3 kidnapped Pinoys in Yemen freed

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) reported the release of three kidnapped Filipinos in Yemen yesterday.

DFA spokesman Raul Hernandez said the Filipinos were released last Wednesday and were formally turned over by Gov. Al Zaidi of Mareb to the crisis management team in Sanaa headed by Vice Consul Lorenzo Junco. 

Before the incident, they told Junco that they were working as cooks under the employ of YCI, a catering and services company in Yemen.

They recalled that they were on their way to Mukalla Port in Sanaa last March 20 for their respective assignments when they were seized.

The chief of the tribesmen who snatched them said he had no quarrel with them or the Philippine government and their kidnapping was his way of pressuring the Yemeni government to release his son who is allegedly being held in prison on spurious grounds.

The three cooks also told Junco that they were treated more as honored guests than as captives.

Despite their kidnapping, the three Filipinos said they do not want to be repatriated, adding that their livelihood is in Yemen and that they already have families in Sanaa.

They also declined an offer for a medical check-up, saying they were in good health and were not in any way deprived during their captivity.

Since the time of the kidnapping, the DFA had been coordinating with YCI and Yemeni authorities for the safe and immediate release of the three Filipinos.