MUSLIM REBELS WON'T RELEASE HOSTAGES
By AARON FAVILA, Associated Press Writer
JOLO, Philippines (AP) - Muslim
extremists holding 20 hostages in a southern jungle said Thursday they will not release
any captives until negotiations are resumed and an agreement is reached.
A Malaysian hostage, Zulkarnain
Hashim, was released last week in what negotiators called a goodwill gesture.
``No more will follow
Zulkarnain. He is a gift to Malaysia,'' said Ghalib Andang, also known as Commander Robot,
who has custody of the hostages in a mountain hide-out on southern Jolo island.
Andang said the Abu Sayyaf
rebels will negotiate only with designated negotiators from the Philippine government or
the governments of the foreign hostages.
Negotiators, led by
presidential aide Robert Aventajado, suspended the talks more than two weeks ago in a
``cooling off period'' declared by the government after the rebel demands began
escalating, Aventajado said.
Since then, Aventajado said he
has been regularly sending emissaries to the rebels but there was no indication when
formal talks might resume.
The Abu Sayyaf is the smaller
but more violent of two Muslim rebel groups waging a separatist uprising in the region,
the homeland of the country's Muslim minority.
The Abu Sayyaf seized three
Germans, two French, two Finns, two South Africans, a Lebanese, nine Malaysians and two
Filipinos on April 23 from a Malaysian diving resort and brought their captives by boat to
Jolo.
Andang said government
negotiators should immediately resume talks because many of the hostages are getting sick
and weak from their long jungle captivity.
``These hostages will weaken as
the days wear on,'' Andang said.
``We serve them what we eat -
like cassava but they're not used to it, that's why they easily get sick. The water is
dirty, there is no mineral water,'' he said.
The rebels so far have focused
on political demands, including a separate Islamic state, formation of a commission to
examine the problems of Filipino Muslims living in neighboring Malaysia, and the
protection of traditional fishing grounds from large trawlers.
Government negotiators have
rejected the first two demands but are trying to accommodate the third by enforcing
fisheries laws more strictly.
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