Statement by Ministers Erkki Tuomioja and Paula Lehtomäki on the death of Counsellor Pauli Mustonen

Press release 378/2006
25 September, 2006

The leaders and personnel of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs have just received confirmation of the dreadful news, which had been feared since Saturday afternoon. Counsellor Pauli Mustonen, who was serving as Finland’s Acting Chargé d'Affaires in the Nepalese capital of Katmandu, had been killed in a helicopter accident in the east of Nepal.

Pauli Mustonen died in the course of duty, on the return trip  from the handing-over ceremony for the Kanchenjunga Conservation Area Project, a conservation project Finland has supported through WWF Finland. This work was close to the heart of Pauli Mustonen, who had specialised in development and environmental issues. He wasn’t afraid of difficult conditions and never hesitated to take action himself.

Pauli Mustonen was a well-liked and capable civil servant, whose positive and conciliatory nature left a lasting mark on his work community and his circle of friends. Both as a representative of Finland and as a professional, he was also held in wide regard among his foreign colleagues and within the Nepalese government.

We express our deepest condolences to Pauli Mustonen’s mother, loved ones and others close to him.