§ Annabelle EwingTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he next plans to meet representatives of the Chinese Government; and if he will raise the case of Ngawang Sandrol at that meeting. [59782]
§ Mr. MacShane[holding answer 10 June 2002]: My right hon. Friend, the Foreign Secretary, hopes to meet Chinese Ministers later in the year. We raise human rights issues, including Tibet, with the Chinese at every suitable occasion and will continue to do so.
Ngawang Sangdrol is one the individual cases that we regularly raise with the Chinese in the context of the biannual UK/China Human Rights Dialogue. We most recently raised her case during the dialogue which took place in Beijing on 15 May. In their response, the Chinese said that her sentence had been reduced by 18 months.
§ Mr. LyonsTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the UK's diplomatic staffing will be in East Timor. [60484]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienThe British Office in East Timor was up-graded to an Embassy at Independence on 20 May 2002. There are two diplomatic staff in Dili.