| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
Krishna Maharaj
Peter Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if the Government will make representations to the authorities at state and at federal level for steps leading to the ending of the period in prison of Krishna Maharaj in the USA. [90965]
Dr. Howells: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has already lodged three “amicus curiae” briefs on a point of international law in Mr. Maharaj’s case. We understand that Mr. Maharaj still has appeals pending in both state and federal courts. Other than this, we have no remit to interfere in the due judicial process of the United States, either at state or federal level.
Peter Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how long Krishna Maharaj has been incarcerated in the USA. [91040]
Dr. Howells: Krishna Maharaj was arrested on16 October 1986. On 16 October 2006, he will have been incarcerated for 20 years.
Middle East
Mr. Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many civilian British nationals were evacuated from Lebanon during the recent conflict; and how many chose to remain. [90554]
Mr. McCartney: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) conducted a phased evacuation of some 4,600 people, of which 2,230 were British passport holders, from Beirut to Cyprus. The remainder were family members of British passport holders and nationals of EU, Commonwealth and other countries. Of the total number, we transported 2,250 from Cyprus to the UK. Many others left Lebanon independently.
Despite
a major communication effort through the media, the FCO website and the
‘Know Before You Go’ Campaign to encourage British
nationals to register with our embassy in Beirut, many British
nationals in Lebanon chose not to tell the embassy of
their presence in the country. We can therefore only estimate that a
maximum of 2,000 British nationals remained in Lebanon after our
evacuation
ended.
Mr. Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many civilian British nationals have (a) died and (b) been injured in the recent Middle East conflict in Israel and Lebanon. [90555]
Mr. McCartney: No deaths or injuries that were directly attributable to the conflict have been reported to our embassy in Beirut. One British national died of natural causes in a hospital in Tyre sometime after it was bombed.
Our embassy in Tel Aviv has reported that a dual British-Israeli citizen was killed serving with the Israeli Defence Forces in Lebanon.
Neither embassy has received reports of injuries to British nationals.
Mr. Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many businesses owned by British citizens were damaged in the recent Middle East conflict in Israel and Lebanon. [90556]
Mr. McCartney: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has not received any reports of British owned businesses that have been damaged.
Mr. Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what advice and assistance is being given by the British Government to British citizens who have suffered personal or business losses in the recent middle east conflict in Israel and Lebanon. [90557]
Mr. McCartney: We advise British nationals to seek private professional advice to ascertain whether there is any compensation available for their losses and how best to pursue the award of any such compensation.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to her oral answer of 25 July 2006, Official Report, column 720W, to the hon. Member for Liverpool, Riverside (Mrs. Ellman), on the middle east, what definition she uses of Islamic nation. [90578]
Mr. McCartney: Islamic countries or nations can be defined as those where a majority of the population are Muslims—or a nation that regards itself as Islamic. The Organisation of the Islamic Conference Membership list presents a useful reference point, towards defining Islamic nations, since many of those countries regard themselves as such.
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the Government plan to carry out a review of Israel’s compliance with Criterion 2 of the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria following the conflict in Israel and Lebanon. [90820]
Dr.
Howells [holding answer 11 September 2006]: Licence
applications are assessed on a case by case basis against the
Consolidated EU and National
Export Licensing Criteria taking into account prevailing circumstances.
Therefore there is in effect a review of compliance each time an
application is considered. Where there are concerns about any of the
Consolidated Criteria, a licence will not be issued. Should any
information come to light that military equipment supplied by the UK
has been used in a manner inconsistent with the Consolidated Criteria,
the Government will take this into consideration when assessing any
future export licence applications. The Government may also revoke
relevant licence(s) and ask the authorities in the country concerned to
investigate.
Pakistan
Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the current position is with regard to Mr. Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, imprisoned in Pakistan; what involvement the Department has had in this case; and if she will make a statement. [90880]
Mr. McCartney: Omar Sheikh is a British-Pakistani national convicted and sentenced to death for involvement in the murder of the journalist Daniel Pearl. We continue to request consular access to Mr. Sheikh, most recently on 4 August 2006. In response to this latest request, the Sindh Home Minister told the British deputy high commissioner in Karachi to seek the permission of the court to visit Mr. Sheikh. The deputy high commissioner has since written to Mr. Sheikh's lawyers asking for their assistance in requesting the permission of the court.
