The Philippines yesterday rejected demands by Islamic militants threatening to execute a Filipino hostage in Iraq to pull out its small humanitarian contingent from the strife-torn country one month earlier than scheduled.
"In line with our commitment to the free people of Iraq, we reiterate our plan to return our humanitarian contingent as scheduled on Aug. 20, 2004," Foreign Secretary Delia Albert told reporters after an emergency Cabinet meeting.
The kidnappers holding Filipino trucker Angelo dela Cruz meanwhile extended their deadline by nine days, a senior diplomat said late last night.
"I am told that the deadline has been extended by nine days till July 20. This has given us hope that the hostage is alive and the kidnappers are realizing that he has nothing to do with them," the diplomat said.
The militants have warned that if the Philippines did not commit to withdrawing its 51-member contingent in Iraq by July 20, "the hostage will be executed," according to a statement they issued to the Arab television station al-Jazeera.
The Philippine government said it was continuing to work "both through formal and informal" channels to free dela Cruz, a 46-year-old father of eight.
"We continue to do everything we can in order to secure the release of Angelo dela Cruz," Albert said. "We are hopeful that with the continued support and prayers of the people, we will hurdle this crisis."
She said Labor Secretary Patricia Santo Tomas, who erroneously announced late Saturday that dela Cruz had been freed, was accompanying the hostage's wife and brother to Iraq "in order to be closer to the developments on the ground."
"We are extending our utmost support to the family during this very critical time," it added.
The government's decision came despite mounting pressure for President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to recall the country's troops in Iraq in order to save dela Cruz. Labor activists warned the government would be committing an "unforgivable mistake" if it would not heed the militants' demand.
They also criticized Arroyo for lying about the fate of dela Cruz on Saturday, when the president reportedly called his wife to tell her that her husband had been freed.
"Government has deceived the family of dela Cruz and the Filipino people," said Connie Regalado, chairwoman of Migrante, an organization representing Filipino overseas workers, referring to the erroneous announcement of his release.
Jubilation had broken out in the hometown of dela Cruz in Pampanga province, 75km north of Manila, when news came in that he had already been released.
Relatives and friends yesterday resumed prayer vigils, while special masses were offered for dela Cruz.
The paramount chief of a volcanic island in Vanuatu yesterday said that he was “very impressed” by a UN court’s declaration that countries must tackle climate change. Vanuatu spearheaded the legal case at the International Court of Justice in The Hague, Netherlands, which on Wednesday ruled that countries have a duty to protect against the threat of a warming planet. “I’m very impressed,” George Bumseng, the top chief of the Pacific archipelago’s island of Ambrym, told reporters in the capital, Port Vila. “We have been waiting for this decision for a long time because we have been victims of this climate change for
MASSIVE LOSS: If the next recall votes also fail, it would signal that the administration of President William Lai would continue to face strong resistance within the legislature The results of recall votes yesterday dealt a blow to the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) efforts to overturn the opposition-controlled legislature, as all 24 Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers survived the recall bids. Backed by President William Lai’s (賴清德) DPP, civic groups led the recall drive, seeking to remove 31 out of 39 KMT lawmakers from the 113-seat legislature, in which the KMT and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) together hold a majority with 62 seats, while the DPP holds 51 seats. The scale of the recall elections was unprecedented, with another seven KMT lawmakers facing similar votes on Aug. 23. For a
All 24 lawmakers of the main opposition Chinese Nationalists Party (KMT) on Saturday survived historical nationwide recall elections, ensuring that the KMT along with Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) lawmakers will maintain opposition control of the legislature. Recall votes against all 24 KMT lawmakers as well as Hsinchu Mayor Ann Kao (高虹安) and KMT legislative caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (傅崐萁) failed to pass, according to Central Election Commission (CEC) figures. In only six of the 24 recall votes did the ballots cast in favor of the recall even meet the threshold of 25 percent of eligible voters needed for the recall to pass,
LETTER, FLAG FLAP: A Chinese man and woman reportedly tried to snatch a letter meant for Taiwanese winners, while China’s team took offense at a Taiwanese flag President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday condemned an alleged attempt by two Chinese to snatch a letter of congratulations handed to Taiwan’s taekwondo team after they won silver at the Summer World University Games in Germany on Wednesday. A Chinese man and woman reportedly tried to snatch a congratulatory letter to athletes Hung Jiun-yi (洪俊義), Jung Jiun-jie (鍾俊傑) and Huang Cho-cheng (黃卓乘) from the Ministry of Education, and then argued with reporters. “Why are you taking our things?” reporters asked the pair. “Does that say ‘Chinese Taipei’?” the two Chinese reportedly asked. Following the incident, Sports Administration Director-General Cheng Shih-chung (鄭世忠) wrote on Threads about
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