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Muslim
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June 12, 2000
JOLO, Philippines, JUNE 11 (AP) - Muslim rebels holding 21 people in a remote Philippine jungle have moved their Caucasian hostages first to an area of dense mangroves and then to a watershed not far from their original location, police said Sunday.
On Friday, the Abu Sayyaf rebels divided their hostages into two groups - one of Caucasians and other of Asians - because of fears of a possible military rescue attempt. The Asians remained at the rebels' mountain camp, but the 10 Caucasians were taken several kilometers (miles) away to another rebel-controlled area surrounded by mangroves, police said.
They were then brought back to Tiis Kuttung, a mountainous watershed about one kilometer (half a mile) from the other hostages, provincial police chief Candido Casimiro said.
On Saturday, the rebels also announced they will no longer talk with the chief government negotiator, Robert Aventajado, after he suggested the government might consider a military rescue if negotiations over the release of the hostages break down.
The Abu Sayyaf warned that the lives of the hostages "will be exposed to extreme risks" if any rescue operation is launched. Aventajado claimed his comment was taken out of context.
"The government panel does not consider, much less endorse, an armed response to the hostage crisis," he said. The Abu Sayyaf are holding three Germans, two French, two Finns, two South Africans, a Lebanese, nine Malaysians and two Filipinos.
The hostages were seized April 23 from a Malaysian diving resort and brought to Jolo, an island at the southern tip of the Philippines.
Government negotiators said the recent developments were another setback to hopes for the hostages' release.
In two days of talks Friday and Saturday, the rebels refused to abandon their demand for an independent Islamic nation, the negotiators said.
The government has repeatedly ruled out any breakup of the Philippines. The seven weeks of captivity in the jungle at the hands of the extremist rebels have been traumatic for the hostages, whose psychological state has deteriorated.
Several of the hostages have threatened suicide, and a government doctor has urged that one, Stephane Loisy of France, be hospitalized because of psychological distress.
President Joseph Estrada has ordered the negotiators to make substantial progress by Monday, Philippine Independence Day. The rebels are also demanding the protection of traditional fishing grounds from large trawlers, many of which are foreign-owned, and the formation of a commission to examine the problems of Filipino Muslims living in neighboring Malaysia. They are also expected to demand a large ransom at a later time.
The Abu Sayyaf are the smaller but more extreme of two rebel groups fighting for an independent Islamic state in the impoverished southern Philippines.
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