The tourists are charged with deliberately crossing the national border as part of an organized group: Ms. Larissa Dmitryuk, spokesperson of the Border Control Service of the Committee for National Security.
Kazakhstan hasn’t received any answer to the diplomatic note sent to Uzbekistan in which Kazakhstan asked for reasons why Kazakhstan’s tourists were detained in Uzbekistan for over a fortnight without due notification of the Kazakh side: Foreign Ministry spokesman.
The Kazakh side reminded that in accordance with the Vienna convention in case of foreign citizens detained abroad, a respective notification should have been sent to the country of their origin.
The group of Kazakhstan’s tourists comprises 9 teens and 3 adults. The teens have been placed in a detention facility for minors. The Uzbek authorities refuse to let the teens go until the parents pay a penalty of $550.
The tourists might have wandered off the trail and accidentally stepped on the Uzbek soil. The group comprises 9 teens and 3 adults. One of the tourists is diabetic.