Let's not forget the 81 Filipino hostages

Today is the 81st birth anniversary of my mentor and a dear friend, the late Sir Maximo V. Soliven, founding publisher of The Philippine STAR and the Philippine Daily Inquirer. We’ve written a lot about the life and times of Sir Max and I have decided to do a tribute for him by reprinting his numerous poems that his wife Precious and her children compiled in a book entitled “Ave Triumphator! A Collection of Timeless Poems.” Whenever we end our meetings with Sir Max, he always said to his friends, “God Bless!” hence I’m reprinting his poem “God Bless You.”

As grateful friends forever seek

Their wishes to impart,

The words that they in friendship speak,

Must spring up from the heart.

We know no other pray’r or thought,

Dear Father, to address You,

We know no truer wish than this,

Three simple words – “God bless you!”

And Father, may your path be bright,

And ne’er the dark depress You,

For we’re wishing that your way be light,

In wishing God to bless you!

And this I pray, nothing I stand,

Your peace and joy to serve,

And we shall never cease to pray,

May God bless you forever!

For no one in the whole wide world

A grief too deep possesses,

How can be a man oppressed,

When it is God who blesses?

Happy birthday, Sir Max! I know in my heart that you’re in God’s bosom, enjoying his magnificence and love to cherish in life eternal.

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We have all been so engrossed by that hostage-taking tragedy because of the scandal and national shame that befell upon all Filipinos that we have all totally forgotten that there are 81 Filipino seafarers who are still held by pirates in the east African state of Somalia. This was revealed to the press by Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs Esteban Conejos who gave assurances that “negotiations for their release are still ongoing.” For how long will those negotiations go? I really have no idea.

If this happened to a country like the United States, I’m sure that the US President would have already acted on this problem by sending the US Navy to hunt these Somali pirates and bring them to justice. Alas, the Philippines is a poor country, we cannot even send a single airplane to do a rescue mission for our own people. But given the keystone cop capability of our SWAT team, let me say it here that it is better for the Philippine government to continue with the negotiations, lest our SWAT team cause the untimely deaths of these poor kidnapped seafarers.

At this point, we can only rely on the words of Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo who is seeking the support of the international community to resolve this issue. At this point we can only support the call for greater international cooperation in the fight against piracy in the Horn of Africa. Unfortunately, this is of no comfort to the families of those who are still in the hands of Somali pirates. All told, some 500 Filipino crewmembers working in at least 46 foreign-flagged maritime companies have already been taken hostage by Somali pirates, many of whom have already been freed.

Records show that Filipino seafarers comprise around 30 percent of the world’s 1.2 million seafarers. These overseas Filipino workers remitted $2.5 billion to their families back home in the first nine months of 2009. Our political leaders past and present have hailed these Filipino workers as the new heroes of our country because their dollar remittances have kept this nation afloat despite the worldwide financial debacle that most First World nations suffered last year.

This is why it pains me that the Philippine government seems so helpless in finding a quick solution to their fate. All told, a lot of these kidnapped Filipino seafarers have been in captivity for almost a year now without any hope of being freed. If you ask me, the Philippine government should do more than just give us a report on their plight. A lot of Filipinos pin their hopes on the Aquino administration; surely P-Noy must have some kind of game plan to ensure that these Filipino heroes are set free. Pray tell us.

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