In March 2019, Raffy Tsakanika, age 21, of Cambridge, died after her vehicle was struck near Doha. The mother of a lady who was killed in a hit-and-run accident in Qatar has accused the British Foreign Office of standing by as her “hell” continues.
A British coroner criticized Qatari authorities last year for the paucity of the information offered to her investigation.
Jo Sullivan had pleaded with the Foreign Office for assistance, but it appeared “bent” to “compound our sorrow.”
A vehicle traveling at “excessive speed” rear-ended Ms. Tsakanika’s vehicle, causing it to lose control and topple on the four-lane highway in the Persian Gulf state’s capital.
Mubarak Al Hajri, a Qatari national, was sentenced to two months in prison and forced to compensate Ms. Tsakanika’s family in Qatar for the accident.
Ms. Sullivan stated that she has requested a meeting with the Foreign Office “so they can tell us face-to-face what diplomatic and political pressure they will exert on the Qatari government to assist us.”
Foreign Office minister Baroness Ahmad of Wimbledon stated in a letter dated 26 February that the United Kingdom “cannot meddle with the legal processes of another country.”
He penned:
“The coroner and Qatari officials determined what information was necessary and what should be provided for the investigation.
“In our experience, the information that local administrations are willing or able to communicate with UK coroners varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction.”
Lord Ahmad stated that Doha officials might obtain written confirmation from Qatari authorities that Al Hajri has served his term “if such evidence would be acceptable to Ms. Tsakanika’s family.”
“Any meaningful assistance”
Charlotte Charles, whose son Harry Dunn was killed in a crash at a US military base in Northamptonshire in 2019, and his family’s advisor, Radd Seiger, are providing assistance to Ms. Tsakanika’s family.
Ms. Sullivan stated that she was aware that Qatari authorities were “holding additional evidence regarding what happened to our precious daughter.”
She stated,
“Our torment continues, and it is now quite evident that the FCDO [Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office] is not only determined to continue to observe from the sidelines but, worse, to compound our misery.”
“You would have assumed that the FCDO, who are supposed to represent us, would have contacted us immediately after the inquest to let us know what they were going to do to assist us, but we were plainly stupid.”
Our advisor, Radd Seiger, must once more go to great lengths to obtain significant help from our government, which exists to preserve our rights.
At the inquest held in Peterborough last year, it was revealed that speed cameras filmed Al Hajri’s car apparently intact just before the crash and damaged immediately after, but Qatari officials did not present the UK coroner with these photos.
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