asked Her Majesty's Government:

What assessment they have made of the differences between rights abuses allegedly committed by the forces of Jean-Pierre Bemba, ex-Vice President of the Democratic Republic of Congo, for which he will face trial at the International Criminal Court in the Hague, and the rights abuses allegedly committed by the armed militias and supporters of President Mugabe of Zimbabwe; and whether they will take the necessary steps at the earliest opportunity to have President Mugabe similarly arraigned.

The allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity faced by Jean-Pierre Bemba and the suffering witnessed in Zimbabwe are extremely serious. Jean-Pierre Bemba is in custody following an investigation by the International Criminal Court (ICC) into crimes committed during armed conflict in the Central African Republic and the issue of a warrant for his arrest. There has been no such investigation into events in Zimbabwe, which is not a state party to the ICC. Neither do we wish to pre-empt a decision that is properly the prerogative of a successor Government in Zimbabwe.