US Pledges More Development Projects In Sulu

Photos released by the US Embassy show American Ambassador Kristie Kenney and Sulu Gov. Sakur Tan lead groundbreaking ceremonies in Jolo town in the southern Philippines on Tuesday, Oct. 14, 2008.

SULU, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Oct. 15, 2008) – The United States pledged more support to peace and development efforts in the southern Philippine province of Sulu, where American forces are training local troops.

Sulu Gov. Sakur Tan said US Ambassador Kristie Kenney was in the province on Tuesday and launched various development projects, among them the repair of the airport runway and the water system in the capital town of Jolo.

"We are thankful to the US government for its continued support to peace and development in Sulu. My people are forever grateful to all these humanitarian projects," Tan told reporters.

He said the projects are worth some $3.7 million and on top of the more than $190 million pledged by Washington last year for infrastructure and other development and humanitarian projects in Mindanao.

Tan said the airport runaway will be expanded to more than 1,800 meters so it could accommodate bigger passenger planes not only from Manila or Zamboanga, but from neighboring countries such as Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei that makes up the East Asia Growth Area (EAGA), a sub-regional economic cooperation initiative in Southeast Asia that included the Philippines.

At present, only small planes such as the Seair's 19-seater passenger aircraft now serving the Jolo-Zamboanga route. So far, the biggest plane that could land at Jolo airport is the military's C-130 cargo plane.

Tan said the project was made possible because President Glorial Arroyo have sought the funding for the rehabilitation of the airport.

He said the completion of the airport repair will boost investments in Sulu province. "Several local and foreign investors have already expressed their intent to set up businesses here," he said.

He said the rehabilitation of the airport is expected to be completed next year.Tan and Kenney led US and Filipino officials in the ground breaking ceremonies in Jolo town.

"This will improve development and give the citizens of Jolo a chance to be connected to the rest of the Philippines. More importantly, it will give the rest of the country and the world a chance to discover Jolo," Kenney said.

Total air passenger traffic to Jolo grew 30 percent in 2006-2007, making it difficult at times to get seats on existing flight routes, while cargo movement more than quadrupled, according to data from the Air Transportation Office.

"With this development, Sulu can now aim high and be competitive with the rest of the country in opening a gateway for market linkages to promote their local products," Kenney said.

The airport improvement project is being completed in partnership with the Department of Transportation and Communications, Civil Aviation Authority, the Sulu provincial government and the US Agency for International Development's Growth with Equity in Mindanao (GEM) Program.

Kenney also said the water project will upgrade the current pumping system by constructing a 200-cubic meter concrete reservoir, installing transmission pipelines totaling 2.5 kilometers long and replacing distribution pipelines and defective meters.

The project will enable the Jolo Water District to provide potable running water to approximately 70,000 residents of Jolo and adjacent villages in Indanan and Patikul towns.

Kenney said the water project will be undertaken through the joint efforts of the Sulu provincial government, Local Water Utilities Administration, Jolo Water District, and the GEM Program.

"America is proud to be among the many partners in this project," she said.

Kenney and Tan also visited the Mohammad Tulawie Central School, a beneficiary of USAID education and workforce preparation assistance, and she read books with students.US troops are currently training Filipino forces in Sulu and are active in humanitarian missions.

They have built schools, roads and clinics, among others worth over $10 million since 2006 in the province, according to Maj. Gen. Juancho Sabban, commander of military forces in Sulu. (Mindanao Examiner)

US, Britain Pour Development Aid In Southern RP

Sulu Gov. Sakur Tan with US and British Ambassadors Kristie Kenney and Peter Beckingham on Monday Sept. 24, 2007 in Patikul town in Sulu province in southern RP. (Mindanao Examiner Photo Service)

SULU, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / 24 Sept) – US and British officials on Monday unveiled a huge package of development projects in Sulu province in an effort to help Manila bring peace and progress in the southern region.

Ambassadors Kristie Kenney, of the United States, and Peter Beckingham, of the British Embassy, arrived WITH Philippine military chief Gen. Hermogenes Esperon in Jolo town where Gov. Sakur Tan led local officials in welcoming the delegation.

