§ 17. Mr. Newensasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on British relations with Uruguay, following the resignation of President Bordaberry.
§ Mr. RowlandsOur relations with Uruguay continue to be good.
§ Mr. NewensHas my hon. Friend seen the horrifying reports published by Amnesty International and other organisa- 1360 tions about political murder, torture and other abuses of human rights in Uruguay recently? Has he heard of the murder of prominent Uruguayan citizens in Argentina? Will he express to the Uruguayan authorities the deep concern of this country about the sad deterioration in the observation of decent standards of human rights which used to be characteristic of that country?
§ Mr. RowlandsI have read the Amnesty report. We deplore abuses of human rights such as those alleged by Amnesty International, and we are consulting our EEC partners to see what representations we can make.
§ Mr. FlanneryIs my hon. Friend aware that about a month ago my hon. Friend the Member for Harlow (Mr. Newens) and I saw two Uruguayan citizens who had a son and a daughter in Argentina? Is he aware that they asked us to get them out of that country but that they were murdered that weekend? Did he know that the Whitelaw couple dared not go back to the tyranny in Uruguay because they would have been murdered? Is he aware that we feel deeply about the brutalities in Uruguay, which are equally as deplorable as those under Pinochet in Chile?
§ Mr. RowlandsI appreciate the feelings and sentiments expressed by my hon. Friend, particularly about the case to which he referred. I am fully aware of the details of that case. I hope that there may be some changes in the attitude of the new Government, and we look forward with interest to seeing how the new Government intend to tackle the problem of human rights.
§ Mr. TapsellWhy is murder in Uruguay so much more deplorable than murder in Cambodia?
§ Mr. RowlandsIt is not. [Interruption.] The hon. Gentleman's double standards are now showing. [Interruption.]
§ Mr. SpeakerOrder.
§ Mr. KinnockIs it not incredible that, when faced with disaster, murder and torture, all that Conservative Members want to do is to draw analogies in bestiality between totalitarian States throughout the world? Cannot they for once get hold of the fact that democratically elected representatives 1361 should be against all murder, all outrage and all torture? We should not give a damn who governs the country.
§ Mr. TapsellThe double standards are yours.
§ Mr. RowlandsI endorse my hon. Friend's sentiments. Such condemnation should be general. We do not have double standards. Comments by hon. Members opposite who wish to score party points are reprehensible in view of the situation which many countries' citizens face.
§ Later—
§ Mr. NewensOn a point of order, Mr. Speaker. Is it in order for the hon. Member for Horncastle (Mr. Tapsell) to smear Labour Members by suggesting that we are not concerned about abuses of human rights in the Soviet Union and Cambodia, when I made clear in a supplementary question on the Question about Cambodia that I deplored the atrocities there? Is it in order for hon. Members to get away with smears of that sort?
§ Mr. SpeakerThere has been a growing tendency for some hon. Members to shout across the Floor at each other in a way that adds nothing to argument and nothing to the dignity of the House. I know of no monopoly of virtue in this House. We had better leave the matter there.