Palestine
Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations she has received on the arrest of Abdel Aziz Dweik; what representations she has made about his arrest; and if she will make a statement. [90595]
Mr. McCartney: We continue to have concerns about the detention of members of the Palestinian Government and Legislature including Palestinian Legislative Council Speaker Abdel Aziz Dweik. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary and EU foreign Ministers have called for their immediate release. Our Embassy in Tel Aviv has raised the detentions with the Israeli Government.
Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations she has received about the arrest of Palestinian parliamentarians; what representations she has made about the arrests; and if she will make a statement. [90596]
Mr. McCartney: We continue to have concerns about the detention of members of the Palestinian Government and Legislature. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary and EU Foreign Ministers have called for their immediate release. Our embassy in Tel Aviv has raised the detentions with the Israeli Government.
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what her Department's policy is on (a) the United Kingdom and (b) the European Union entering into dialogue with Hamas. [90766]
Mr. McCartney: The UK suspended contacts with Hamas in June 2005. At the General Affairs and External Relations Council on 10 April 2006, EU foreign Ministers agreed that there should be no contacts at a political level with the new Hamas led Palestinian authority government.
Hamas know what they have to do for the international community to engage with them; renounce violence, recognise Israel and accept previous agreements and obligations, including the Roadmap. Hamas need to start implementing these principles and make clear the path they intend to take.
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions she has had with the Israeli Government on the release of the Palestinian Members of Parliament taken prisoner by the Israeli military. [90838]
Mr. McCartney: We continue to have concerns about the detention of members of the Palestinian Government and Legislature. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary and EU Foreign Ministers have called for their immediate release. Our embassy in Tel Aviv has raised the detentions with the Israeli Government.
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions she has had with the Palestinian Government with respect to its needs in ensuring safety and prosperity for its people. [91075]
Dr. Howells: The UK suspended contacts with Hamas in June 2005. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has therefore had no discussions with the Hamas-led Palestinian Authority (PA) Government.
We have continued to stay in regular contact with the President of the PA, Mahmoud Abbas. Most recently my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister met with President Abbas on 10 September during his visit to the Middle East when of course the safety and prosperity of the Palestinian people was a central theme to their discussions.
We have been working for some time with the PA to improve the security apparatus in the West Bank and Gaza, through technical assistance and provision of equipment. We co-ordinate our work with US Security Co-ordinator General William Ward’s team to assist the PA in consolidating and expanding their efforts on security. We are also working closely with EU partners on a significant assistance project for Palestinian civil policing.
The
Government are committed to continue helping the Palestinian people.
With a range of partners, we have worked hard to establish the
“Temporary International Mechanism” which has been drawn
up to provide needs-based assistance directly to the Palestinian
people, without the need to channel funds through the Hamas-led
Palestinian Government. The
UK will contribute up to £12 million to the mechanism.
Additionally, the Government announced on 25 April 2006 a UK
contribution of £15 million to support the work of the United
Nations Works and Relief Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Middle
East, which supports Palestinian refugees throughout the region,
including in Israel and Lebanon. The UK has a strong record of support
for the Palestinian people. Since 2001, we have provided £147
million, in addition to our contributions through the EU, which is the
biggest donor to the Palestinian
people.
Pascua Lama Mine Project
Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions her Department has had with (a) Chile and (b) Argentina on the Pascua Lama open-cast mine project. [90621]
Mr. Hoon: We have not had any specific discussions with the Chilean or Argentine Governments on the Pascua Lama open-cast mine project. We do, however, have a strong and continuing dialogue with both Governments on environmental issues, which includes regular contact with local mining authorities.
Qualified Majority Voting
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether it is the Government’s policy to support the extension of qualified majority voting in the EU in the field of police and home affairs. [90765]
Mr. Hoon: The Government are giving careful consideration to the proposals contained in the Commission’s Communication ‘Implementing the Hague Programme: the Way Forward’. We welcome efforts to take forward EU work in the Justice and Home Affairs field. In that context, the Finnish presidency have proposed discussion on the use of the Article 42 ‘passerelle’, one consequence of which could be the application of qualified majority voting to some parts of EU police and judicial co-operation. We will need to be satisfied that any proposals would genuinely improve the decision making process, and that such a move would be in the UK’s national interest.
