled media to operate, undermining an essential condition for free and fair elections.

We once again condemn the politically motivated prosecution of so many who oppose Russia’s illegal invasion, including Vladimir Kara-Murza, Alexei Navalny, Ilya Yashin and Maria Ponomarenko. And we will continue to hold those responsible for human rights violations to account through our sanctions.

Special Rapporteur, given the Russian Government’s failure to engage with your mandate, how can this Council promote the upholding of Russians’ fundamental rights, particularly freedom of expression?

With mutual goals to reach net-zero targets by 2050, the 18th UK–Taiwan Renewable Energy Conference was held today to deepen the partnership and to explore further collaboration opportunities on renewable energy development between the UK and Taiwan. More than 150 participants, including 10 British business representatives, discussed the latest global renewable energy trends, shared capabilities and best practices in floating wind development, and operations & maintenance for offshore wind. Attendees also shared insights into emerging renewable energy technologies including low carbon hydrogen, carbon capture & storage and smart grid.

Lord Faulkner of Worcester, the UK Prime Minister’s Trade Envoy to Taiwan and Yi-Ling CHEN, Chief Secretary of Ministry of Economic Affairs represented the UK and Taiwan respectively to open the Conference.

UK grid technology company Reactive Technologies and Taiwan Power Company celebrated the rollout of Reactive Technology’s GridMetrix® platform. This platform is a grid stability measurement service software that offers real-time insight into the stability of a power system, enabling grid operators like Taiwan Power to save significant costs and manage risks more effectively. This partnership will enable Taiwan Power to accurately measure, visualise, forecast and better control inertia across its network and provide critical system stability data and insights as the network goes through a period of significant transition from fossil fuels and to renewable energy.

Lord Faulkner of Worcester, the UK Trade Envoy to Taiwan said:

The UK is committed to collaborating with international partners like Taiwan to overcome the challenges in energy transition, in particular the ones faced by the offshore wind industry. This is to ensure we collectively achieve our shared sustainability and net zero goals. The partnership between the UK’s Reactive Technologies and Taiwan Power Company is a great example of UK-Taiwan cooperation. This development will support stability and resilience of the power grid for Taiwan’s energy transition.

Yi-Ling CHEN, Chief Secretary of Ministry of Economic Affairs, remarked:

The cooperation between Taiwan and the UK has been ongoing for 17 years. Both sides consider offshore wind as a key focus for cooperation, covering aspects including planning, investigation, construction and operation. Besides the promotion of offshore wind, the development of other emerging renewable energy such as floating wind, hydrogen, carbon capture and storage is also crucial. We appreciate the valuable information regarding renewable energy shared by the UK during previous conferences.

Umair Choudhry, APAC Regional Energy Lead, Department for Business and Trade as the UK Chair of the 18th UK-Taiwan Renewable Energy Conference said:

This conference has highlighted the strong and growing partnership between the UK and Taiwan in the renewable energy sector, especially in offshore wind. The UK has a wealth of knowledge, experience and resources which can support Taiwan to develop its offshore wind industry. Let us build a strong and lasting partnership between the UK and Taiwan – one that places sustainability at the forefront of our vision for the future.

Taiwan Chair, Cheng-Wei YU, Director General of Bureau of Energy, Ministry of Economic Affairs, said:

The UK is in a leading position in the global renewable energy field, and Taiwan has long considered the UK as an important partner in developing renewable energy and achieving energy transition goals. We are very pleased to witness the collaboration between Taiwan and the UK in grid stability monitoring services during this conference, and we look forward to more companies from Taiwan and the UK establishing partnerships in the renewable energy field.

Taiwan is the UK’s most important offshore wind partner in the Asia Pacific Region. More than 40 UK offshore wind companies have set up operation in Taiwan; many of these offices serving as the regional Asia-Pacific hub.

More information

1. The UK-Taiwan renewable energy conference is held annually and co-hosted by British Office Taipei and Bureau of Energy of Ministry of Economic Affairs.
2. Reactive Technologies is a grid resilience technology company helping grid operators, electric utilities, and regulators transition to net zero and ensure resilient renewables-based power grids. More information please visit Reactive Technologies Limited
3. 10 British businesses participating in the 18th UK-Taiwan Renewable Energy Conference are:

• Acteon Group Ltd
• Arup
• Corio Generation
• Correll Group
• CWind Taiwan
• OEG Renewables
• Reactive Technologies
• RSK Group
• Sulmara
• Venterra Group

Thank you, Mr Vice-President.

While the conflict in Ethiopia has diminished, it certainly has not, unfortunately, disappeared.  We are deeply concerned by the latest reports of clashes in Amhara and Oromia, and the continuing situation in Tigray, where Eritrean forces are still present.  The human rights implications of these are still severe, and require independent investigation.

It is clear there are still deep divisions and tensions in Ethiopia, which must be reconciled. In this regard, we welcome the Pretoria Peace Agreement, which must be implemented rapidly and in full. In particular, we stress the importance of genuine accountability for violations and abuses, and a credible, impartial, independent transitional justice process, and note the Government of Ethiopia’s commitment to this.  We urge them to implement this in a way that is credible to all victims, across all ethnic groups. We also call on Ethiopia to work with its international partners in support of its stability and economic development.

Commissioners,

Thank you for your important report, and your excellent work.  What do you see are the main barriers to accountability for human rights in Ethiopia, and how can implementation of Ethiopia’s Transitional Justice policy be best supported by the international community?