Human Rights and Democracy - Official Documents

SECTION VI: Promoting Human Rights in the Overseas Territories
As Foreign Secretary William Hague told the Foreign Affairs Committee in
September, the Government has “a responsibility to ensure the security and good
governance of the Territories and to support their economic wellbeing. This is a
responsibility I take extremely seriously. I also recognise that the Territories can
create substantial challenges for the UK Government. We need a vigilant and active
approach to managing these risks. This is especially true at a time when a number
of our Territories have been hit hard by the global recession.” The Government is
determined to reinvigorate the UK’s relationship with the Overseas Territories and
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State Henry Bellingham is currently leading a
review of our overall policy towards them. The conclusions of this review will be
announced in 2011.
The Overseas Territories have their own constitutions and domestic laws with a
substantial measure of responsibility for the conduct of their internal affairs. The
Government is responsible for their security, defence and international relations.
The protection and promotion of human rights in each Territory is primarily the
responsibility of the Territory government. But the UK Government is ultimately
responsible for ensuring the Territories fulfil their obligations arising from
international human rights treaties which have been extended to them. Our objective
is for the governments of the Overseas Territories to abide by the same human
rights standards that British people expect of the UK Government.
There are 14 UK Overseas Territories: Anguilla; Bermuda; the British Antarctic
Territory; the British Indian Ocean Territory; the British Virgin Islands; the Cayman
Islands; the Sovereign Base Areas in Cyprus; the Falkland Islands; Gibraltar;
Montserrat; the Pitcairn Islands; the Territory of St Helena, Ascension Island and
Tristan da Cunha; South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands; and the Turks
and Caicos Islands. There is no right of abode on Ascension Island and
consequently no permanent settled population. The British Antarctic Territory, British
Indian Ocean Territory and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands also
have no permanent settled populations.
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