Tan said the US and British projects will help a lot of people in Sulu, one of five provinces under the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

Among the projects are the rehabilitation of the Jolo airport by the US worth $3 million and $700,000 potable water system funded by the British government under the Alliance for Mindanao Off-grid Renewable Energy (AMORE) program.

"The $3 million will be used to rebuilt and renovate the Jolo airport so people here can their fabulous products out to market in Manila and the rest of the world," Kenney told reporters.

It was in addition to the $190 million development and economic growth agreement the US recently signed to help fund other projects in Mindanao. "The $190 million will be spreading it evenly throughout various parts of Mindanao. The airport in Jolo and the water system, which costs $700,000, are separate projects," she said.

The potable water system, on the other hand, will benefit hundreds of people in four villages - Siolakan, Bakud, Latung, and SibakLatud – in Sulu's Siasi town, where AMORE also set up the communities' first access to electricity using solar power technology in 2004.

The project consist of an intake structure, four impounding reservoirs confined with 7,335 meters pipeline and with 21 tap stands, said Tetchie Capellan, AMORE's chief of party.

"I am confident that the completion of the potable water system project, the health, sanitation, and economic living conditions of the 200 marginalized households spread across the four villages will be addressed," Capellan said.

The AMORE is an alliance of the United States Agency for International Development, the Philippines' Department of Energy, Mirant Philippines Foundation Inc., the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao and Winrock International.

Bekingham described the province as vibrant and tremendous. "Everybody is very friendly and I am delighted to be here and see the projects that we are doing here," he said.

He said Britain is committed to increasing expenditure on water related projects, ensuring universal access to safe water and sanitation. The British government, he said, has already supported projects in developing countries, like in the Philippines, a community-based program integrating water, sanitation and hygiene education.

Kenney and Beckingham also handed over ten units of computers to the Sulu National High School. The British government provided reference materials while the USAID helped to install the new computers and train teachers on their use for classroom instruction.

They also visited the Jolo Market Road which had been upgraded recently from an earthen causeway to a concrete-paved boulevard by USAID. Tan said the improved road now provides a more efficient means of moving products and people from Jolo port to the market area.

The road has already become an evening attraction for locals, many of whom now regularly take walks to watch the sunset and panoramic view of the Sulu Sea.

Tan said the ambassadors also handed over aquaculture production materials to former Muslim rebels now engaged in lobster and abalone farming. "Peace and development in the province of Sulu has always been the ultimate goal of my administration and the people of this historical archipelago."

"Seeing it flourish again into agricultural and marine-based economic potentate in the region amidst challenges is the glory we all relentlessly working for early realization," he told Kenney and Beckingham.

Esperon said the peace and order condition in Sulu has improved a lot the past months and is giving confidence to foreign countries to take a second look into the province's rich natural resources. "Sulu is very peaceful and we have the US and British ambassadors here pouring a lot of development projects. It is a very good sign that progress," he said. (Mindanao Examiner)

U.S. Officials Open Joint Military Training In South RP

U.S. Ambassador Kristie Kenney and Zamboanga City Mayor Celso Lobregat in Tumaga village, 01 June 2007.

ZAMBOANGA CITY (Mindanao Examiner / 1 June) – American Ambassador Kristie Kenney on Friday visited the southern Filipino port city of Zamboanga, where U.S. and Philippine troops are holding a joint amphibious training.

Kenney formally opened the 13th “Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training,” known as CARAT 2007.

CARAT 2007 is a combined naval tactical operations exercise involving fleet forces of both the Philippine and United States Navies. The exercise also focuses on relationship building through social and community service events such as providing free medical, dental, and veterinary care in host communities.

Kenney also inspected the USS Harper’s Ferry, one of three American naval ships participating in the exercise, and met with Philippine Army Lieutenant General Eugenio Cedo, chief of the Western Mindanao Command, to discuss on how to further expand joint humanitarian and development programs in the troubled region.

Local mayor Celso Lobregat welcomed the U.S. official who also toured several American-funded projects for development in the Zamboanga area.

While in Zamboanga, the ambassador visited poor Muslim communities and led U.S. and Filipino officials in distributing some 42,000 books to school libraries.

