Minister seeks details of escape

Press, 19 December 1989, Page 2

Minister seeks details of escape

By

BRENDON BURNS

in Wellington Details of the diplomatic effort made on behalf of Mr Vince Gason are being sought by the Minister of External Relations, Mr Moore. He returned to Wellington yesterday after a brief visit to Europe. Mr Gason last week made his escape from Somalia, where he was being detained after the collapse of a fishing venture in which he was involved. Mr Moore continued yesterday to be coy about what, if any, role

the Government played in Mr Gason’s escape. “I don’t want to go into all the details but one of the things we did was lend him some money. “Our staff have worked very hard over the last 10 months.” Mr Moore wants his Ministry to make a list of the number of phone calls made on Mr Gason’s behalf, along with cables sent and representations to the Somali Government. Mr Moore said the Government had provided Mr Gason» with the air fare home from Nairobi.

Earlier, it had a private plane arranged when Mr Gason was shot in confused circumstances in Mogadishu. “We made submissions to the Somali Government that on humanitarian grounds he ought to be allowed out. But unfortunately Vince got well a bit too quickly." The Government’s help did not extend to paying bribes, said Mr Moore. “Oh don’t be silly. We wouldn’t do that, would we?” he said. A letter would be sent to the British Foreign Office and its

consul in Somalia, thanking them for the assistance given to Mr Gason. Such work was undertaken for New Zealanders everywhere, said Mr Moore. “I don’t know why this one has been slightly more media-attrac-tive. There are lots of people in Sydney prisons.” Mr Moore said he did not yet know all the details of the escape but kept reading “unusual” things in the newspapers. He intends speaking to Mr Gason.