RP hostage crisis

RP hostage crisis

Entering its third week, the hostage crisis in the southern
Philippines is not showing any signs of coming to an end. Far
from it in fact: the abductors reportedly tried to break through
the Philippine military cordon recently, using their captives as
human shields.

People in the region have raised their eyebrows at the
kidnapping, prompting them to ponder how volatile and uncertain
security in Southeast Asia is. The incident also signifies that
terrorism and violence still prevail in the region despite the
security cooperation among member countries of the Association of
Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

The kidnapping should also be looked upon as a wake-up call to
ASEAN members to further enhance their cooperation, not only in
the economic and political fields but also in ensuring the safety
and security of their citizens.

The affair began on April 23, when Philippine separatist
rebels abducted 21 civilians -- nine Malaysians, three Germans,
two French, two South Africans, two Finns, two Filipinos and a
Lebanese -- who were vacationing at the dive resort of Sipadan
off the island of Borneo.

Over the past weeks, members of the Moro Islamic Liberation
Front and the more militant Abu Sayyaf rebels have stepped up
guerrilla activities in their bastions in the Philippine's
southern province of Mindanao, aiming to carve out an Islamic
state in the predominantly Catholic country.

Abu Sayyaf gunmen were also responsible for the kidnapping of
a group of Filipino hostages in Basilan province, most of whom
are still being held in the rebels' jungle hideouts.

The Sipadan hostage drama has become an international affair
because it involves the safety of a number of nationalities from
countries grouped in the European Union. The union has been
forced to send its envoy, Javier Solana, to Manila to help end
the crisis.

The decision to dispatch Solana, the union's security and
foreign policy advisor, indicates that European countries are
deeply concerned about the safety of their nationals and that any
harm done to them by the rebels could jeopardize the credibility
of the Philippine government.

Aware of this risk, the Manila government, while reiterating
its unwillingness to pay any ransom for the release of the
hostages, has nevertheless shown signs of bending, saying it
would consider development aid for the predominantly Muslim
provinces in the south.

It is true, as President Joseph Estrada has said, that the
kidnapping is purely a Philippine domestic issue. It is also
true, however, that terrorism is a global problem that has to be
resolved jointly.

An act of terror like taking hostages, irrespective of the
motives underlying it, will never be justified by any country
that upholds law and order. It therefore has to be firmly dealt
with so that similar incidents will not happen in the future.

Even an envoy from Libya, a country once considered to harbor
hard-line terrorists, said on Tuesday that Abu Sayyaf militants
had committed an inhumane act and violated Islam by holding
innocent people hostage.

In the final analysis, the abduction of tourists by whatever
group will obviously scare away travelers from the region and
adversely affect tourism, one of the major sources of income for
most ASEAN member countries.