RP places blackout on abduction

RP places blackout on abduction

PHILIPPINES: The Philippine government imposed on Monday a news blackout on the case of a Filipino diplomat abducted by a Taliban faction in Afghanistan to avoid jeopardizing efforts to free him and two other United Nations workers.

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo said the news blackout was necessary "to avoid controversies that could prejudice the safety of Angelito Nayan", a 34-year-old foreign service officer working with the UN electoral committee in Kabul.

"We need to forge broad support for the restraint on information we're imposing," she said in an address broadcast nationwide. "We are taking all appropriate measures to bring Angelito home. We're closely coordinating with the UN".

Prior to issuing the statement, Arroyo spoke on the telephone with UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who assured her that the organization was doing all it could to ensure the safety and security of Nayan and his coworkers.

Nayan, British-Irish Annetta Flanigan and Kosovar Shqipe Hebibi were snatched at gunpoint last Thursday from their vehicle in Kabul.

Their abductors, belonging to the Jaishul Muslimeen (Army of Muslims), a breakaway Taliban group, have demanded that the UN and foreign forces leave Afghanistan within three days and condemn the invasion. -- DPA