§ Lord Alton of Liverpoolasked Her Majesty's Government:
What assessment they have made of Amnesty International's open letter to members of the United Nations Security Council of 6 December about the deteriorating situation in Darfur, Sudan. [HL349]
§ The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean)We share Amnesty International's grave concern about the deteriorating security situation. The UK Government have been at the forefront of the response to the situation in Darfur. We are pressing all sides, both bilaterally and through the European Union and United Nations (UN), to stop the fighting and abide by the commitments they have made. We are leading supporters of the African Union (AU) and have funded the UN human rights monitors and a number of UN agencies and non-governmental organisations. We are also fully supporting the AU-mediated Darfur peace talks in Abuja.
My honourable friend the Minister for Africa (Chris Mullin) has replied directly to Amnesty International regarding the specific points raised in its letter of 6 December.
§ Lord Alton of Liverpoolasked Her Majesty's Government:
What assessment they have made of the report of the United Nations Secretary-General of December 2004 on the situation in Darfur, Sudan; and what progress has been made in the disarming of the Janjaweed militia. [HL350]
§ Baroness Symons of Vernham DeanThe latest report by the UN Secretary-General on Darfur concludes that, with the signing of the Abuja humanitarian and security protocols, some progress was made on the political front, but that this was overshadowed by the deteriorating security situation. It also concludes that the Government of Sudan have made no progress in disarming the Janjaweed militias. We deplore the recent upsurge in violence in Darfur and the resulting negative impact on the delivery of humanitarian assistance and civilian protection. On 6 December, my honourable friend the Minister for Africa made clear to the State Minister for Humanitarian Affairs that the Government of Sudan bore the primary responsibility for security in Darfur and that they must abide by their commitments, particularly the Abuja protocols.