NEWS RELEASES

August 4, 2000 ( 3:25 p.m. EDT) No. 192

AXWORTHY DEMANDS IMMEDIATE CONSULAR ACCESS

TO DETAINED CANADIANS IN YUGOSLAVIA

Foreign Affairs Minister Lloyd Axworthy today repeated demands for immediate consular access to two Canadian citizens currently being detained in Andrijevica, Montenegro by Yugoslav authorities.

"Senior officials in Ottawa have called in the Yugoslav Ambassador today to reiterate our expectation for immediate consular access to these individuals. As we have stressed to the Yugoslav Foreign Ministry, their government is obliged, under the Vienna Convention, to grant Canadian officials immediate consular access to the detainees," said Mr. Axworthy. "Our Chargé d'affaires has also met today with a senior military official in Montenegro to repeat this message and to seek assurances about the well being of the detainees. The manner in which they have been put on display is completely unacceptable."

Shaun Going, Liam Hall and two British citizens were arrested by the Yugoslav army on Tuesday, August 1 while returning to Kosovo from a holiday weekend on the Montenegrin coast. Mr. Going is a businessman working in construction in Kosovo, where he is based. Mr. Hall, his nephew, had joined him in Kosovo for the summer. No charges have yet been laid against the men by Yugoslav authorities. Since learning of the incident Canadian officials have established regular contact with family members in Canada and continue to work closely with British, Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and other officials to resolve the situation quickly.

There has recently been an increase in tension between the Yugoslav and Montenegrin authorities in advance of September elections. Belgrade has launched a campaign of intimidation against members of the reform movement in Serbia, as well as against foreigners. In view of the current political environment in Yugoslavia, any allegations against these individuals must be treated with a very high degree of skepticism.

Canadians intending to visit the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, including both the Republic of Serbia and the Republic of Montenegro, must be in possession of a visa and a valid passport. Yugoslav authorities have recently exercised increased control over the border crossings into the Republic of Montenegro and have arrested foreign citizens who did not have valid visas to enter the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.

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For further information, media representatives may contact:

Debora Brown

Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs

(613) 995-1851

Media Relations Office

Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade

(613) 995-1874