Tag: Lord Alton of Liverpool

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2015-11-17.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with EU member states and other European countries about the implementation of targeted human rights sanctions against named North Korean officials who are suspected of committing crimes against humanity.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

We remain in close contact with other EU member states regarding our concerns over the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK). These include discussion on how we can address concerns over the DPRK’s nuclear programme and how we can improve the DPRK’s appalling human rights record. During our meetings we have discussed the full range of measures at our disposal including the option of targeted human rights sanctions against DPRK officials. We will always carefully consider the impact and benefits of sanctions measures before they are imposed. These considerations include our ability to defend the legality of the sanctions should they be challenged under EU law and the likelihood of achieving our objective of improved human rights for North Koreans.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2015-12-08.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anelay of St Johns on 7 December (HL4065), whether they are in the process of submitting evidence of genocide against Yazidis and Assyrian Christians to international courts, and if so, which ones; when the international courts last declared a genocide to have taken place; and when the international courts last initiated a trial for genocide, and against whom.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

We are not submitting any evidence of possible genocide against Yezidis and Christians to international courts, nor have we been asked to.

The most recent occasion on which an international court found genocide to have occurred was on 10 June 2010, when the Trial Chamber of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) convicted several of the accused in the Prosecutor v. Popović et al. case for either committing, conspiracy to commit, or aiding and abetting, genocide in and around Srebrenica and Žepa in 1995. These convictions were subsequently upheld by the Appeals Chamber of the ICTY on 30 January 2015.

The Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) initiated a trial against Khieu Samphan and Nuon Chea, two former Khmer Republic senior officials, which remains ongoing, and includes charges of genocide against the Cham and Vietnamese people. Evidence relating to the genocide charges began being heard on 7 September 2015.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-01-11.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to declare ISIS’s actions against Christians and Yazidis a genocide.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The British Government has received a number of recent representations on these issues from Parliament and members of the public and is responding in writing.

We condemn in the strongest possible terms the atrocities committed by Daesh against all civilians, including Christians, Mandeans, Yazidis, and other minorities, as well as the majority Muslim population who continue to bear the brunt of Daesh’s brutality. The UK has led efforts within the UN to tackle and condemn Daesh and on the protection of civilians more widely. For example, we co-sponsored the UN Human Rights Council Resolution mandating the UN to investigate and report on Daesh abuses.

It is a long-standing Government policy 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 only way to protect Christians, Yazidis and other minorities in the region from Daesh is by defeating this terrible organisation, which in turn requires, amongst other things, ending the conflict in Syria. The Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron), set out the UK’s comprehensive strategy for defeating Daesh and finding a political settlement to the Syria conflict in his response to the Foreign Affairs Committee on 26 November 2015.

The joint Office of the United Nations Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide and the Special Adviser on the Responsibility to Protect (the Office) are engaged with these issues and publish much of their activity online, including statements in relation to the situation of Christians and other minorities in Syria and Iraq. Our officials maintain regular contact with officials from the Office to discuss issues related to the prevention of genocide and mass atrocities. The Government provides funding for the Office, including for their work with religious leaders and faith based organisations in the Middle East and North Africa region, aimed at the prevention of incitement to violence that could lead to atrocity crimes.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-01-20.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the case for providing unmonitored mobile and internet communications to the people of North Korea as a contribution to breaking that country’s information blockade.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The provision of mobile and electronic communications are strictly controlled by the North Korean government. Supplying the population with mobile and internet equipment would require the consent and cooperation of the regime. Establishing an alternative system without the agreement of the North Korea government could be viewed as a violation of local laws; all our Missions overseas must abide by the law of their host countries and the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. We regularly raise human rights concerns and freedom of expression.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-02-04.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Prior of Brampton on 27 January (HL5039), whether the recently approved application by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority to perform genome editing in human embryos by means of CRISPR-Cas9 will be performed on embryos specifically created for research or only on those considered to be surplus to infertility treatments; whether that research application included any application for the creation of embryos; and if not, why the person responsible requested that reference to surplus embryos should be removed from the research project title.

Lord Prior of Brampton

The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority has advised that this research project will make use of donated embryos that were originally created for treatment purposes. An application was not made to create embryos for the purposes of this research project.

