§ 25. Mr. Derek TwiggTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what action Her Majesty's Government took to help secure the release of James Mawdesley from imprisonment in Burma. [135186]
§ Mr. BattleFrom the moment of his arrest, we gave James every consular assistance: we visited him 14 times and sent 64 diplomatic notes. We began calling for his release after he was beaten by prison guards in October.
Immediately following the UN Working Group's decision on 10 October that James was being held arbitrarily, my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary demanded James' release. Baroness Scotland repeated this demand when she summoned the Burmese Ambassador the next day. Our Ambassador in Rangoon also made representations. The Burmese Ambassador came to inform me on 16 October that James was being released.