T

HE relatives of three Western hostages made a fresh appeal for their release as

the two Britons and an Australian entered their fourth month in

captivity.

But an informed source said there had still been no real

progress in establishing the whereabouts of Briton Dominic Chappell, his

Australian girlfriend Kellie Wikinson and their British friend Tina Dominy or in

making contact with their abductors.

Six relatives made a trip on July 9

to Than Ny village on Route 4, around 100 km north of Sihanoukville. It is the

nearest settlement to the point where the three were bundled out of their taxi

by armed men on April 11 and marched up a forest track.

Posters appealing

for information were distributed to around 200 villagers along with sacks of

rice.

Tina's parents Denis and Yvonne, Dominic's parents David and

Phyllida and his sister Gabrielle were flown to Cambodia by a national British

newspaper to make the appeal. They were accompanied by Kellie's father Peter

Wilkinson, who has been in Cambodia since soon after the abduction.-Jon Ogden