The books were donated under the Education Awareness Support Effort (EASE) program of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and will go to more than 130 schools, allowing students to have access to encyclopedias, dictionaries, literature and short stories.

She visited the island of Pangapuyan Island, a remote community that received electricity through a program supported by the USAID under the AMORE Project, which aims to provide electricity to more than 400 remote and conflict-affected villages in Mindanao. AMORE also announced an additional $2 million to the program.

Kenney also inspected a hanging footbridge in Tumaga village which was built so villagers can safely and easily cross a river and improve their access to needed health, social and economic services in the town center.

The USAID, through its Growth with Equity in Mindanao (GEM) program, built the new 30-meter long pedestrian footbridge to replace a deteriorating wooden bridge.

After a short tour in the village, Kenney also attended a roundtable discussion on tax collection with Lobregat and Zamboanga business leaders. Zamboanga City is one of 16 Mindanao cities participating in USAID’s and The Asia Foundation’s Transparent and Accountable Governance (TAG) Project.

Under TAG, participating city governments have committed themselves to enacting specific governance reforms to improve services and reduce corruption. Zamboanga City chose to reform its processes for collecting business taxes and issuing business permits. (Chris Navarra)

Making a lasting IMPACT: Flexible teaching system transforms public elementary schools

LEARNING FROM EACH OTHER. Incoming grade 4 student Lemuel Ian Cua of Culianan Learning Center helps his classmate solve a mathematical problem on fractions. The Culianan Learning Center has been implementing the electronically enhanced Instructional Management by Parents, Community and Teachers (e-IMPACT) system – a revolutionary, non- traditional, and flexible learning program supported by USAID’s Education Quality and Access for Learning and Livelihood Skills (EQuALLS2) project that trains students to become peer group leaders while teachers facilitate a class of more than 80 students ranging from grades one to six.

A MIX OF EVERYONE. Tom Crehan, Chief of the Office of Education, USAID/Philippines talks to incoming grade six students in Maasin Learning Center. With him is Edsel Francisco, the school principal. In the background, a teacher oversees a peer group leader practice a reading exercise for grade one pupils. The electronically enhanced Instructional Management by Parents, Community and Teachers (e-IMPACT) system allows one teacher to handle 80 to 100 students clustered according to grade levels in one classroom.

EAGER LEARNERS. Elementary students of Maasin Learning Center in Zamboanga City take advance lessons on math to prepare for their role as peer group leaders in the coming school year. An in-service training on math was given to their teachers this summer by USAID ‘s Education Quality and Access for Learning and Livelihood Skills (EQuALLS2) project to help them develop the higher order thinking skills of students in concepts such as fractions, geometry, whole numbers, and pictograph.

ALL READY. All geared up for school. A total of 4,100 teachers including master teachers and supervisors from the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) were trained on teaching beginning reading during a summer training series held in 63 venues from April 9 to May 5. The wide-scale capability building activity was jointly sponsored by the USAID's Education Quality and Access for Learning and Livelihood Skills (EQuALLS2) project and the BEAM project of the Australian Agency for International Development. When the school year opens in June, a reading program based on the training will be piloted in 18 schools in ARMM. In the Philippines, predominantly Muslim populated region has the lowest student academic achievement owing largely to the poor competencies of teachers. (Photos contributed by EQuALLs)

ZAMBOANGA CITY - Incoming Grade 4 pupil Joshua Bue and some of his schoolmates go to school even on summer to take math lessons from their newly trained teachers.

When Joshua returns to school in June he will assume the role of a peer teacher. Last April, teachers from the Maasin Learning Center, a public elementary school tucked within canning plants and other industrial plants in this city, had an intensive training on math to help them develop the higher order thinking skills of students on basic concepts such as fractions, geometry, pictograph, and money.

Passing on new strategies to students like Joshua is crucial in a non-traditional school like Maasin Learning Center where students learn while they teach and teachers act as instructional managers.

Maasin Learning Center is one of two schools in Zamboanga City that operates under the electronically Enhanced Instructional Management by Parents, Community and Teachers (e-IMPACT) system – a revolutionary, non- traditional, and flexible learning program supported by USAID’s Education Quality and Access for Learning and Livelihood Skills (EQuALLS2) Project.

