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By Mynardo Macaraig
JOLO, Philippines, June 4 (AFP)-Government lawyers have filed criminal charges against the leader of the Abu Sayyaf Muslim group holding more than two dozen hostages, including a group of western tourists, in the southern Philippines. Abu Sayyaf head Khadaffy Janjalani was charged over the March 20 abductions of a group of schoolchildren and teachers from the island of Basilan and the killing of six of the hostages, Chief Superintendent Francisco Zubia said in a memorandum to his superiors. Meanwhile, a second set of 21 mostly foreign hostages remained captive after government efforts to win their freedom through negotiations stalled, reportedly over a ransom demand worth nearly 20 million dollars. Janjalani, said to be based in Basilan, leads the Abu Sayyaf, one of the several Muslim groups fighting for an Islamic State in the southern Philippines. He inherited the top post from his brother Abdurajak Janjalani, who was gunned down by police in 1998. Abu Sayyaf gunmen are believed to be holding at least seven Filipino hostages after being routed from their mountaintop jungle camp in Basilan last month, Zubia said. Six hostages, including a Roman Catholic priest, were killed during a military rescue attempt, which freed 17 others, many of them schoolchildren. The fate of the two sets of hostages remained uncertain Sunday after the group aborted a reported plan to turn over their Basilan captives. Government negotiators have also failed to make headway in the case of the nine Malaysians, three Germans, two Filipinos, two Finns, two French, two South Africans and a Lebanese held in the southern island of Jolo. A government emissary said last Friday that the gunmen have sought 40 million pesos (936,000 dollars) for each of the captives. The emissaries said they had not had any contact with the opposition Islamic group. The Jolo hostages were kidnapped in the Malaysian resort of Sipadan on April 23. Government negotiators held their only direct meeting with the kidnappers eight days ago and have since returned to Manila for consultations with President Joseph Estrada. In their absence, the police have been kept busy over the weekend after suspected Abu Sayyaf group members lobbed a grenade at Jolo's Roman Catholic cathedral and briefly abducted a group of 10 western reporters covering the hostage crisis. Police said the group bought its liberty on Saturday for one million pesos (about 25,000 dollars). "They are the only ones who throw bombs downtown. This is a diversion to cause trouble in the town," deputy provincial police chief Sajiran Sakilan said, blaming the church bombing on the Abu Sayyaf. The Jolo parish priest, Romeo Saniel, denounced the bombing during Sunday mass at a nearby chapel and urged his parishioners to pray for the release of the Jolo hostages. "Christians and Muslims in Jolo are living harmoniously but there are some people who are stirring animosities," said Saniel. |
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