Written question asked by David Drew (Labour) on Wednesday, 23 February 2005, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Friday, 4 March 2005. It was answered by Bill Rammell (Labour) on Friday, 4 March 2005 on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the trend in the level of suppression of dissidents in North Korea in recent months; and what recent discussions he has had with the Chinese Government on this matter.

Answer: Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the trend in the level of suppression of dissidents in north Korea in recent months; and what recent discussions he has had with the Chinese Government on this matter. [218577] Mr. Rammell: We have no information on the level of suppression of dissidents in north Korea in recent months. We have raised the matter of north Korean refugees in China on a number of occasions with the Chinese Government, most recently during the UK/China Human Rights Dialogue in Beijing in November 2004. We continue to urge China to observe its obligations under the 1951 Convention.

Secondary information