| Hostage release held up
as rebels demand more cash In a
surprise move, Abu Sayyaf frees a Filipina cook, one of 21 tourists and staff seized by
the rebels from the resort island of Sipadan on April 23
By LUZ BAGUIORO
MANILA -- The expected release
yesterday of all remaining hostages, held by Muslim extremists for four months, suffered a
snag when the kidnappers demanded more money for their freedom.
But in a surprise move, the Abu
Sayyaf rebels released a Filipina cook from their jungle lair on the southern island of
Jolo.
She was one of 21 tourists and
staff seized by the rebels from the resort island of Sipadan on April 23.
""I thought it was
only a dream,'' said Ms Lucrecia Dablo. ""But it is true.''
She sobbed as she was led away
by chief government negotiator Roberto Aventajado at a military base not far from the
kidnappers' base.
""This could be a
signal that the other hostages will be released starting Thursday,'' Mr Aventajado said in
a television interview.
The Abu Sayyaf was expected to
release the 13 mostly foreign hostages yesterday.
The hostages, who have been
held in dire conditions, subsist on cassava and other root crops and impure mountain
water. Several have thought of committing suicide.
The police in Jolo said the
kidnappers, fearing a military crackdown once all their captives were freed, could have
aborted the handover of the hostages after they monitored soldiers patrolling near their
hideout.
""We hope that there
can be a breakthrough,'' chief presidential aide Ronaldo Zamora told reporters.
""But I do not want to announce a breakthrough right now because so many
breakthroughs have been announced and gone.''
Sources close to the
negotiators said the Abu Sayyaf, which is known to sustain its members through
kidnap-for-ransom and extortion activities, had sought more ransom for the release of the
hostages.
Libyan envoy Rajab Azzarouq and
other government emissaries, who trekked to the kidnappers' jungle camp early yesterday,
returned empty-handed several hours later.
The kidnappers at first
demanded US$1 million (S$1.72 million) for each of the 21 hostages, a separate state,
fishing rights and the revival of barter trade.
The military calculates they
have received US$5.5 million for 11 hostages released so far.
The gunmen also hold captive a
French television crew of three and three Filipino construction workers.
But the question in the minds
of most Filipinos and those in Western countries is whether the Philippine government will
do anything to prevent a repeat of the hostage crisis which has so embarrassed the country
in the eyes of the world.
""Maybe, it's better
if we should first finish the negotiations for the release of the hostages. It will be
difficult to do everything at the same time,'' Mr Aventajado said.
Back to Sipadan Hostages News
Back
to This Week's Borneo News |
