Interview with organiser of "private" UK repatriation flight - UK embassy response has been "pitiful" -

PPUG · Post by **PPUG** » Mon Apr 06, 2020 5:59 pm

Exclusive interview: The man who got 103 stranded UK tourists home – with no help from the Embassy

"On March the 27th, the first – and so far only – repatriation flight for stranded UK citizens left Phnom Penh for London. Unlike other repatriation flights, which have been organised by western governments and their embassies in Cambodia, this flight was organised by a private UK citizen – in the face of indifference from the British Embassy and the UK Government.

Now safely back home with his family in the English countryside, we spoke exclusively to the man behind this extraordinary story, Jerry Lewis. He told us of the logistics of organising an international flight for 103 people, the lack of support from the UK Embassy, the warmth and goodwill he and other UK tourists have received from the Cambodian people – and his ongoing quest to raise the profile of UK citizens stranded in Cambodia and the world."

more at:

https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50710285/e ... e-embassy/

Post by **Username Taken** » Mon Apr 06, 2020 6:31 pm

^^^ A good read. Thanks for posting.

Yerg · Post by **Yerg** » Mon Apr 06, 2020 6:53 pm

Username Taken wrote: ↑Mon Apr 06, 2020 6:31 pm ^^^ A good read. Thanks for posting.

Agreed. The UK embassy and ambassador do not come out of that story with any credibility at all. (Assuming they had any beforehand.)

Anchor Moy · Post by **Anchor Moy** » Mon Apr 06, 2020 8:16 pm

Amazing work from the organisers.

And an amazing lack of adequate response from the British government and the Embassy. Embarrassing really. This says it all.

And he has further words for UK Ambassador Tina Redshaw and Embassy staff’s response:

“Their overall response has been pitiful, but it has been what the British Government expects of them. They have just done what they have been told. But in a crisis, following standard operating procedures is not the right thing. She (Ambassador Redshaw) needed to show some leadership because people are frightened. She said to me that Embassy staff were advised by the government not to get in proximity with people in case they got ill. “

ExPenhMan · Post by **ExPenhMan** » Mon Apr 06, 2020 9:49 pm

Tremendous story. The fortitude of Jerry Lewis and his wife are exemplary. They should be awarded with a British medal of honour. What a cockup by the FCO.

I've been getting regular emails from the Canadian embassy, laying out available flights and even offering financial assistance if you are in urgent need. What is wrong with England? Answer in a post card.

Jerry Atrick · Post by **Jerry Atrick** » Mon Apr 06, 2020 9:54 pm

It's nothing new, from hearing gripes of many Britons about embassy service over the years.

chiltern · Post by **chiltern** » Mon Apr 06, 2020 11:14 pm

I had been trying to leave Cambodia for some time but knew nothing about this flight

God'sGift · Post by **God'sGift** » Mon Apr 06, 2020 11:17 pm

Can't really see the big hurry to get back to UK in the middle of lockdown!

Better off in Cambodia, at least it's cheap there , can chill out on a beach or something.

MacSkye · Post by **MacSkye** » Mon Apr 06, 2020 11:54 pm

chiltern wrote: ↑Mon Apr 06, 2020 11:14 pm I had been trying to leave Cambodia for some time but knew nothing about this flight

If you are on Facebook, join the site "Stranded in Cambodia UK" that is where the legend Jerry organised the flight for us. You will get the best updates on that page for any flight leaving, and looking and putting another privately chartered flight might go on.

Embassy were absolutely useless.

MacSkye · Post by **MacSkye** » Mon Apr 06, 2020 11:57 pm

Meanwhile a German evacuation flight left Phnom Penh on 29 March and was half empty. The Guardian reports that a German charter company tried to offer assistance to Brits but the FCO didn’t return its call.

Interview with organiser of "private" UK repatriation flight - UK embassy response has been "pitiful" -

Interview with organiser of "private" UK repatriation flight - UK embassy response has been "pitiful" -

Re: Interview with organiser of "private" UK repatriation flight - UK embassy response has been "pitiful" -

Re: Interview with organiser of "private" UK repatriation flight - UK embassy response has been "pitiful" -

Re: Interview with organiser of "private" UK repatriation flight - UK embassy response has been "pitiful" -

Re: Interview with organiser of "private" UK repatriation flight - UK embassy response has been "pitiful" -

Re: Interview with organiser of "private" UK repatriation flight - UK embassy response has been "pitiful" -

Re: Interview with organiser of "private" UK repatriation flight - UK embassy response has been "pitiful" -

Re: Interview with organiser of "private" UK repatriation flight - UK embassy response has been "pitiful" -

Re: Interview with organiser of "private" UK repatriation flight - UK embassy response has been "pitiful" -

Re: Interview with organiser of "private" UK repatriation flight - UK embassy response has been "pitiful" -

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