Government apologises to families of Laos poison victims

The Australian federal government has issued an apology to the families of Holly Bowles and Bianca Jones, two 19-year-old Melbourne women who died from poisoning in Laos. The families were not informed that ten people were fined just $185 each for destroying evidence in the poisoning case, learning about it through other victims' families instead. Foreign Minister Penny Wong personally phoned the families to apologise for the lack of information, with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade acknowledging it fell short of its consular service standards.

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