§ Mr. Edward DaveyTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what criteria he uses to assess the human rights records of foreign Governments; and whether they include the number of disappeared people. [83126]
§ Mr. Tony LloydWe assess the human rights records of all countries according to their adherence to, and implementation of, the standards laid down in international human rights instruments. As stated in the 1992 Declaration of the UN General Assembly on the Protection of All414W Persons from Enforced Disappearance, any act of enforced disappearance is a grave and flagrant violation of the human rights and fundamental freedoms proclaimed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and reaffirmed and developed in other international instruments. We support the work of the UN Working Group of Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances which raises individual cases with Governments and reports annually to the UN Commission on Human Rights.