In this set-up, the teacher, known as the instructional manager, facilitates the class and gives advance lessons to students who teach their peers.

e-IMPACT was designed by the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization Regional Center for Education Innovation and Technology (SEAMEO INNOTECH) and adapted in the late 70’s by the Department of Education (DepEd) to help deal with insufficient classrooms and to taper off the incidence of drop-outs in public elementary schools.

But budget limitations forced the DepED to suspend the program’s implementation in the early 1980’s, with only one of the three pilot schools—the Culianan Learning Center in Zamboanga City— continuing to execute the project.

In the opposite side of Zamboanga City, away from the canning factories and into small fishing villages lies Culianan Learning Center, the e-IMPACT pilot school now fast becoming a resource hub for other schools and organizations wanting to implement the system.

In Culianan as in Maasin, there are no specific room assignments per grade level, such that some Grade 1’s share a room with Grade 3 and Grade 6 students especially if they are siblings or they come from the same neighborhood.

Believing that education is the process of learning and not merely the acquisition of facts, lessons in a mini-class, composed of up to 15 pupils per grade level, are taught by a peer group leader or program teacher like Joshua and other classmates who take their turns teaching one subject.

“We found IMPACT to be very effective in improving our students’ academic performance especially when they go to high school. Our graduates always top their class once they are out there! This inspired us to push through with it even without much government support,” said Josefina Lacastesantos, Culianan’s school principal.

She was among the first batch of teachers trained to efficiently handle the multiple mini- classes under the non- traditional set-up. In June 2006 after three decades of toiling on their own, USAID, through its EQuALLS project, assisted Culianan in revising and then reprinting 600 learning modules—equivalent to the traditional school’s textbooks—based on a culture-responsive Revised Basic Education Curriculum.

As two of the more than 800 EQuALLS-assisted schools in regions 9, 12 and the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), Culianan and Maasin enjoy the benefit of having continuous teacher and administrator training, intensive on-site mentoring; and advocacy support from EQuALLS.

Assistance for the conduct of monthly meetings, contributions for materials for classroom refurbishment, provision of additional books and other learning materials, as well as Math and Science kits were also extended. For the past decades or so, Maasin’s community of multi-cultural groups of Sama, Tausug, Yakan, Badjao, and Christians rarely concerned themselves with school matters.

Maasin Learning Center adopted e-IMPACT only last school year. But already it has successfully transformed its physical as well as academic status in the region. It now has ten classrooms that cater to more than 800 students. A two-classroom building was donated by the Filipino-Chinese Chamber of Commerce.

“At first, it was quite difficult to explain to the parents why the school needs to adopt the system, but we were quick to let them see the benefits. We have even just completed an in-service training on math this summer which we are now testing on our students,” said the school principal Edsel Francisco.

e-IMPACT combines traditional, teacher-based instruction, peer tutoring and self-paced learning as it strengthens the participation of parents and the community in improving quality and access to education.

“This is a better experience for me because I learn a lot from my classmates and they also learn from me,” said Lemuel Ian Cua, who was formerly enrolled in a nearby traditional school, but moved to Culianan in the middle of the school year.

By passing the periodical tests, he was able to catch up with the lessons and enjoyed being a peer group leader during his afternoon class for the rest of the last school year. e-IMPACT’s focus on self-paced learning allows for the multiple entry and exit of students who are in challenging situations.

This virtually eliminates the incidence of student dropout particularly those located within Mindanao’s conflict-affected areas. It allows one teacher, or instructional supervisor to efficiently manage up to 100 students clustered according to grade level under one roof.

Drawing from the success of Culianan, EQuALLS chose the first school in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, Baas Learning Center in Lamitan town in Basilan island to implement the innovative education system.

According to Saudi Daud, Baas instructional coordinator (principal in traditional school), barely six months after adopting the e-IMPACT strategy in June 2006, the number of non-readers and slow-readers has noticeably dwindled from 55 to 20.

