HL Deb 20 March 2003 vol 646 cc39-40WA
Lord Hylton

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether the United Nations will (a) appoint a special rapporteur to assess the human rights situation in Tibet; and (b) publish reports on conditions in labour camps in China. [HL1927]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Baroness Amos)

As far as we are aware, the UN has no plans to appoint a special rapporteur on Tibet; nor are we aware of any plans by the UN to publish reports on labour camps in China.

We continue to urge the Chinese to extend invitations to a range of special rapporteurs and would welcome it if Tibet could be included in their China itinerary. We raise our concerns about the human rights situation in Tibet with the Chinese at our biannual UK-China human rights dialogue.