‘Help locate 4 Indonesian Navy officers’

MANILA, Philippines - A former Indonesian governor has asked President Duterte for help in locating and rescuing four Indonesian Navy officers who went missing in December 2016.

The four were reportedly last seen escorting the ship captain and two crewmembers of a Filipino fishing vessel apprehended by the Indonesian Navy. 

Former North Sulawesi governor S. H. Sarundajang reportedly sought Duterte’s help to rescue four Indonesian Navy officials who went missing as they were escorting the fishing boat Nurhana to Talaud Island.

Nurhana, a fishing vessel allegedly owned by the father of General Santos City Mayor Ronnel Rivera, was apprehended by Indonesian naval personnel for encroaching into Indonesian territorial waters in the North Sulawesi area last December.

The 21 crew of Nurhana were reportedly taken by an Indonesian Navy vessel and brought to Bitung, where they are currently detained. 

The fishing boat captain identified as Hermilito Apura and two crew identified as Cleaford Apura and Entoy Lopez were escorted by Indonesian Navy officials Faisal Dwi Andarta, Dian Mahendra, Badnur Rohim and Rizky Dwi Zeptiano onboard the Nurhana on the way to Talaud Island.

The four Indonesian Navy officials went missing, while Apura and his two crew were sighted in General Santos City.

Indonesian officials interrogated Apura and his two crewmembers. Apura reportedly said the boat caught fire and sank along with the four Navy officers.

Sources from Indonesia said Duterte assured Sarundajang that he would look into the matter.

Duterte and Sarundajang are friends from way back in the early 1990s when Duterte was mayor of Davao City and Sarundajang was mayor of the port city of Bitung.

3 Indonesians seized

Three Indonesian fishermen were kidnapped by suspected Abu Sayyaf bandits in the seas off Tawi-Tawi on Wednesday afternoon, coastguard and military officials said yesterday.

This occurred a day before the Abu Sayyaf released two Filipino fishermen on Thursday. The latest incident brought to seven the number of Indonesian captives in the hands of Abu Sayyaf.

The kidnapping of the Indonesian fishermen occurred in the vicinity of Taganak island, where suspected Abu Sayyaf gunmen aboard a speedboat intercepted a Malaysian-registry fishing boat with bow no. BN 838 with three Indonesian crew on board.

The coast guard station in Tawi-Tawi was alerted and immediately conducted pursuit and recovered the unmanned fishing boat in the area of Bakungan Island. The fishing boat was towed and turned over to Taganak coast guard station. – With Roel Pareño