Sulu Governor Sakur Tan, right, and Defense chief Gilberto Teodoro Jr. (Mindanao Examiner Photo)SULU, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Jan. 19, 2009) – Security forces continue to pursue Abu Sayyaf militants tagged as behind the kidnapping of three Red Cross workers in the southern Filipino island of Sulu, officials said Monday.
The three – Swiss national Andreas Notter, Italian Eugenio Vagni and Filipino Mary Jean Lacaba – were seized January 15 in Patikul town on their way to the airport after inspecting water and sanitation projects.
“Military and police forces are pursuing the kidnappers. There will be no stopping until they free all the victims,” Sulu Gov. Sakur Tan told the Mindanao Examiner.
Tan did not give details of the operations, saying, it could jeopardize the mission to recover the captives safely. He also designated Fazlur Abdullah, head of the Sulu Area Coordinating Center, as the crisis spokesman.
Sen. Richard Gordon on Monday was quoted by journalists in Manila as saying the kidnappers phoned the Red Cross and asked that the military operation be halted.
Gordon, chairman of the Philippine National Red Cross, did not give further details about the phone call.
The German press agency reported at the weekend that the kidnappers are planning to demand $5 million ransom in exchange for the safe release of the hostages. It quoted unnamed military officials, who said the gang holding the trio is led by Abu Sayyaf leaders Albader Parad and Abu Pula, former Moro National Liberation Front rebels, implicated in many kidnappings-for- ransom in Sulu.
Tan said the operation must not be stopped. “We should exert more effort to pressure the kidnappers to free all their innocent captives. That’s the only way to get them back,” he said.
Tan said the government will not negotiate with the kidnappers. “I am warning those who would try to negotiate and pay ransom to the kidnappers, we will hold you criminally responsible,” he said.
The military also said it will not stop the rescue operation in Sulu, where hundreds of troops are combing dense jungles where the hostages were spotted.
“There is an Area Coordination Center in Sulu where various agencies converge to address issues, resolve conflicts and find the best solution to current problems besetting the province. It is headed by local government officials and the military and police as members. Hence, it is thru this committee that appropriate actions to resolve the ICRC kidnapping are decided upon. We cannot unilaterally declare the termination of our rescue operations,” said Lt. Steffani Cacho, a regional military spokeswoman.
The ICRC said the hostages made a phone call on Friday, but it provided no information about the conversation, except the hostages were not harmed by their captors.
“The three have been able to call the ICRC directly and said they were unharmed. There is no further information available on their whereabouts or who is holding them. We are, of course, relieved to have heard their voices and to know that they are alive,” said the head of the ICRC's delegation in Manila, Jean-Daniel Tauxe.
“We are not in a position to comment further, since our main priority is ensuring that nothing jeopardizes their safety, but it goes without saying that their families, as well as their colleagues, are hoping for their safe and swift return.”
The humanitarian organization said the incident has not affected the ICRC's operations in central Mindanao, where around 300,000 people remain displaced due to fighting between government forces and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebels.
“The ICRC plans to continue its operations in the Philippines and fully expects to carry on assisting and protecting those affected by the armed conflict,” said Tauxe. “For the displaced, each day is filled with uncertainty, anxiety and insecurity. They worry that there will be another flare up in fighting, they're unable to support their families, they don't know when they'll be able to go home again and they have no idea what the future will bring. That's a very difficult situation to be in.”
Tauxe said the ICRC's main activity on Sulu involved a water and sanitation project at the provincial jail. But the ICRC said it will not be able to carry out this specific project in Sulu for the time being.
Aside from the Abu Sayyaf, police and military also implicated a former prison guard in the kidnappings of the ICRC team. Authorities blamed the Abu Sayyaf as behind the spate of terrorism in the southern Philippines. (Mindanao Examiner)
No comments:
Post a Comment