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UK Death Penalty Strategy
Thank you for contacting me with your additional concerns about the UK’s death penalty strategy.
As mentioned in my previous correspondence, Reprieve’s allegation was wholly wrong: it is simply not the case that the Government has abandoned or de-prioritised its pursuit of the global abolition of the death penalty. The Government is opposed to the death penalty in all circumstances as a matter of principle.
The Government takes the detention and welfare of Mr Andargachew Tsege very seriously. The Prime Minister has written to Prime Minister Hailemariam about his case and the Foreign Secretary has raised Mr Tsege's case numerous times with his Ethiopian counterpart, which has resulted in improved consular access to Mr Tsege. The UK will continue to lobby the Ethiopian Government until Mr Tsege is given access to a lawyer, and the Government’s concerns about the process by which Mr Tsege was transferred to Ethiopia have been addressed.
Thank you again for taking the time to contact me.
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