IN BRIEF
- Laotian authorities have laid charges against a distillery owner and 10 hostel employees over six tourist deaths.
- The 2024 deaths have been linked to methanol-tainted alcohol but Laotian authorities say that can't be determined.
Laos authorities said on Saturday they could not determine blame or the cause of the deaths in 2024 of six tourists previously linked to methanol-tainted alcohol because their families had refused to allow autopsies.
Two Danish citizens, an American, a Briton and two Australian teenagers died following what media reports said was a night out on the town in Vang Vieng in November that year.
"To date, authorities do not yet have evidence that can establish whether the deaths ... were caused by the actions of any individual or by any particular causes," the Laos Ministry of Public Security said in a statement on Saturday.
"This is because the authorities were not permitted to conduct autopsies on the bodies of the deceased, and therefore lacked the forensic evidence necessary to determine the cause of death," it said.
However, the statement said: "The Ministry of Health's Food and Drug Research Center found excessive levels of methanol in Tiger Vodka."
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Methanol is a toxic alcohol that can be added to liquor to increase its potency but can cause blindness, liver damage and death.
The statement said, based on information provided by the Australian Embassy and a Thai hospital, that "methanol had been detected in the blood of the two deceased Australian tourists".
It said legal proceedings had been initiated against the owner of the Tiger distillery for "manufacturing or selling products hazardous to health" and "illegal commercial operation".
In a statement issued earlier on Saturday, Denmark's Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed that charges had been officially laid by Laos officials on Friday.
If found guilty, the accused faced up to four years' jail and a fine, Denmark's foreign ministry said.
The owner and 10 employees of the hostel where the American tourist was staying have also been charged with "destruction of evidence" after transporting his body to hospital.
'Frustrated and bitterly disappointed'
The investigation has been a source of contention between Australia and Laos and the charges laid this weekend came amid concern over whether justice would be served nearly two years after the deaths of Bianca Jones and Holly Morton-Bowles.
"The Australian Government is deeply frustrated and bitterly disappointed that authorities in Laos are not pursuing the most serious charges," Foreign Minister Penny Wong said on Friday.
''We have consistently made clear our expectations that charges should reflect the gravity of the tragedy,'' Wong said in a statement, adding the government had advocated for a thorough and transparent investigation into the deaths.
Wong said she would again put Australia's views directly to her Laos counterpart at a Southeast Asian ministerial meeting in Manila next week.
Vang Vieng has been a fixture on the Southeast Asia backpacker trail since Laos' communist rulers opened the country to tourism decades ago.
The town was once synonymous with alcohol- and drug-fuelled jungle parties for backpackers but has since rebranded as an ecotourism destination.
The Australian government's travel advisory and consular information service, smartraveller, has recently upgraded its tourist warning for Laos.
It now advises travellers to "exercise a high degree of caution due to crime, the risk of methanol poisoning and ongoing concerns around lack of transparency in the justice system".
"The Lao legal system may not provide transparency or justice, particularly in criminal cases," the advice now reads.
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