TRADE RELATIONS WITH SUDAN

That this House is concerned about the Government's promotion of trade links with Sudan as shown by the support for the UK-Sudan Trade and Investment Forum in London on 12 December 2017; notes that Sudan ranks 170th out of 176 countries on Transparency lnternational’s Global Corruption Index; acknowledges that severe restrictions on the freedom of the press, freedom of religion or belief, freedom of assembly and other freedoms continue in Sudan; is further concerned that the status of Darfur, Blue Nile state and South Kordofan state remain unstable; recognises that President Omar el-Bashir is indicted by the International Criminal Court on charges of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide; believes that the aforementioned issues both prevent any trade dividend from reaching the majority of Sudanese people and endangers the UK's reputation as a human rights standard bearer; and calls on the UK to prioritise human rights in its relationship with Sudan, in particular through ensuring the Government of Sudan adheres to the UN (Ruggie) Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.