Detained Frenchman Willing To Go to China, Cambodia Says

Patrick Devillers (Photo: Reuters)

Tuesday, 10 July 2012
Heng Reaksmey, VOA Khmer | Phnom Penh

“He tends to express his wish to go to China, and wherever he goes is surely his own decision..."

Cambodian officials say a Frenchman arrested last month in connection to a murder case in China is willing to be sent back there.

Patrick Devillers, who has been detained since his arrest in Phnom Penh on June 13, can return at his own request, said Khieu Sopheak, a spokesman for the Ministry of Interior.

“He tends to express his wish to go to China, and wherever he goes is surely his own decision, and if he decides to go to China, we are OK, we would follow his personal decision,” Khieu Sopheak said.

Devillers should make a request in writing, however, Khieu Sopheak said. “We all have to be transparent.”

Devillers, 52, has personal and professional links to Gu Kailai, who is suspected of the murder of a British national in China and is the wife of ousted politician Bo Xilai. The high-profile case has fueled a political crisis in China.

A French Embassy spokesman declined to comment on the case Tuesday, but French officials have said in the past Devillers should not be extradited without clear legal basis.