Monday, December 01, 2008
INTV, November 26, 2008 – During a discussion in the session in the UK House of Lords, a number of representatives questioned the British government regarding the guarantees over protection and legal rights of the Ashraf residents.

In this discussion which was held on Wednesday 26 November, Baroness Turner, Lord Waddington (former British Interior Minister), Lord Archer of Sandwell (former solicitor general of the United Kingdom), Lord Eden (former minister), Lord Alton, Lord Addington, and Lord Howell (deputy foreign secretary) were present and asked questions about the situation of protection and legal rights of the PMOI in Ashraf.

In his speech, Lord Waddington regarded the transfer of protection of Ashraf as the violation of non-refoulement principle and pointed out that although the U.S. is responsible for the protection of Ashraf, but the U.K. would definitely be a violator of International Law too because of its membership in the Coalition forces.

Baroness Turner referred to the presence of 1,000 female members of the PMOI in Ashraf and asked for their rights and those of all residents of the city to be guaranteed.

Also, Lord Alton called the transfer of Ashraf protection a hasty and unacceptable decision.