§ Mrs. ClwydTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he last had discussions on Iraqi Kurdistan with the authorities of Iraq; and what was the substance of those discussions.
§ Mr. WaldegraveWe have regularly raised with the Iraqi authorities our concerns over their Kurdish population and human rights violations against the community.
Most recently I did so with the Iraqi ambassador on 19 April, and in particular made clear that we would view with grave concern any evidence of any mass deportations of Kurds. The Iraqi Government have admitted to some localised resettlement of Kurds for security reasons, but have denied mass relocation to the south of the country. We have urged the Iraqi Government to allow diplomats and journalists to visit the areas concerned to see for themselves.