Government says ”We are carefully reviewing the findings of the Hazara Inquiry. We fully recognize that Hazaras have long faced attacks and discrimination from the Taliban, Daesh Khorasan Province and other groups.”

Government says ”We are carefully reviewing the findings of the Hazara Inquiry. We fully recognize that Hazaras have long faced attacks and discrimination from the Taliban, Daesh Khorasan Province and other groups.”

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, has provided the following answer to your written parliamentary question (HL2060):

Question by Lord Alton of Liverpool :
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the conclusion of the report by the Hazara Inquiry The Situation of the Hazara in Afghanistan, published on 3 September, that under the UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (the Genocide Convention) and customary international law, it is the responsibility of all signatory states to protect the Hazara and prevent a possible genocide; and what steps they are taking to comply with these duties. (HL2060)

Tabled on: 05 September 2022

This question was grouped with the following question(s) by Lord Alton for answer:

1. To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they are giving to the report by the Hazara Inquiry The Situation of the Hazaras in Afghanistan, published on 3 September. (HL2058) 
   Tabled on: 05 September 2022 
2. To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the report by the Hazara Inquiry The Situation of the Hazara in Afghanistan, published on 3 September, which found that this religious and ethnic minority are at serious risk of genocide at the hands of both the Taliban and the Islamic State–Khorasan Province. (HL2059) 
   Tabled on: 05 September 2022 

Answer:
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: 

We are carefully reviewing the findings of the Hazara Inquiry. We fully recognize that Hazaras have long faced attacks and discrimination from the Taliban, Daesh Khorasan Province and other groups. We regularly press the Taliban to respect the human rights of all Afghans and to protect the Hazara community from terrorist attacks.

We are working closely with international partners, including through multilateral fora, to ensure there are credible monitoring mechanisms in place and to hold those responsible for human rights abuses to account. In March 2022, we worked through the UN Security Council to strengthen human rights monitoring in the UN Assistance Mission to Afghanistan mandate (UNAMA). We also supported a UN Human Rights Council resolution that led to the appointment of Richard Bennett as Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan on 1 April 2022. I met the Special Rapporteur on 9 August ahead of his report to the Human Rights Council on 12 September. We will continue to regularly engage with Hazara representatives, who provide vital insight into and advise on the situation in Afghanistan.

Date and time of answer: 29 Sep 2022 at 12:45.