Some recent Parliamentary Replies To My Questions about 1)the plight of non-Muslim refugees in the refugee camps in Bangladesh 2) Leah Sharibu in Nigeria; 3) 3 million human embryos destroyed or experimented upon; 4)Executions of Christians in Plateau State in Nigeria, targeted killings and kidnappings by Boko Haram and Fulani extremists; 5) Homeless children subjected to violence and other abuse in a transit centre in Kigali; 6) UK’s development aid to Nigeria and community cohesion, protection of those at risk of attack by jihadists, and the bringing to justice those responsible for any atrocities and crimes against humanity; 7)How Nigeria received more than £800,000 per day in aid last year; nearly £2.5 billion over the past decade.

Feb 11, 2020 | News

Some recent Parliamentary Replies To My Questions about

  1. the plight of non-Muslim refugees in the refugee camps in Bangladesh
  2. Leah Sharibu in Nigeria
  3. 3 million human embryos destroyed or experimented upon.
  4. Executions of Christians in Plateau State in Nigeria; and (2) targeted killings and kidnappings by Boko Haram and Fulani extremists
  5. Homeless children subjected to violence and other abuse in a transit centre in Kigali
  6. UK’s development aid to Nigeria and (1) promote community cohesion, (2) protect those at risk of attack by jihadists, and (3) bring to justice those responsible for any atrocities and crimes against humanity
  7. Nigeria received more than £800,000 per day in aid last year; nearly £2.5 billion over the past decade..

 

1.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, has provided the following answer to your written parliamentary question (HL1304):

Question:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will make representations to the government of Bangladesh and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to ensure the safety of non-Muslim refugees in the refugee camps in Bangladesh, and in particular, the Kutupalong Camp. (HL1304)

Tabled on: 04 February 2020

Answer:
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon:

We are aware of reports of attacks on Christian Rohingya refugee families in Kutupalong, Bangladesh, and are monitoring the situation closely. The British Government is committed to improving the safety of all the Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh. We will continue to engage with the Government of Bangladesh and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees on the safety and well-being of all the Rohingya refugees, including those at risk of religious persecution.

2.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, has provided the following answer to your written parliamentary question (HL833):

Question:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, following the abduction of Leah Sharibu, what assessment they have made of reports of her enslavement, forced conversion and pregnancy; what actions they have taken to secure her release; and what response they received from the government of Nigeria when they raised her situation with them. (HL833)

Tabled on: 28 January 2020

Answer:
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon:

​The UK has made repeated calls for the release of all those abducted by Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa (ISWA), including Leah Sharibu. We are appalled by and condemn her reported enslavement, forced conversion and pregnancy. In 2018, we offered expertise to help the Nigerian Government in their search for Leah and the other schoolgirls abducted from Dapchi, Borno State. We continue to use public messaging and our engagement with the Government of Nigeria to help secure the release of Leah and all those abducted by the insurgent groups. The Government of Nigeria have assured us that they are making all efforts to secure her return.

Date and time of answer: 11 Feb 2020 at 13:25.

 

 

  1. Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford, the Department of Health and Social Care, has provided the following answer to your written parliamentary question (HL1173):

Question:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Prior of Brampton on 22 November 2016 (HL3075), how many human embryos were deliberately destroyed in each of the last 12 months for which figures are available; how many human embryos were transferred to uteri in order to establish pregnancies; and what are the cumulative figures for both circumstances since such procedures were made legal. (HL1173)

Tabled on: 30 January 2020

Answer:
Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford:

The information requested is shown in the following tables. The following table provides the figures for each of the last 12 months, 1 January 2018 – 31 December 2018. The data is as shown on the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority’s (HFEA) register database on 5 February 2020. This is a live database so these figures reflect the data on this day.

Year Month Total destroyed /discarded Total embryos transferred
2018 January 13,283 5,398
February 15,193 7,352
March 16,257 7,360
April 15,150 6,728
May 15,300 6,735
June 15,520 6,263
July 15,236 6,598
August 15,057 6,779
September 13,485 6,187
October 16,087 7,002
November 16,029 7,637
December 10,597 4,734
Total 177,194 78,773

Source:

Source: HFEA

The following table provides the cumulative figures for both circumstances since 1 August 1991.

1 August 1991 – 31 December 2018
Total number of embryos discarded/destroyed 2,931,824
Total number of embryos transferred 1,979,831

Source: HFEA

Date and time of answer: 11 Feb 2020 at 14:53.