“e-IMPACT was devised to address the problem on classroom shortage and the high incidence of dropping out especially in economically- deprived areas,” explained Dr Teresa Mukamad, area coordinator for the EQuALLS2 Project. In the case of Lamitan, drop out rates have considerably trimmed down from as high as 20 to zero. It was a welcome development for a community of at least 3,000 predominantly Yakan Muslims, who used to see some of the fiercest fighting between government troops and rebel groups.

Overall, Daud said, the new strategy has helped solve classroom and textbook shortage. From having a single textbook for every 20 students, Baas Elementary School now has learning modules for all its 406 students.

It was not until late last year that the 30-year-old school produced its first distinction when a student won the provincial level Essay Writing Contest.

“Under e-IMPACT, children are more interested to go to school because they are given a chance to actively participate in the learning process. Instructional supervisors told me to prepare the school as we anticipate higher enrollment this coming school year,” Daud said.

RP-US Officials Inspect Development Projects In Mindanao

Ethnic tribespeople dance in Mindanao to ward off bad spirits and invite forest spirits for bountiful harvest. (Mindanao Examiner/Mark Navales)

COTABATO CITY – Two senior Filipino and American officials have inspected various development projects jointly undertaken by the Philippine and US governments in Mindanao and both were impressed by the gains of peace and accelerated economic growth in the southern island.

Romulo Neri, Director General of the Philippines’ National Economic and Development Authority and Jon Lindborg, Philippines’ Director of the US Agency for International Development, visited different parts of Mindanao, including Muslim autonomous region and other conflict-affected areas during the two-day trip that ended Nov. 25.

Among the programs visited by the NEDA-USAID team was the Growth with Equity in Mindanao (GEM Program), which has been USAID’s flagship activity in Mindanao since 1996.

GEM is an umbrella program under which USAID is able to support a wide range of activities, including small infrastructure projects, livelihood assistance to former MNLF combatants, strengthening of business organizations, and opening international markets for Mindanao products -- all intended to contribute to peace and development in Mindanao.

GEM is implemented under the oversight of the Mindanao Economic Development Council. The visitors participated in ceremonies which turned over several computers and internet connections from the GEM-CLIC project to Manongol High School in Kidapawan City in South Cotabato province and a community center under the GEM-BIP project to a village called Poblacion 5 in Midsayap town in North Cotabato province.

Neri and Lindborg also visited projects of the Alliance for Mindanao Off-Grid Renewable Energy project (AMORE) which provides solar and micro-hydro electrification to remote areas such as the village of Linandangan in Pagalungan town in Maguindanao.

They also visited education programs in the village of Poblacion Dos in Midsayap under USAID’s Education Quality and Access for Learning and Livelihood Project.

Regional government officials and USAID implementing partners briefed Neri and Lindborg on programs for health services, internally displaced persons, and environmental governance.

From 2001-2006, Washington provided more than 60% of USAID assistance to the country or approximately $260 million to reinforce Philippine government efforts to secure a lasting peace and build a better life for the people of Mindanao.

Other US programs to Manila include military assistance to enhance the professionalism of Armed Forces of the Philippines and to strengthen its ability to respond to a range of modern threats, including domestic and international terrorists; assistance for law enforcement; and food aid for the modernization of Philippine agriculture. (With a report from Mark Navales/Mindanao Examiner)

Ransom Paid For 4 Jolo Hostages?

Philippine Army Lt. Gen. Eugenio Cedo, center, speaks at a news conference Saturday 21 Oct 2006 in Zamboanga City, as he presents 4 freed kidnapped Filipino engineers to journalists. Cedo tags the Abu Sayyaf as behind the kidnapping of the four men, one of them, engineer Romeo Rivera, 4th from left, who works for the United States Agency for Internatioanal Development-Growth for Equity in Mindanao (USAID-GEM). (Mindanao Examiner)

JOLO ISLAND (Mindanao Examiner / 22 Oct) – An unspecified amount of ransom was believed paid to kidnappers in the restive southern Philippine island of Jolo in exchange for the freedom of four Filipino hostages, a military source said Sunday.

