| Hostage in Philippines Losing Hope
ZAMBOANGA,
Philippines (AP) - An American held hostage by Muslim rebels for 21/2 months in a
Philippine jungle said Tuesday he is being kept in chains, has an infection in his leg,
and is losing hope he will be released.
Jeffrey Schilling, a Muslim
convert from Oakland, Calif., said in a radio interview that he was able to survive
military bombings and shellings of the rebel group ``by the grace of Allah.''
Schilling, 24, said the Abu
Sayyaf rebels holding him traveled at night to escape pursuing military troops. He said no
doctors were available to treat his infected leg and he had no more medicine.
``I am suffering from ulcers,
fatigue and depression,'' he said. ``They force me to walk night and day. They keep me in
chains.''
Schilling said he was becoming
``less and less optimistic every day.''
The interview with the Radio
Mindanao Network, conducted by cellular telephone, was Schilling's first in more than a
month. He said the rebels had taken him away from Jolo island, where he was seized after
visiting an Abu Sayyaf rebel camp on Aug. 31, and could be in either nearby Tawi-Tawi or
Basilan provinces.
Thousands of troops attacked
the Abu Sayyaf on Jolo on Sept. 16 in an attempt to rescue Schilling and 18 other
hostages. Seventeen of the captives have either been rescued or escaped, leaving only
Schilling and a Filipino, Roland Ulla, still in rebel hands.
``If the American government is
interested in the release of Mr. Schilling, they should send a negotiator,'' rebel faction
leader Abu Sabaya said in the same radio interview. ``Otherwise, there will be a big
problem for the interests of American citizens in the Philippines because Jeffrey is just
the start.''
The U.S. State Department has
said the Philippine government is responsible for negotiating Schilling's release.
In a telephone conversation
with the U.S. Embassy more than a month ago, Schilling said the rebels were demanding $10
million for his release, officials said.
Military spokesman Col.
Fredesvindo Covarrubias said the military believes the rebels are still holding Schilling
on Jolo.
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