Asked by
To ask His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of
reports that toxic chemical agents have been used against
schoolgirls by the authorities in Iran.
The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development
Office () (Con)
My Lords, the deeply sinister reports of toxic agents being used
against schoolgirls in Iran have shocked the world. While we
cannot yet draw conclusions on who is responsible, one thing is
clear: the Iranian authorities must carry out a fair, transparent
and rigorous investigation. It is essential that girls are able
to fully exercise their right to education without fear. The
United Kingdom considers this a very serious matter and will
continue to follow developments very closely.
(CB)
My Lords, I am very grateful to the Minister for the way in which
he expressed that reply. Can he share with the House his
assessment of reports that these wicked attacks are a retaliation
following the protests led by women and girls that have convulsed
Iran since the death, while in the custody of Iran’s morality
police, of 22 year-old Mahsa Amini; and his assessment of the
threat on a state-run website that the poisoning would spread if
girls’ schools are not closed down? Is it plausible that such
systematic and widespread attacks have taken place without the
knowledge of the state intelligence agencies and the IRGC? Will
the Minister be taking his public demand that there should be an
urgent and transparent investigation to the United Nations Human
Rights Council, so that those responsible for what he has said
are sinister, wicked attacks are brought to justice?
(Con)
My Lords, I agree with the noble Lord and he will be aware that I
also called this out on 3 March. I have literally just flown in
from the United Nations this morning, where Iran and the whole
issue of girls and their education, and women’s empowerment, was
discussed in a very global sense at the Commission on the Status
of Women. I can assure him that, in my meetings with key
bilateral partners as well as within the wider context of the UN,
these matters have been raised. The noble Lord raises the issue
of the Human Rights Council and we are of course following what
further steps we can take with key partners there. As to who is
responsible, there is a lot of speculation out there but it is
clear that, since November, 800 to 900 girls have been impacted.
This is very sinister and it is down to the Iranian authorities
to investigate it properly, in the interests of their own
citizens.
(Con)
My Lords, what is happening in Iran to many girls and women is of
course sinister and shocking. But looking at education in Iran
further down the line, schools for girls are being closed. There
is separate education for boys and girls, with girls being
totally marginalised and taught only arts and humanities. Will my
noble friend the Minister ensure that these longer-term issues,
as well as the shocking violence taking place against girls and
women, are addressed? These other issues should also be addressed
so that we do not have another generation of women who are deeply
affected by a lack of education in Iran.
(Con)
My Lords, I totally agree with my noble friend; there is nothing
to justify that kind of suppression of girls’ education anywhere
in the world, be it in Iran or Afghanistan, which we have talked
about. I can share with her that, having spoken specifically with
the OIC and the Islamic countries, there is a plan for a
UN-sponsored conference within the region immediately after
Ramadan. It is likely to be in Kuwait and will focus on the very
issue of women and girls’ rights within the context of Islam, so
that Islam does not suppress them but promotes them.
(Lab)
My Lords, I too just returned from the UN at the beginning of
last week. One issue being raised at the UN now, in its Human
Rights Council, is not the genocide convention, although that is
being raised a lot too, but the apartheid convention and whether
its definitions of race should be expanded to include gender. All
the same components of not allowing women to have access to civil
society, participation in politics or education can certainly be
seen in Afghanistan, and should be called out for happening there
because apartheid is a crime—a crime against humanity. The
inclusion of gender in that definition is about addressing the
serious ways in which women’s non-participation is increasing in
such places. We now see that in Iran too. Is the Minister raising
the issue of expanding apartheid to include the question of
gender?
(Con)
My Lords, what I can say to the noble Baroness on the issue of
gender is that, within the context of UN discussions at the
moment, there is a very regressive prevailing attitude among
certain countries on reopening things which have already been
determined, including definitions of gender. This is now causing
great concern. We often talk about like-minded countries but
there are un-like-minded like-minded countries, if I can phrase
it that way, leading the charge so we must remain firm on this. I
assure the noble Baroness of my good offices, and those of the
FCDO and all colleagues, in ensuring that we keep girls’ and
women’s rights very much at the forefront of our international
policy.
The Lord
My Lords, the production and utilisation of chemical warfare in
civil and international conflicts is explicitly prohibited under
the Chemical Weapons Convention, to which Iran is a signatory and
a participating member. Will His Majesty’s Government commit to
using this existing framework to advocate for the creation of a
fact-finding mission by the Organisation for the Prohibition of
Chemical Weapons?
(Con)
The right reverend Prelate raises a very important point: the
proliferation of nuclear weapons and the enrichment of uranium
towards having them is very much at the heart of our approach. He
may know that, yesterday, the E3 made a statement directly on the
visit of the IAEA’s DG, Mr Grossi, who was in Iran. What is
really worrying at the moment is that the levels of enrichment
which now prevail in Iran have, according to the latest reports
in the region, reached about 83.7%. This is fast approaching the
very level which would allow for nuclear weapons to be produced.
We call again on Iran publicly, as we did yesterday, to desist
from this practice because not doing so is creating a precarious
situation—not just in the region but globally.
(Con)
My Lords, in a debate in the Moses Room on 23 February, the
Minister promised to take back the concerns of your Lordships’
House regarding the closure of the BBC Persian radio service.
Given the importance of the BBC in reporting this appalling
attack on schoolgirls, can he tell the House what response he
received from the Foreign Secretary and the Chancellor on
ensuring that the decision to shut down BBC Persian is
reversed?
(Con)
My Lords, my noble friend is correct. I asked for a specific
update and I know that we are looking at the languages which the
FCDO supports directly. Persian is not one of them but I have
certainly taken back the very points raised in those debates and
I hope to update my noble friend in the very near future.
(LD)
My Lords, the FCDO women’s strategy rightly highlights the
persecution of women in Iran. Home Office figures for 2022 state
that 1,218 vulnerable and persecuted women from Iran claimed
asylum within the UK, of whom 232 are under 29 and are not
eligible for the resettlement scheme. Under the Government’s
Bill, they would now be voided and deported. Will the Minister
give me and them the assurance that they will not be deported
back to Iran? If they are not deported back to Iran, then where?
Will he please explain to an Iranian woman who is seeking asylum
within the UK what the safe and legal route is, since currently
there is not one?
(Con)
My Lords, I believe that my right honourable friend the Prime
Minister has spoken about the importance of safe and legal routes
but I assure the noble Lord that the situation in Iran also
prompts the importance of the United Kingdom particularly
continuing to support those women and girls who seek refuge here.
We have a long-standing tradition in this regard and I believe it
is important that that continues.
(Lab)
My Lords, I know that the Minister will not speculate but, just
to pick up the point made by the noble Lord, Lord Alton, there is
increasing evidence of the state’s involvement in this,
particularly by the IRGC. When are we going to hear from the
Government about that organisation being proscribed?
(Con)
My Lords, we have imposed further sanctions on individuals within
the IRGC and the organisation itself has been sanctioned. I have
heard consistently across the House and from all Benches about
the importance that is attached to proscription, but the noble
Lord is quite correct; at this moment, I cannot speculate from
the Dispatch Box about what may happen next.