The four men, engineers Romeo Rivera, a program manager working for the United States Agency for International Development-Growth with Equity in Mindanao (USAID-GEM); and Reynaldo Rubio and Larry Bautista, of the Manila-based Terra Zyme Chemicals; and their driver, Isidro Amaramo were recovered by troops on Friday, two days after their own native bodyguards kidnapped them while inspecting a Washington-funded road project in the town called Parang.

Philippine Army Lt. Gen. Eugenio Cedo later tagged the Abu Sayyaf group as behind the kidnapping and identified three of the captors as brothers Anni and Iting Sailani and Bong Iskandal (other reports say Sakandal).

Colonel Reynaldo Sealana, commander of an army brigade on Jolo island, said the four had been freed without ransom.

“The kidnappers freed the hostages without ransom because of mounting military pressure,” Sealana said.He said the kidnappers freed the hostages before a 24-hour military ultimatum for their release was to end on Friday.

He said villagers angered by the incident also threatened to seize the families and relatives of the kidnappers if they don’t free the four men.

But the regional police chief Joel Goltiao told reporters that the four had escaped from their captors late Wednesday. “They were able to escape from their captor; that is what they told the police,” Goltiao said.

The source said private negotiators allegedly paid ransom in exchange for the four men. The ransom payment was sanctioned by provincial government officials, the source claimed.

But the island’s governor Benjamin Loong said the hostages escaped after their captors fell asleep. “The hostages really escaped from the kidnappers,” he told the Mindanao Examiner.

One of the freed victim said the kidnappers demanded at least P30 million ransoms in exchange for their freedom.“The kidnappers asked P20 million from me and my companion and another P10 million from Rivera,” Rubio said.

The military said troops were pursuing the kidnappers, who had been implicated in the spate of killings of soldiers and civilians, including Filipino news photographer Gene Boyd Lumawag two years ago, on Jolo island, about 950 km south of Manila. (Mindanao Examiner)

Sayyaf Behind Jolo Kidnapping: Military

Philippine Army Lt. Gen. Eugenio Cedo shows photographs of two Abu Sayyaf kidnappers, brothers Anni and Iting Sailani. And the freed hostages, from top, Romeo Rivera, Isidro Amoramo, Larry Bautista and Reynaldo Rubio. (Mindanao Examiner/Uly Israel)

ZAMBOANGA CITY (Uly Israel / 21 Oct) – The Philippine military on Saturday tagged the Abu Sayyaf group as behind the kidnapping of a US aid worker and three other Filipinos in the troubled island of Jolo.

The four hostages were recovered by troops on a village in Parang town on Friday and were brought to Zamboanga City where military doctors examined them.

The victims, engineers Romeo Rivera, a program manager working for the United States Agency for International Development-Growth with Equity in Mindanao (USAID-GEM); and Reynaldo Rubio and Larry Bautista, of the Manila-based Terra Zyme Chemicals; and their driver, Isidro Amaramo were kidnapped Tuesday while inspecting a Washington-funded road project in the town.

Philippine Army Lt. Gen. Eugenio Cedo identified three kidnappers as brothers Anni and Iting Sailani and Bong Iskandal.

“Three of their captors were positively identified as members of the Abu Sayyaf Group’s Urban Terror Group based from the pictures presented to the victims as: Bong Iskandal, Anni Sailani and Iting Sailani,” Cedo said at a news conference where the four freed hostages told their ordeals.

Colonel Reynaldo Sealana, commander of an army brigade on Jolo island, said the four had been freed without ransom. “The kidnappers freed the hostages without ransom because of mounting military pressure,” Sealana said.

He said the kidnappers freed the hostages before a 24-hour military ultimatum for their release was to end on Friday. He said villagers angered by the incident also threatened to seize the families and relatives of the kidnappers if they don’t free the four men.

But the regional police chief Joel Goltiao told reporters that the four had escaped from their captors late Wednesday. “They were able to escape from their captor; that is what they told the police,” Goltiao said.

One of the freed victim said the kidnappers demanded at least P30 million ransoms in exchange for their freedom.

“The kidnappers asked P20 million from me and my companion and another P10 million from Rivera,” Rubio said.

