Jesse Jackson to appeal for release of CARE workers imprisoned in Yugoslavia

June 3, 1999

CONTACT: Cynthia Glocker, (404) 374-4061 or Allen Clinton (404) 374-3683

WHO: The Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr., founder of the Rainbow Push Coalition, Andrew Young, former UN ambassador and mayor of Atlanta; Peter D. Bell, president and CEO of CARE USA; Lydia Marshall, chair of CARE USA's Board of Directors; and Malcolm Fraser, vice president of CARE International, chair of CARE Australia's Board and former Prime Minister of Australia.

WHAT: Jesse Jackson will appeal to Yugoslav government for the immediate release of the CARE aid workers Steve Pratt, Peter Wallace and Branko Jelen who were convicted on May 29 by a Belgrade military court of passing on secret information. The three men were originally charged with being a part of an espionage ring, but were cleared of those charges. They were then convicted of the new charge, which their lawyers were unable to dispute because they had no details of this charge.

"I am outraged and saddened by the verdict of the Yugoslav court," says CARE USA President Peter D. Bell. "Steve Pratt, Peter Wallace and Branko Jelen are humanitarian aid workers - nothing more, nothing less. Their conviction is a travesty of justice, and will be vigorously appealed. We must face the fact that this process is being driven by politics - not justice."

The court sentenced Pratt to 12 years in jail, Wallace to four years and Jelen to six years. Lawyers acting for Pratt and Wallace of Australia and Jelen of Yugoslavia plan to appeal the conviction and the sentences.

"I talked with the foreign minister, Zivadin Jovanovic, appealing to him to release the three Australian captives,'' said Rev. Jesse Jackson, Sr. ``They are being used as war trophies and they should be released, just as the three American soldiers were released."

WHERE: National Park Service Visitor's Center, multipurpose room, 450 Auburn Avenue, Across from the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Non-Violent Social Change in Atlanta.

WHEN: Friday, June 4, 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

CARE USA and CARE Australia are part of the CARE International confederation of humanitarian organizations, which creates new opportunities for 24 million of the world's poorest people each year. Whether building wells in remote villages or creating jobs in urban settlements, its programs promote self-reliance to avoid long-term dependency. CARE International also acts when disaster strikes, working closely with other agencies to provide emergency food, water and shelter.