Swiss Max Goeldi released from Libyan prison by Zuzana Zelenakova

Libya-Switzerland relations have been through some crisis recently. It all began in July 2008, when Hannibal Gaddafi, son of Libyan leader Muammar al-Gaddafi, was arrested with his wife for allegedly beating their servants at a hotel in Switzerland. The couple was release after two days. The situation between the two countries quickly deteriorated with Muammar al-Gaddafi shutting down local subsidiaries of several Swiss companies, basically cancelling air traffic between Libya and Switzerland and withdrawing great amounts of money from his Swiss bank accounts. In addition, two Swiss businessmen, Max Goeldi and Rachid Hamdani, were arrested with Libyan authorities claiming ! there were some problems with their visa. Initially, both of them were sentenced to 16 months in jail, however, in February 2010, Hamdani´s sentence was cancelled and Goeldi´s reduced to four months. Monday, Goeldi returned home after serving the sentence. In an attempt to resolve the dispute, Switzerland and Libya has signed an “action plan” that should mark “the beginning of a normalization process,” said Swiss Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey, who accompanied Goeldi on his way home. "I am confident that Swiss-Libyan relations will find their traditional course. This is the desire of Switzerland and I am sure of Libya as well." Calmy-Rey arrived in Libya together with her Spanish counterpart Miguel Angel Moratinos as Spain is currently holding presidency over the European Union and has been acting as a mediator between Switzerland and Libya together with Germany. Mediator signed the action plan as well. Hannibal Gaddafi´s arrest! in a luxury hotel in Geneva in 2008 resulted also in cancelli! ng oil e xports to Switzerland with Muammar Gaddafi declaring a “jihad” on the country. Then Swiss President Hans-Rudolf Merz apologized for the arrests in person in August 2009, however, the move had an angry public response in Switzerland with calls for President´s resignation.

related story (sgx17565): http://www.france24.com/en/20100613-swiss-buisnessman-max-go...

by Zuzana Zelenakova for Cantell TV (http://cantell.tv)

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