He said the kidnappers did not harm them and said they only wanted money. “We were not harmed,” he said. “I knew the risk when we went to Jolo and I also know that there are more good people on the island. I still have trust on them,” he said.

Rubio said his captors took his ATM (automated teller machine) card and was able to withdraw about P60,000 from a bank in Jolo island. “I was told about it by the bank,” he said.

Despite the kidnapping, Rivera said he will return to Jolo island to finish the stalled road project.

“I will return to Jolo despite what had happened. I will return to continue the work that will benefit a lot of Muslims,” said Rivera, who nearly broke into tears while telling their ordeal in the hands of their captors.

His companion, Bautista, a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, said his ordeal has made him closer to God.

“The experience made me closer to God. My ordeal has made my faith in God stronger,” he said.

The military said troops were pursuing the kidnappers, who had been implicated in the spate of killings of soldiers and civilians, including Filipino news photographer Gene Boyd Lumawag two years ago, on Jolo island, about 950 km south of Manila. (Mindanao Examiner)

Kidnapped US Aid Worker, 3 Others Freed In Jolo

A government soldier helps carry the bags Friday 20 Oct 2006 of four kidnapped Filipinos freed by gunmen in Jolo island in the southern Philippines. The four -- engineers Romeo Rivera, a program manager working for the United States Agency for International Development-Growth with Equity in Mindanao (USAID-GEM); and Reynaldo Rubio and Larry Bautista, of the Manila-based Terra Zyme Chemicals; and their driver, Isidro Amaramo were kidnapped Tuesday after inspecting a road construction project in Parang town. (Mindanao Examiner/Darwin Wee)

JOLO ISLAND(Juan Magtanggol / 20 Oct) – Gunmen on Friday freed all four Filipinos, including a US aid worker, kidnapped on the troubled island of Jolo , officials said.

The victims engineers Romeo Rivera, a program manager working for the United States Agency for International Development-Growth with Equity in Mindanao (USAID-GEM); and Reynaldo Rubio and Larry Bautista, of the Manila-based Terra Zyme Chemicals; and their driver, Isidro Amaramo were brought to a military hospital in Zamboanga City where doctors examined them.

The four were kidnapped on Tuesday by their own bodyguards for a still unknown reason.Troops tracking down the kidnappers spotted the four victims walking on a village near the boundaries of Parang and Indanan towns, said Colonel Reynaldo Sealana, commander of an army brigade on Jolo island.

"The kidnappers freed the hostages without ransom because of mounting military pressure," Sealana told the Mindanao Examiner.

He said the kidnappers freed the hostages before a 24-hour military ultimatum for their release was to end on Friday. He said villagers angered by the incident also threatened to seize the families and relatives of the kidnappers if they don't free the four men.

But the regional police chief Joel Goltiao told reporters that the four had escaped from their captors late Wednesday. "They were able to escape from their captor; that is what they told the police," Goltiao said.

Secy. Jesus Dureza, a Presidential peace adviser, said the four would soon be reunited with their families. "They are free again," he said.

The four men were seized Tuesday by their own bodyguards in Parang town after inspecting a Washington-funded road project near Biid village.

Sealana said soldiers were hunting down the kidnappers on the island. "There is an operation going on. Soldiers are tracking down the kidnappers," he said.

One of the freed victim said the kidnappers demanded at least P30 million ransoms in exchange for their freedom. "The kidnappers asked P20 million from me and my companion and another P10 million from Rivera," Rubio said.

Rivera's group was working on a road construction in Parang town, while Rubio and Bautista, who arrived on Tuesday from Manila, were only inspecting the project. The US Embassy in Manila has condemned the kidnappings.

A contingent of US troops is in Jolo and training local soldiers in anti-terrorism warfare.It was not immediately known whether the bodyguards had links with the Abu Sayyaf or not. The Abu Sayyaf group is active on the island and has kidnapped many Filipino and foreigners in the past in exchange for money. Some of their victims who failed to pay ransom were beheaded. (With reports from Darwin Wee and Uly Israel in Zamboanga City)

No Ransom, No Negotiations For Kidnapped US Aid Worker, 3 Others In Jolo Island

JOLO ISLAND (Mindanao Examiner / 18 Oct) - The Philippine military on Thursday said it would not negotiate or pay ransom in exchange for the safe release of four people, one of them a US aid worker, kidnapped in the southern island of Jolo, a stronghold of Abu Sayyaf militants, blamed by authorities for the spate of terrorism and kidnappings in the restive region.

