MILF Readies Assault Vs Kidnappers In Basilan

BASILAN ISLAND (Juan Magtanggol / 18 Aug) The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) on Friday threatened to assault kidnappers, allied with the Abu Sayyaf group, if they fail to free a 19-year girl held captive in the southern Philippine island of Basilan.

The kidnappers reportedly demanded P40 million in exchange for the safe release of Grace Gonzales who was kidnapped August 1 in Zamboanga City and brought to Basilan's Tuburan town.

The victim is the daughter of Dr Eldigario Gonzalez, president of the state-owned Western Mindanao State University.

"We warn the kidnappers to free the hostage without condition or else we will use force to free the victim," Eid Kabalu, a rebel spokesman, told the Zamboanga Journal.

Military reports tagged Nur Jamiri as the alleged leader of the kidnappers, whose group is tied to the Abu Sayyaf.

The MILF, which is currently negotiating peace with Manila, is working closely with the military through the ad-hoc joint action group to track down the kidnappers, Kabalu said.

"MILF forces and government soldiers are now searching for the hostage in Basilan's hinterlands. The MILF is closely working with the military in Basilan island to rescue the girl," he said.

Kabalu said Musa Warin, the MILF leader in Basilan island, is leading the hunt for the kidnappers. "The kidnappers should free the girl immediately or we will all arrest them and their supporters," he said.

Brig. Gen. Raymundo Ferrer, Basilan military chief, said the kidnappers were moving their hostage from one hideout to another to avoid detection by security and rebel forces. "We have been tracking down the kidnappers and they are mobile and hiding from one hideout to another," he said in a separate interview.

Ferrer said MILF rebels were helping the military track down the kidnappers and the hostage. "Our coordination is good and we are working closely to secure the safe release of the girl. The safety of the hostage is important to us," he said.

The MILF, which is negotiating peace with Manila, also rescued a kidnapped nine-year old girl, Donna May Ramos, in Basilan island in May after rebels stormed the hideout of kidnappers in the hinterlands of Tipo-Tipo town and arrested two men.

In July, MILF rebels rescued a kidnapped social worker, Henry de Guzman, in the southern Philippine province of Lanao del Norte barely a day after bandits seized him in front of terrified villagers.

Rebels freed De Guzman after surrounding the kidnappers' hideout in the jungle village of Tamparan in Munai town. De Guzman, who works for the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), was organizing a dialogue in the town's Tambo village when he was seized by gunmen.

The MILF, the country's largest Muslim separatist rebel group, forged an agreement in 2004 that paved the way for rebel forces to help government hunt down terrorists and criminal elements in areas where the rebl group is actively operating.

Just early this year, a young daughter of a senior police official was also kidnapped in Zamboanga City and until now is being held captive. But officials remain silent on who was holding the girl.

Authorities blamed the Abu Sayyaf group in several high profile kidnappings of foreigners and wealthy Filipino in Zamboanga City. The group had previously kidnapped a German canning executive here, two Belgians and a Taiwanese matriarch and Fililipino-Chinese traders.