The removal of ‘surplus’ from the title does not reflect a change in the way embryos will be donated to the research.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-02-22.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Prior of Brampton on 11 February (HL5647), whether the UK Stem Cell Bank holds appropriately detailed records on the origin of stem cell lines deposited therein; and if so, when any bona fide stem cells derived from trophectoderm were recorded as having been deposited in the UK Stem Cell Bank.

Lord Prior of Brampton

When human embryonic stem cell lines are deposited at UK Stem Cell Bank originators of the cells complete a detailed application that includes the scientific characteristics of the cells. Applications to deposit cell lines derived in the United Kingdom are reviewed to confirm that they comply with Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority licencing by the steering committee. The cell lines currently deposited with UK Stem Cell Bank do not include human stem cell lines derived from trophectoderm.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-03-07.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the effectiveness of the humanitarian and emergency response to the earthquakes in Nepal in 2015, and of which organisations were best placed to deliver a quick response to affected areas and to deliver lasting change.

Baroness Verma

The Government’s response to the recent devastating earthquakes now stands at £70 million. Funds raised by the British public for the DEC appeal have already reached over £85 million, which includes £5 million in matched funding provided by DFID. UK support has provided: over 230,000 people with emergency shelter; over 200,000 people with winter support such as clothes, blankets and mattresses; and over 2,000 hours of helicopter flights to provide lifesaving humanitarian assistance to communities in areas inaccessible by road.

In the first few weeks after the earthquake, DFID and the UN Resident Coordinator’s Office established a project to collect beneficiary feedback. Short, monthly perception surveys on the coverage, quality and fairness of the humanitarian response are produced by this project. This information has informed the DFID response, as well as shaped wider humanitarian efforts in Nepal.

DFID is also funding a number of ongoing surveys to understand the issues and challenges on the ground, including community recovery from the earthquake (with the Asia Foundation) and also levels of food security in the affected areas (with the World Food Programme). In a complex context, this has helped us understand the needs and challenges that are driving costs and delivery timelines.

DFID delivered much of its humanitarian support through International Non-Governmental Organisations, who had the capacity and presence on the ground to respond. We have undertaken regular monitoring of partner performance through field trips, meetings with partners, and routine narrative reporting. We have undertaken three rounds of monitoring to track partner performance, unit costs, timeliness and quality. All partner organisations have delivered to expectations.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-03-17.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they will respond to, and what is their assessment of, the statement by the US Secretary of State, John Kerry, that Daesh is responsible for genocide against groups in areas under its control, including Yazidis and Christians.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The US Secretary of State, John Kerry, is right to draw attention to the appalling crimes Daesh are committing, both against minority groups and Muslims. We will continue to work closely with the US and our other partners in the Global Coalition to defeat Daesh and to ensure justice for those who have suffered at their hands. It is a long standing UK policy that any judgement on whether genocide has occurred should be a matter for judicial decision, rather than for governments. As Secretary of State Kerry said, “ultimately, the full facts must be brought to light by an independent investigation and through formal legal determination made by a competent court or tribunal.”

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-04-25.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps the UK is taking in Burma to ensure that the three objectives of the Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative are met.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

We are persistent in applying pressure to 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 2015, the Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for East Devon (Mr Swire), pressed the Burmese government at senior ministerial level on the issue. He also launched the International Protocol on the Documentation and Investigation of Sexual Violence. We continue to raise the issue in international fora, including through UN resolutions on Burma at the General Assembly and the Human Rights Council, which we co-sponsor. We also facilitated the 2015 visit of the co-founder of the Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative, Angelina Jolie-Pitt. Along with Mr Swire, I was pleased to update selected Parliamentarians on our continuing efforts on this serious issue at the Burma briefing on Wednesday 4 May.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-05-10.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the detention and expulsion of BBC journalists from North Korea.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The detention and expulsion of a BBC journalist in Pyongyang is of concern. This is yet another example of the North Korean regime’s attempts to restrict and control the free flow of information and limit freedom of speech. We will continue to raise human rights issues, such as freedom of speech and freedom of expression, directly with the regime and in international fora as part of our policy of critical engagement.