| International
aid group urges Berlusconi to discuss case of kidnapped aid worker with
Putin August 27, 2003 Posted: 13:26 Moscow time (09:26 GMT) ROME - The international aid group Medecins Sans Frontieres is urging Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi to raise the case of an aid worker kidnapped last year in southern Russia when he meets with Russian President Vladimir Putin this weekend. Arjan Erkel was abducted on Aug. 12, 2002, by three unidentified gunmen in the Russian republic of Dagestan, which borders the war-ravaged Russian republic of Chechnya. Erkel, a 33-year-old Dutch citizen, headed the North Caucasus mission of Medecins Sans Frontieres-Switzerland. The aid organization claims the Russian government is not doing enough to free the man. On Tuesday, MSF officials sent a letter to Berlusconi, who is the current president of the European Union. "MSF is convinced that President Putin's personal involvement is essential to mobilize all resources to ensure Arjan's immediate and safe release," said the letter, which was signed by Morten Rostrup, president of MSF international. "I urge you to raise the issue of Arjan's immediate and safe release with him during his upcoming visit to Italy," the letter went on to say, citing Berlusconi's friendly relations with Putin. "This unacceptable situation cannot be allowed to continue." Putin will be staying at Berlusconi's villa in Sardinia for three days starting Friday. The Italian premier's office said it has not yet seen the letter, which was sent Tuesday. Russian authorities have assured the medical group, also known as Doctors Without Borders, they were doing everything they could to find Erkel. Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov has said Putin has taken a personal interest in solving the case. Although Erkel has not been seen since the kidnapping, group officials believe he is alive. "We have 100 percent reliable information that as of July 30 he was alive," said Pere Joan Pons Sampietro, a member of the crisis cell in Geneva. He refused to elaborate. Authorities said earlier this month that a videotape - apparently recorded in June - was delivered to the Dutch embassy in Moscow in which Erkel asked that a ransom be paid. MSF wants Erkel to be freed peacefully and said it would not pay a ransom, claiming that would make the whole humanitarian aid community vulnerable. /The Associated Press/ |