Palace admits Rizal Park hostage crisis not yet resolved

MANILA, Philippines - The hostage crisis in Rizal Park that left eight Hong Kong tourists dead in 2010 is not yet resolved, Malacañang has admitted.

Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte over the weekend clarified that no statement has been issued saying both Hong Kong and the Philippines have decided to put the issue to rest.

She said President Aquino and Hong Kong chief executive Leung Chung-yin during their meeting on the sidelines of the recently concluded Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit only expressed mutual intent to “put the incident behind.”

She said presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda, when asked by a representative of one of the media agencies from Hong Kong, also noted that the Aquino-Leung meeting was but a “step forward” to resolving the issue.

Aquino had tasked Justice Secretary Leila de Lima to give the survivors along with the families of the fatalities of the tragedy a briefing on the status of the cases pending in court.

De Lima is set to travel to Hong Kong today.

“It’s a way of moving forward. It doesn’t mean that it diminishes what had happened or that it is being set aside,” Valte said.

“It is being addressed and hopefully, both parties did acknowledge the need to find a resolution to it,” she added.

Aquino had said there has been a clarification “as to what each side has been doing” during his meeting with Leung.

“I got the sense that they really were sincere in trying to come to a solution to that incident,” he said. “We are all sincerely trying to come to a solution.”

Aquino also extended again his sincere condolences to the families of the victims, but stressed the government could not apologize for the tragedy that was perpetrated by a lone gunman.