Saudi Arabia
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assurances she has sought from the Saudi Arabian Government that the use of Eurofighter jets due to be exported to Saudi Arabia will be in compliance with international law. [90818]
Mr. McCartney: Any export of military equipment to Saudi Arabia will require an export licence. All export licence applications are assessed on a case by case basis against the Consolidated EU and National Export Licensing Criteria including Criteria 6—the behaviour of the buyer country, including respect for international law. A licence will not be issued if to do so would be inconsistent with the criteria.
Sri Lanka
Mr. Pelling: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps the Government have taken since 25 July to encourage positive dialogue between warring parties in Sri Lanka. [90566]
Mr. McCartney: Throughout the serious deterioration in the security situation over recent months we have made clear in meetings at the highest levels with the Government of Sri Lanka and also to political representatives of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in Sri Lanka, our serious concern at the escalation in violence. We have urged all parties to show restraint. We participated in an EU démarche in August to the Sri Lankan Foreign Minister about the deteriorating security and humanitarian situation. Foreign and Commonwealth officials also met the leader of the Sri Lankan opposition (United National Party) and stressed the importance of political consensus in working towards a solution that satisfies the concerns and legitimate aspirations of all Sri Lankans. We are in close contact with the Government of Norway and continue to underline to both sides our full support for their efforts as peace process facilitators.
President Rajapakse, Foreign Minister Samaraweera and senior Sri Lankan officials met my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister at Chequers on 31 August. The talks focused on the internal security situation in Sri Lanka and the state of the peace process.
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps the UK Government is taking to assist the government and people of Sri Lanka (a) to achieve a lasting internal peace agreement and (b) to promote civil and political rights for all citizens. [91099]
Dr. Howells: Throughout the escalation in violence over recent months we have made our concerns clear in meetings at the highest levels, with the Government of Sri Lanka and also with political representatives ofthe Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. President Rajapakse, Foreign Minister Samaraweera, and senior Sri Lankan officials met my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister at Chequers on 31 August 2006. The talks focused on the internal security situation in Sri Lanka and the state of the peace process. We are also in close contact with the Government of Norway as the peace process facilitators and we make clear to both sides our full support of their efforts.
We have been deeply concerned following the reports of the Sri Lankan Monitoring Mission, the International Commission of Jurists, about the deteriorating human rights situation in the North and East. Any abuse is to be deplored. We welcome President Rajapakse’s proposal to,
“invite an international independent commission to probe abductions, disappearances and extra-judicial killings in all areas of the country”.
We agree with the United Nations Special Rapporteur, on extra-Judicial killings, Philip Alston’s, statement that the commission must be independent, credible and effective and that the advice of the United Nations Commissioner for Human Rights would facilitate the establishment of such a commission.
Visas
Damian
Green: To ask the Secretary of State for
Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many
applications for visitors’ visas from (a) Australia,
(b) Canada and (c) South Africa were refused between (i)
January and June 2004, (ii) January and June 2005 and (iii) January and
June 2006.
[91043]
Dr. Howells: The information requested by the hon. Member is provided in the following tables:
| Visitor applications for Australia, Canada and South Africa with the refusals. | ||||||
| Visitor (including family visits) | ||||||
| Australia | Canada | South Africa | ||||
| Received | Refused | Received | Refused | Received | Refused | |
| Visitor (excluding family visits) | ||||||
| Australia | Canada | South Africa | ||||
| Received | Refused | Received | Refused | Received | Refused | |
| Note: These figures have not published and should only be used for information. Please note that during 2004-05, only family visits were recorded by month, not visits. Therefore the annual published for financial year 2004-05 has been stated. Sources: (1) April 2004—March 2005 = Published Entry Clearance Statistics January—June 2005 = Monthly Statistical Returns—7 September 2006 January—June 2006 = Monthly Statistical Returns—7 September 2006 | ||||||
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |