Hostage release stymied

Sayyaf insisting on Libya asylum

By Faber Concepcion

Abu Sayyaf rebels holding 25 hostages in Sulu delayed the release of their captives yesterday.

Banking on Libya’s eagerness to gain international prestige, the extremist guerrillas pressed for asylum and demanded they be allowed to board the chartered plane sent by the Middle East  government.

A source privy to the release negotiations said Abu Sayyaf leader Muim Sahiron was insisting on holding back a Lebanese woman hostage and three French journalists until President Estrada back-tracked on his “no asylum” stance.

Negotiators, who returned empty-handed to Jolo after visiting the rebel camp acknowledged the release was delayed by “security concerns,” but would not say more.

“We have to come back another day and re-negotiate,” former Libyan envoy Rajab Azzarouq said.

The tired and disappointed Azzarouq said he would return when the Abu Sayyaf rebels are ready to talk, but gave no time frame.

One group

The emissary source said government negotiators were apparently under instructions to accept only the whole group of hostages.

“That’s why they could not take even one group, because they were under orders to press for a full release,” the source said.

He said the hostages and rebel guards are now in Bud Datu, at the boundary of Jolo and Indanan.

The military has denied reports of troop movements but the source said Abu Sayyaf runners had spotted soldiers around the area.

“That is another problem. They deployed their men earlier and whole villages are keeping watch for them. They are angry about the troop movements,” said the source.

Anticipating a military offensive, prominent Sulu families have started pulling out, especially residents of areas near Patikul and Talipao towns.

Whole families are arriving in Zamboanga aboard Asian Spirit, which has a once a day flight from Jolo.

The airline management said all flights from Jolo have been fully booked since Tuesday last week.

Fast craft that ply the Jolo-Zamboanga route also registered an increase of passengers.

Last plane out

Two vans that were to carry the hostages, some held as long as four months, returned empty from the rebels’ area and military escorts and armored personnel carriers were withdrawn.

“It’s very sad,” said Malaysian Ambassador Mohamed Arshad M. Hussain.

However, three Malaysians released Friday were already on their way to freedom, he said.

The extremist Abu Sayyaf group has been holding the three Malaysians, six French, two Germans, two Finns, two South Africans and 13 Filipinos in primitive mountain huts.

Thirteen of the hostages were abducted April 23 from a Malaysian diving resort. The rebels later seized three French journalists, and a dozen Filipino Christian evangelists who visited their hideout to pray for the captives.

Rebels are now insisting on asylum, the source said.

President Estrada’s instructions for a single release of captives, and his public rejection of asylum, have convinced the Abu Sayyaf a military attack will commence as soon as the hostages leave their hands.

“They know that if they do not get on that (Libyan) plane, their lives are forfeit,” the source said.

Libyan role

The Western hostages were to have flown aboard a Libyan-chartered plane to Tripoli to meet with Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi before returning home.

Libya has played a high-profile role in the negotiations for the Western hostages and is believed to be paying millions of dollars for their freedom.

Libyan officials have insisted the money will fund development projects in the impoverished region instead of going directly to the rebels.

“The motive here is humanitarian. What we are doing now is just to show the world that Libya is a peace-loving nation and our leader Gadhafi is a leader for peace,” said Libyan Ambassador Saleem Adam.

Separate negotiators working for the three Malaysians’ freedom said Friday they had reached an agreement on a guerrilla demand for an additional $1-million ransom payment, but did not provide details.

An estimated $5.5 million was paid last month to the Abu Sayyaf group for the release of six other Malaysians and a German, according to military officials. A Filipino woman was released on Wednesday.

Several Philippine congressmen have called for tough action against the heavily armed rebels and warned they are likely to use the ransom to buy more weapons.

Libya has flown dozens of journalists from the hostages’ countries to Tripoli to cover the expected release.

For years, Libya has helped mediate between Muslim guerrillas and the Philippine government and helped build schools and mosques in the impoverished south, home to the heavily Roman Catholic country’s Muslim minority.

But Libya also has been accused of training rebels from the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, another separatist group fighting for an Islamic state in the southern Philippines.

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