Foreign Office let us down, British kidnap couple tell MPs
Paul and Rachel Chandler, who were held hostage in Somalia, say UK authorities offered only 'tea and sympathy' to their family
Caroline Davies
guardian.co.uk,
Paul and Rachel Chandler gave evidence at a foreign affairs committee inquiry into piracy off Somalia. Photograph: PA
The British couple kidnapped from their yacht and held hostage for 13 months in Somalia have said the Foreign Office provided nothing but "tea and sympathy" to their family. Paul and Rachel Chandler, seized after leaving the Seychelles bound for Tanzania in October 2009, told a committee of MPs that the Foreign Office did not have the "expertise" to deal with kidnappings.
Paul Chandler, 61, said it had only contacted their family "four days after the news was in the public domain". By that time relatives were "bewildered, uncertain, and unadvised", while being hounded by the media for information.
The Foreign Office should have advised the family "at the earliest possible moment" about the general situation regarding hostages and kidnappings in Somalia. It should have advised them not to speak to the media "because it was well known that by far the best thing for a hostage is a press blackout". If their family had known that "it would perhaps have had significant beneficial consequences," he said.
It should also have told the family "we can't help you – but here's a man who can". Because of lack of political influence in Somalia, and British government policy not to pay ransoms, Chandler said the family should have been told: "If you need help, the private sector can help. Perhaps you should contact these people."
It was more appropriate for police to take the lead in such situations, he said, as they had expertise in criminal kidnappings. "We were just the hostages, but our families were the victim of extortion." The couple were giving evidence at the foreign affairs committee inquiry into piracy off Somalia. Most of their evidence was given in private for the sake of Judith Tebbutt, who is still being held.
The couple, originally from Tunbridge Wells, Kent, but now living in Dartmouth, Devon, were released last November for an unconfirmed ransom of up to £620,000. Rachel Chandler, 57, said: "What the Foreign Office did provide was essentially tea and sympathy. And in doing so, I think, it rubbed our family up the wrong way." The couple's suspected captors are being tried in Kenya over the hijacking of a French vessel. The Chandlers said they understood the British and Kenyan authorities are discussing whether they will also face trial over their case. The Metropolitan police is said to have handed a file to the Crown Prosecution Service.
"I'd like to see them prosecuted by the UK. Not necessarily physically in the UK,'' said Paul Chandler, "and yes, we would be happy to give evidence."
The couple said there had been no warnings, from the Foreign Office, their insurers or the authorities in the Seychelles that their route to Tanzania would put them at high risk from piracy. Rachel Chandler added they would continue sailing: "Cruising is our chosen lifestyle and we want to continue cruising for as long as we are able. We're certainly not defeated by what happened to us"
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