Tag: Hilary Benn

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-02-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the Government recognises the killing of the Yazidis by Daesh as genocide.

Mr Philip Hammond

I condemn the atrocities committed by Daesh against all civilians, including Christians, Mandeans, Yezidis and other minorities, as well as the majority Muslim population in Iraq and Syria who continue to bear the brunt of Daesh’s brutality.

It is a long-standing policy of successive governments that any judgements on whether genocide has occurred are a matter for the international judicial system rather than governments or other non-judicial bodies.

Ultimately, the best way of preventing future atrocities is to defeat Daesh and its violent ideology.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-02-29.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to his Bahrainian counterpart on the arrest and sentencing of Ebrahim Sharif by that government.

Mr Philip Hammond

We have raised Ibrahim Sharif’s case with the Government of Bahrain. We regularly discuss human rights and reform with the Government of Bahrain, and call on the Bahraini Government to act proportionately in all such cases to protect the universal rights of freedom of expression and assembly. I most recently raised the issue of human rights when I met with the Bahraini Foreign Minister on 4 February.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-03-24.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent assessment she has made of barriers to humanitarian agencies reaching people in need in Yemen.

Mr Desmond Swayne

Conflict is making humanitarian access within Yemen extremely difficult. Humanitarian agencies report that they are constrained in reaching areas of greatest humanitarian need and delivering assistance for a number of reasons including bureaucratic requirements imposed by the authorities, access challenges for international staff, insecurity in a number of districts, and a proliferation of checkpoints across the country.

We continue to urge all parties to the conflict to take all reasonable steps to facilitate rapid, safe and unhindered humanitarian access. We work with trusted and impartial partners such as UN agencies and NGOs who have good access and a strong track record of delivering and monitoring assistance in difficult and dangerous places.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-03-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to reports of his remarks in Ankara in January 2016, what recent estimate he has made of the number of UK citizens who have (a) entered and since left, (b) entered and remained in and (c) been prevented from entering (i) Syria and (ii) Iraq since April 2013.

Mr Philip Hammond

Approximately 800 individuals of national security concern have travelled to take part in the Syria conflict since it began. Of these approximately half have returned. As I said when I visited Ankara in January, the UK and Turkey have worked together to prevent the travel of over 600 UK nationals to Syria and Iraq via Turkey.

The UK continues to work to prevent the flow of extremist travellers to Iraq and Syria, through domestic measures in the UK, and through co-operation with international partners including Turkey.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-04-25.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the oral contribution of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on 20 April 2016, Official Report, column 996, what evidence has been gathered and preserved of potential (a) war crimes and (b) genocide in (i) Syria and (ii) Iraq.

Mr Philip Hammond

Evidence is being gathered and preserved by a range of state and non state actors for potential prosecutions. The UK is supporting a number of these efforts. In Syria, the UK is funding the work of NGOs who are gathering evidence of Human Rights violations committed across Syria, including by Daesh and the Asad regime. This is being done to the standards required for criminal prosecution against high level perpetrators in a domestic or international court. In Iraq, we are considering how the UK might best complement similar efforts already underway. Working with international partners, we are doing everything we can to assist in the gathering and preservation of evidence that could in future be used by judicial bodies to make a judgement on this matter. It is vital that this is done now, before evidence is lost or destroyed.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-05-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports he has received on whether the Assad government’s military is targeting medical facilities in opposition-held territory in Syria.

Mr Philip Hammond

In April, the UN Secretary General reported to the UN Security Council that only 40% of medical facilities in Syria remained functioning, and most of these were in severe disrepair. At least 18 health facilities have been bombed in 2016 alone. In particular, we are deeply concerned by reports that at least five medical facilities have been targeted in opposition-held eastern Aleppo since 22 April. Most of the attacks against medical facilities are likely to have been carried out by the regime or its backers.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-07-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of whether there have been contraventions of the (a) 1954 Hague Convention on the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict and (b) 1972 World Heritage Convention during the conflict in Yemen.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

We remain concerned about any damage to cultural property in Yemen and are aware of reports of alleged damage by actors in the conflict. Yemen and many members of the Saudi Arabian-led Coalition are parties to the 1954 Hague Convention on the Protection of Cultural Property in the event of Armed Conflict and to the 1972 World Heritage Convention. We have raised our concerns regarding protection of cultural property with both the government of Yemen and Saudi Arabia.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-09-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to ensure that people with learning disabilities who have been sectioned have accessible information about their rights.

David Mowat

The Department commissioned some resources for people with learning disabilities to support the revised Mental Health Act Code of Practice to explain the Mental Health Act and people’s rights within it. This included a number of easy read factsheets which stated the type of information that should be provided when someone is sectioned. This includes what health professionals should and should not do, and what a person’s rights and choices are in this situation. The fact sheets are available at:

http://www.nhs.uk/NHSEngland/AboutNHSservices/mental-health-services-explained/Pages/easy-read-mental-health-act.aspx

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-10-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether it is the Government’s policy to seek to maintain free emergency medical treatment for (a) citizens from EU countries in the UK and (b) UK citizens in EU countries after the UK has left the EU.

David Mowat

While the people of the United Kingdom have voted to leave the European Union, until exit negotiations are concluded, the UK remains a full member of the EU and all the rights and obligations of EU membership remain in force, including the rights associated with medical treatment abroad.

Nothing has yet been decided on the future of British citizen medical treatment abroad. Government officials are considering the positions and options available to us with the aim of achieving the best outcome for British citizens in the UK and abroad.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2015-11-05.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has received on incidents of sexual violence committed by the Burmese army; and what representations he has made to the Burmese government on that matter.

Mr Philip Hammond

We recognise that sexual violence in Burma remains a significant problem and are focused on practical action to tackle it. This includes pressing the Burmese government to live up to the commitments it made when it endorsed the Declaration of Commitment to End Sexual Violence in Conflict at the London Global Summit in June 2014

During his visit to Burma in July, the Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right Hon. Friend the Member for East Devon (Mr Swire), pressed the Burmese government at Senior Ministerial level on the issue and launched the International Protocol on the Documentation and Investigation of Sexual Violence. We continue to press the agenda in international fora, including through UN resolutions on Burma at the General Assembly and the Human Rights Council, which we co-sponsor. At Friday’s Universal Periodic Review of Burma at the UN in Geneva, we focused our recommendations on ending sexual violence and the rights of women and girls, as well as on tackling the desperate situation in Rakhine State for the Rohingya community.