Hostage-takers intransigent

By P. S. Suryanarayana

SINGAPORE, MAY 13. The hostage crisis in the Philippines turned murkier by nightfall today, even as the band of abductors holding 21 international captives remained intransigent amid reports that some journalists appeared to have disappeared somewhere in the vicinity of the kidnappers' shifting camp in the Jolo island in the southern part of the country.

There was of course no authoritative confirmation of either the suspected disappearance of the journalists or the apprehensions that the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) had now taken hostages in an operation believed to be unrelated to the activities of the captors of the 21 belonging to some Western and Asian countries including Malaysia.

Earlier in the day, a Filipino Government negotiator tempered his optimism with a remark that the hostage-takers camping in Jolo might `change their mind' after having agreed to set free at least one ailing captive or perhaps even two victims who had fallen sick during the ordeal that began nearly three weeks ago.

While this band of hostage-takers did not make explicit demands even after renewing contacts with the negotiators, it was seen as a positive sign that the rebels camping in Jolo had sent across letters written by their captives to their relatives and friends.

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Section  : International
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