DATE=7/1/2000
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=PHILIPPINES HOSTAGES (L-ONLY)
NUMBER=2-263962
BYLINE=KONRAD MULLER
DATELINE=MANILA
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: Concern is rising over the 10 foreign tourists
held on the southern Philippine island of Jolo for
nearly ten weeks. As Konrad Muller reports from
Manila, a South African woman has
reportedly suffered a miscarriage, and the abductors
from the Islamic extremist Abu Sayyaf group are
threatening to withhold medicine from her.
TEXT: Government emissaries were seeking Saturday to
establish the exact condition of the ten abducted
tourists held on Jolo
Island, a rebel stronghold 1,000 kilometers south of
Manila. In a taped message, the Abu Sayyaf strongman,
Galib Andang, had earlier threatened to deny them
access to medicine.
Anxiety is most acute for the 37 year old South
African, Monique Strydom, who, the rebel leader says,
has suffered a miscarriage. According to the chief
government negotiator, Mr. Roberto
Aventajado, it was her first pregnancy. Doctors are
worried that in harsh jungle conditions, the
complications could be life threatening.
No medical professional has visited the hostages since
June 2nd. They are reportedly suffering from ailments
ranging from hypertension to stress. Mr Aventajado
says he is trying to secure
a visit by a doctor and to maintain medical supplies.
In addition to Ms Strydom and her husband - also a
South African - three Germans, two French, two Finns
and a Lebanese number among the hostages. Last month,
they were separated from eight
Malaysians and two Filipinos abducted with them from a
Malaysian diving resort on April 23rd.
Various political demands have been made for the
hostages' release, including the creation of an
Islamic state in the Philippine south, which Manila
rejects. It is understood the rebels have also sought
one million dollars for each hostage.
Manila has a no ransom policy.
While efforts to reach the hostages continued, nearby,
on the main southern island of Mindanao, the
Philippine army was shelling the headquarters of the
country's leading Muslim separatist group, the Moro
Islamic Liberation Front. This
followed the expiration of a deadline Friday for the
Front to renounce their own call for independence in
the troubled south. (Signed)
NEB/KM/PLM
01-Jul-2000 05:25 AM EDT (01-Jul-2000 0925 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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