Somali kidnappers threaten to kill 12 Pinoy hostages

Twelve Filipino sailors are among dozens of crewmen from Taiwanese-registered fishing vessels held hostage by Somali pirates, the Department of Foreign Affairs said yesterday.

The Chung Yi 218, Cheng Ching Feng and Hsin Lien Feng 36 were seized separately last month and the pirates have demanded a ransom of $1.5 million for the vessels and hostages.

The Philippine government was "taking all possible steps in coordination with Taiwanese authorities" in securing the freedom of the hostages, Foreign Secretary Alberto Romulo said in a statement.

Romulo said the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO) in Taiwan was liaising between the Philippine government and Taiwanese authorities to find ways of jointly effecting the release of the vessels and crewmembers.

Labor Secretary Patricia Sto. Tomas assured that the Filipino crewmen held hostage by Somali rebels are still alive and the Philippine government is now negotiating for their immediate release.

"So far we have not received reports of any of them being hurt or killed despite the fact that their abductors threatened to kill them one by one if the Taiwanese government would not give in (to) their ransom demand," Sto. Tomas said.

Somalia was plunged into anarchy after strongman Mohamed Siad Barre was ousted in 1991. The country has disintegrated into fiefdoms run by unruly warlords and clan militia chiefs.

The Philippine foreign office identified those holding the Filipinos as rebel "Marehan soldiers" who boarded the Taiwanese vessels at the Somali port of Kismayu. The other crewmen also being held were Indonesians, Vietnamese and Chinese.

Reports reaching the DOLE main office showed that Somali rebels seized three Taiwanese fishing boats last Aug. 16. Of the 48 crewmembers of the fishing boats, 12 are Filipinos.

Taiwanese authorities identified the Filipino sailors as Jimmy Gomez, Juner Diacan, Efren Nava, Melchor Mandanas, Amado Espina, Agustin Ybañez, Janito Ranido, Ramon delos Santos, Eduardo Monleon, Primo Galania, Rodel Tagawalo and Erwin Alminana.

According to Sto. Tomas only two of the Filipino crewmen are documented while the rest have no records at the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration.

Although most of the Filipino crewmen were undocumented, Sto. Tomas said the Philippine government will exert all efforts to ensure the safe release of the Filipino hostages. — AFP, Mayen Jaymalin, Pia Lee-Brago