Pakistan: Women
House of Lords
Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench)
To ask Her Majesty's Government what information they have received concerning abuses of the rights of women from religious minorities in Pakistan.
Lord Howell of Guildford (Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office; Conservative)
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) closely monitors human rights reporting from a variety of sources, including diplomatic, non-governmental organisations and media reporting. This information is summarised in the FCO's 2011 annual human rights report.
In the most recent quarterly update to the human rights report, published in March, the FCO expressed concerns over media reports of human rights abuses against women, including acid attacks and honour killings, children and minorities, including forced conversions.
I recently met visiting campaigners for minorities and women's rights in Pakistan to hear first-hand of the situation they face and to express our support for their cause.