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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| France urged to feed 'kidnappers' | France urged to feed 'kidnappers' |
| (1 day later) | |
| The lawyer for six French aid workers detained on child kidnapping charges in a Chad prison has called on the French government to pay for their food. | The lawyer for six French aid workers detained on child kidnapping charges in a Chad prison has called on the French government to pay for their food. |
| Gilbert Collard said the authorities should have "a minimum of decency". | Gilbert Collard said the authorities should have "a minimum of decency". |
| But French officials have told the BBC News website that the six had chosen to eat food from a restaurant, rather than prison food, so they should pay. | But French officials have told the BBC News website that the six had chosen to eat food from a restaurant, rather than prison food, so they should pay. |
| Mr Collard said the families of the six were being asked to pay for French army rations but the official denied this. | Mr Collard said the families of the six were being asked to pay for French army rations but the official denied this. |
| The six say they believed the 103 children they were planning to send to France were orphans from Sudan's war-torn Darfur region. | The six say they believed the 103 children they were planning to send to France were orphans from Sudan's war-torn Darfur region. |
| Mr Collard told the AFP news agency that the families of the charity workers were being asked to pay 2,000 euros ($2,900; £1,400) a month, per person. | Mr Collard told the AFP news agency that the families of the charity workers were being asked to pay 2,000 euros ($2,900; £1,400) a month, per person. |
| 'Vulgar' | 'Vulgar' |
| A French foreign ministry official said the French army, which has a base in Chad, had supplied rations to the six for two weeks, after they were arrested in October in the eastern town of Abeche, near the border with Darfur. | A French foreign ministry official said the French army, which has a base in Chad, had supplied rations to the six for two weeks, after they were arrested in October in the eastern town of Abeche, near the border with Darfur. |
| He said they were now being fed by a French restaurant in the capital, N'Djamena. | |
| He would not say how much was being sought from the Zoe's Ark charity but said it was less than 2,000 euros a month. | He would not say how much was being sought from the Zoe's Ark charity but said it was less than 2,000 euros a month. |
| Mr Collard said the French were showing "unbearable vulgarity" in demanding to be paid. | Mr Collard said the French were showing "unbearable vulgarity" in demanding to be paid. |
| "Our compatriots will be forced to eat food doled out by Chadian authorities - given the food insecurity there, this is really sad," he said. | "Our compatriots will be forced to eat food doled out by Chadian authorities - given the food insecurity there, this is really sad," he said. |
| But the official said this was standard practice and that the six had already received "significant consular assistance". | But the official said this was standard practice and that the six had already received "significant consular assistance". |
| Hard labour | Hard labour |
| Investigations by aid workers suggest the 103 children are mostly from Chad and are not orphans. | Investigations by aid workers suggest the 103 children are mostly from Chad and are not orphans. |
| Most of the 103 children say they are Chadian and lived with family | Most of the 103 children say they are Chadian and lived with family |
| Some of their parents say they were either offered inducements to give up their children, or believed they were being sent to school elsewhere in Chad. | Some of their parents say they were either offered inducements to give up their children, or believed they were being sent to school elsewhere in Chad. |
| French officials have said the operation by the Zoe's Ark charity was "illegal and irresponsible". | French officials have said the operation by the Zoe's Ark charity was "illegal and irresponsible". |
| The case has led to violent anti-French protests in Chad. | The case has led to violent anti-French protests in Chad. |
| If found guilty, the charity workers could face several years with hard labour in a Chadian prison. | If found guilty, the charity workers could face several years with hard labour in a Chadian prison. |