4.Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, has provided the following answer to your written parliamentary question (HL780):

Question:
Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of reports of (1) executions of Christians in Plateau State in Nigeria; and (2) targeted killings and kidnappings by Boko Haram and Fulani extremists; whether they discussed these issues with President Muhammadu Buhari at the UK–Africa Investment Summit; and what response they received. (HL780)

Tabled on: 27 January 2020

Answer:
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon:

We are appalled by and condemn the escalating levels of violence, including executions, instigated by Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa (ISWA) in Northern Nigeria. The targeting of Christians, including those from Plateau State, has tragically increased in recent months, although the indiscriminate nature of the groups’ attacks continues to have a devastating effect on all communities. The UK is providing a comprehensive package of support to help tackle the crisis in the North East, including £300 million of humanitarian support over five years (2018-2022).

We welcome President Buhari’s condemnation of recent attacks in Plateau State. The British High Commission engages closely with the federal government, state government, international partners and the National Economic Council to help uphold the Nigerian Constitutional right to freedom of religion, address the drivers of intercommunal violence and push for solutions that meet the needs of all communities affected. To this end, the British High Commissioner visited Plateau State in December 2019 and met with the Governor, Christian and Muslim faith leaders, as well as Fulani communities. They all reported the tragic impact of the violence and discussed the complex root causes. The Prime Minister raised concerns about increasing levels of violence across Nigeria and discussed UK support with President Buhari at the UK-Africa Investment Summit on 20 January.

Date and time of answer: 05 Feb 2020 at 14:56.

 

 

5.Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, has provided the following answer to your written parliamentary question (HL777):

Question:
Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of reports by Human Rights Watch of homeless children subjected to violence and other abuse in a transit centre in Kigali; what discussions they have had with the government of Rwanda about its obligations under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child; and what discussions they have had about these reports with the governments of other Commonwealth countries in advance of the forthcoming Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Rwanda. (HL777)

Tabled on: 27 January 2020

Answer:
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon:

​We are concerned by the Human Rights Watch report on the Gikondo transit centre. We urge the Government of Rwanda to abide by its international human rights obligations including the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which Rwanda ratified in 1991. The Prime Minister raised human rights and the importance of adhering to Commonwealth values when he met President Kagame during the UK-Africa Investment Summit on 20 January. The British High Commission in Kigali regularly raises human rights concerns with the Government of Rwanda. The next Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting presents a valuable opportunity to ensure the Commonwealth is working towards a fairer future for all our citizens.

Date and time of answer: 05 Feb 2020 at 14:53.

  1. Baroness Sugg, the Department for International Development, has provided the following answer to your written parliamentary question (HL832):

 Question:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how much of the UK’s development aid to Nigeria is used to (1) promote community cohesion, (2) protect those at risk of attack by jihadists, and (3) bring to justice those responsible for any atrocities and crimes against humanity. (HL832)

Tabled on: 28 January 2020

Answer:
Baroness Sugg:

The UK’s development assistance to Nigeria seeks to address some of the root causes of conflict throughout the country (and particularly in the North East) and help build stability in the longer term. In particular, the UK is promoting community cohesion in North East Nigeria through a range of interventions from £3m in 2019/20 to improve relationships between communities and security forces to both build trust and ensure the protection of civilians in target communities in Borno State, North East Nigeria; £900,000 to build the resilience of women and children survivors of violent extremism and reintegrate them into communities; and £2 million of support for Nigeria’s Defections, Disengagement, Demobilisation, De-radicalisation and Reintegration programme that is managed by the International Organisation for Migration from December 2019 to March 2021.

To protect those at risk of attack as a result of the insecurity, DFID has a £16m two-year programme dedicated to providing support to those affected by the conflict in North East Nigeria, particularly victims of sexual and gender-based violence. DFID works with partners, the UN and NGOs to save lives, strengthen resilience, and protect civilians from attacks and violations of international law. To improve the effectiveness of security responses and the protection of civilians in Borno state, the UK is providing up to £800,000 from October 2019 to March 2021.

We are careful to ensure that our ongoing work in a complex environment to bring potential perpetrators to justice is compliant with International Human Rights Law.

 

  1. Baroness Sugg, the Department for International Development, has provided the following answer to your written parliamentary question (HL831):

Question:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how much development aid has been given to Nigeria in each of the last ten years. (HL831)

Tabled on: 28 January 2020

Answer:
Baroness Sugg: The total UK bilateral Official Development Assistance to the Federal Republic of Nigeria for each of the previous ten years is detailed below:

Year £ thousands
2009 121,277
2010 171,335
2011 186,428
2012 197,313
2013 248,734
2014 236,639
2015 262,685
2016 319,583
2017 327,199
2018 296,819
Source: Statistics on International Development 2018. Additional Table 4A. Published 19 September 2019. https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/statistics-on-international-development-final-uk-aid-spend-2018

Date and time of answer: 04 Feb 2020 at 14:03.

The 2018 figure indicates that Nigeria received more than £800,000 per day; nearly £2.5 billion over the past decade..

 

 

 

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