"We are firm in the government's no ransom policy and we don't negotiate with kidnappers," Army Captain Noel Abello, the acting spokesman of the military's Western Mindanao Command headquarters in Zamboanga City, told the Mindanao Examiner.

Colonel Reynaldo Sealana, commander of an army brigade on Jolo island, said the four were seized Tuesday by their own bodyguards in Parang town after inspecting a Washington-funded road project near Biid village.

Sealana said engineers Romeo Rivera, a program manager working for the United States Agency for International Development-Growth with Equity in Mindanao (USAID-GEM); and Reynaldo Rubio and Larry Bautista, of the Manila-based Terra Zyme Chemicals; and their driver, Isidro Amaramo were being held on the island, about 950 km south of Manila.

He said the victims were returning to their base in Jolo town when six of their native bodyguards seized them for a still unknown reason.

But the island's governor Benjamin Loong has formed a negotiating team to seek the freedom of the four men.

"They are trying to open up negotiations with the kidnappers. We don't know of any breakthrough as this time as far as the negotiation is concerned," Sealana said in a separate interview.

He said the kidnappers were moving from one hideout to another in the towns of Parang, Indanan and Maimbung to avoid detection by the military.

Leaders of the former rebel group, Moro National Liberation Front, also contacted the military on Thursday to say that they will not provide sanctuary to the kidnappers and have ordered its forces to rescue the four men should they stray in areas where the MNLF is operating, Sealana said.

He said troops are tracking down the kidnappers. "There is no way out of this mess, but for the kidnappers to free all the four hostages without ransom or demands," he said.

Rivera's group was working on a road construction in Parang town, while Rubio and Bautista, who arrived on Tuesday from Manila, were only inspecting the project.

The US Embassy in Manila has condemned the kidnappings. A contingent of US troops is in Jolo and training local soldiers in anti-terrorism warfare.

It was not immediately known whether the bodyguards had links with the Abu Sayyaf or not.

The Abu Sayyaf group is active on the island and has kidnapped many Filipino and foreigners in the past in exchange for money.

Some of their victims who failed to pay ransom were beheaded. (Mindanao Examiner)

USAID Worker, 3 Others Kidnapped In Jolo Island

ZAMBOANGA CITY (Uly Israel / 18 Oct) - A US aid worker and his companions were kidnapped by their bodyguards in the restive island of Jolo in the southern Philippines, where Filipino soldiers are pursuing members of the al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf group, military officials said on Wednesday.

Colonel Reynaldo Sealana, commander of army forces on the island, said the four were returning to their base in Jolo town when six of their native bodyguards led by a man identified only as Salih, seized them near the village of Biid in Parang town.

He identified the four as Engineer Romeo Rivera, a program manager working for the United States Agency for International Development-Growth with Equity in Mindanao (USAID-GEM); Engineers Reynaldo Rubio and Larry Bautista, of the Manila-based Terra Zyme Chemicals; and their driver, Isidro Amaramo.

“We have sealed off exits points in Parang town and established road blocks and checkpoints to prevent the escape of the kidnappers,” Sealana told the Mindanao Examiner by phone from Jolo. “We still don’t know the motive of the kidnappings, whether it was for ransom or work related.”

He said Rivera’s group was working on a road construction in Parang town, while Rubio and Bautista, who arrived on Tuesday from Manila were only inspecting the project.

A regional military commander Major General Cedo said he ordered troops to track down the kidnappers and rescue the victims. “There is a pursuit operation and we are closely coordinating with government officials on the island,” he said in a separate interview in Zamboanga City.

It was not immediately known whether the bodyguards had links with the Abu Sayyaf or not. The group is active on the island and has kidnapped many Filipino and foreigners in the past in exchange for money. Some of their victims who failed to pay ransom were beheaded. (With a report from Juan Magtanggol)