Gordon: Hostage not rescued

MANILA, Philippines - Kidnapped Swiss Red Cross worker Andreas Notter was apparently abandoned by the Abu Sayaff bandits and not rescued by the military, Sen. Richard Gordon said yesterday.

Gordon, chairman of the Philippine National Red Cross (PNRC), said Notter told them that he and his abductors were walking in the forest when the kidnappers slowly disappeared one by one.

“They were walking and one by one the abductors would be left behind tying their shoes or doing some other things when Notter suddenly realized he was already alone and all his abductors were nowhere in sight,” Gordon said.

Notter was recovered by authorities walking with a cane near a road in Indanan, Sulu.

Gordon, however, insisted that the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) did not pay ransom to the Abu Sayyaf. “Not a single centavo for Notter’s release,” he insisted.

“As far as I know, there is no ransom paid to the Abu Sayyaf,” he said.

The Abu Sayyaf abducted Notter and two other ICRC workers – Filipina Mary Jean Lacaba and Italian Eugenio Vagni – last Jan. 15 after they inspected a water sanitation project at the Sulu Provincial Jail in Patikul.

Lacaba was recovered last April 2 while Vagni is still being held by the bandits in Sulu.

Gwendolyn Pang, PNRC secretary general, said Notter will be arriving in Manila from Mindanao and will directly proceed to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).

Pang said Notter told her that he would bring home all the things that he collected while in captivity in the forest of Indanan, Sulu for more than three months.

“He plans to bring home the cane, which the Abu Sayyaf made specially for him because he had difficulty walking, as well as other things like the coconut shell he used to eat while in captivity,” Pang narrated.

Pang said Notter is also looking for the oversized boots that his abductors gave him.

She said Notter did not harbor any ill feelings toward the Abu Sayyaf members.

“There is no bitterness, nor anger. The Abu Sayyaf was hospitable to him. He was not being forced to do anything. Andreas even said that they are being fed property by the Abu Sayyaf,” said Pang.

Pang said Notter is still willing to return to the Philippines to help solve the peace and order problem in Mindanao since he personally witnessed the sufferings of Mindanao residents.

She said the ICRC would decide whether to assign Notter again to the Philippines.

Pang said Notter expressed concern over the condition of Vagni, who is reportedly suffering from hypertension and hernia.  

Meanwhile, Gordon said Lacaba is now vacationing with her husband abroad so she can finally forget her experienced in the forest and move on.   

“She (Lacaba) is okay and is now abroad because she cannot take a rest here, so they will stay there as long as it takes,” Gordon said.

Gordon declined to reveal where Lacaba is vacationing but only said the vacation abroad is a gift from ICRC. 

Military pressure continues

The military assured the people that government forces would not change strategy and will continue pressuring the Abu Sayyaf bandits to release the remaining ICRC hostage, Italian Eugenio Vagni.

“The pressure will continue with our combined security forces surrounding the Abu Sayyaf that has proven to be effective in the earlier recovery of two other ICRC hostages,” said Lt. Col. Edgard Arevalo, spokesman of Task Force ICRC.

Arevalo said the constriction of the movement of the Abu Sayyaf militants led to the recovery of ICRC workers Lacaba last April 2 and Notter last April 18.

Arevalo said there will be no let-up in the operations being conducted by the Marines, the police and the civilian volunteers of the Sulu provincial government to pressure bandits to release or abandon Vagni.

Arevalo declined to discuss the strength of the combined security forces surrounding the Abu Sayyaf group holding Vagni.

“The pressure will stay. It has remained effective,” Arevalo added.

Meanwhile, speculations that ransom was paid for the release of Notter continues.

Notter said hours after he was recovered that he was confused how his freedom came about, except that it happened “very quickly.”

Arevalo maintained that police officers and civilian volunteers recovered Notter who is currently resting in an undisclosed safe house in Davao City.

A source from Sulu privy to the on going effort believed an agreement might have been “consummated” from outside the government team.

“Because everyone’s focus was for the Italian and other emerged. So we were surprised but somehow happy because we are now addressing only one remaining captive,” the source disclosed.

Arevalo said security forces would continue gathering information from the community about Vagni and his abductors’ whereabouts.

“These are potently useful. Given this advantage of cooperation we enjoy, we can properly reposition our forces to optimize the pressure,” he said.

He said that troops are positioned in locations that would not compromise Vagni’s safety.

“This has hitherto been a protracted cycle of negotiation, repositioning of troops, and application of calibrated military pressure prior to a release of a kidnap victim. It took more than 70 days to secure the release of Lacaba, and 18 more days for Notter. With all odds being with the security forces, we expect Vagni could be released by his captors sooner,” he said.

Sulu Gov. Abdusakur Tan, chairman of the provincial crisis committee negotiating the release of the hostages, said they would continue negotiating for the release of the remaining hostage while at the same time applying military pressure against the kidnappers.

The provincial crisis committee had sought the help of ulamas or Muslim clerics in negotiating for their release of the Red Cross hostages before Notter was recovered.

Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Lorelei Fajardo said that no ransom was paid to secure the freedom of Notter.

She said it was unfortunate that many remain skeptical about circumstances surrounding Notter’s release “but this is a very positive development in the hostage crisis and we will continue to work for the freedom of Mr. Vagni.”

She said the kidnappers are surrounded by more than a thousand soldiers and policemen, and pressure from them led to Notter’s freedom.

“What’s important is that there is pressure from the military that led to his release or rescue and the military operation would still remain an option,” Fajardo said, adding, “There will be no bargaining with the terrorists.”

Notter is set to fly to Manila today after four days of rest in Davao City.

The ICRC worker had reportedly booked a flight to Manila and will take a connecting flight to Switzerland today.

Notter underwent medical check-up and debriefing while in Davao.

However, military intelligence operatives reportedly had a hard time getting access to Notter for the supposed debriefing. –With Roel Pareño, James Mananghaya, Edith Regalado, Paolo Romero