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The Government Would Have To Try Its Level Best To Ensure Early Safe Release For the Sipadan Hostages Statement by Dr Tan Seng Giaw, DAP National Vice-Chairman and MP for Kepong on the report that it may take a month to secure release of the hostages. 29 April 2000 | |||||||
| The seventh day of the hostage crisis witnesses the reports that negotiation with the rebels might take a month, that Malaysians were involved in supplying information for the successful abduction of multinational hostages at Sipadan, that Abu Sayyap demanded fishing rights and replacement of the Philippine Government's chief negotiator Nur Misuari, the Mindanao Governor. Abu Sayyap, the Islamic rebel group, is believed to be responsible for the hostage-taking. Would they accept Nur Misuari as the chief negotiator? We hope that the Inspector-General of Police, IGP, Tan Sri Norain Mai would release further details on how a few Malaysians manage to act in collusion with the Abu Sayyaf and that the dastard act was rumoured as having been planned for a month. Seven suspects, not 10, have been detained by the police to help with investigations. A Government spokesman has requested the media to confirm the news on the hostage crisis before reporting as conflicting reports have caused a flood of calls by the hostages's relatives and the public to the authorities. Indeed, the crisis sparks off rumours which fill pages of the media. Sulu Governor Abdusakur Tan believes that a ransom would have to be paid to recover the hostages. Philippine President Joseph Estrada rejected a ransom demand of RM10 million. While hoping that our intelligence service is up to the mark, the Government would have | |
to try its level best to secure early release of the hostages. Such type of hostage-taking may go on for a long time. Meanwhile, the Malaysian Defence Minister Dato' Seri Najib Tun Razak took the opportunity to remark that incidents such as that on Sipadan would at least create an awareness that we could not reduce expenditure on security. We would like a safe and early release of the hostages. Nevertheless, we are concerned with the Defence Minister's remark because erstwhile the Government has spent billions on defence, cutting down the expenditure during the economic crisis. This year, it spends just over RM6 billion on defence, out of which about RM631 million are on maritime defence. Dato' Seri Najib would have to explain to us what exactly does he mean. Purchasing military equipment and updating training for self-defence are essential. Expenditure should be on weapons of defence not offence. This does not stop the Government from having a credible force to patrol our waters; this does not need intercontinental missiles or the most sophisticated aircrafts. Among other things, fast patrol boats, suitable crafts, better training, better weapons and better morale are ingredients for effective surveillance of our waters. Let us hope that the multinational hostages are safe and that the increasing cooperation between Malaysia and the Philippines will bring about their early release.
Dr Tan Seng Giaw | |||||
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