ABS-CBN News Online Beta

MILF rescue plan for kidnapped priest rejected

abs-cbnNEWS.com | 10/29/2009 5:08 PM

Printer-friendly version | Send to friend | Share your views

MANILA - The Philippine government has rejected an offer of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front to deploy a company-size rebel force to rescue kidnapped Irish priest Michael Sinnott, ABS-CBN learned Thursday.

A source said the Crisis Management Committee sent on Wednesday a notice to the MILF not to pursue their plan, saying this may result in fighting with government forces in the area. The notice was relayed through the AFP’s Western Mindanao Command chief Maj. Gen. Ben Dolorfino.

“We advised them not to (pursue the idea)...One hundred plus (MILF) troops may be problem and they would be passing through grounds of the military and the police and besides this could attract further attention,” the source added.

The MILF had requested the CMC, headed by Gov. Aurora Cerilles, to take part in the efforts to gain the freedom of Sinnott, who was snatched by a pirate group last October 11 in Pagadian City.

The source said the counter-proposal of the CMC is the creation of a 20-man MILF task force, including security personnel. He said the functions will be limited gathering of information and facilitation of the negotiations for the release of the priest.

Reached for a comment, CMC spokesman June Allan only confirmed that the CMC is welcoming the establishment of the MILF task force but was mum on its size. He confirmed Cerilles sending a reply to the MILF request, through Dolorfino.

MILF vice chairman for political affairs Ghadzali Jaafar and MILF spokesman Eid Kabalu said they have receive Cerilles' reply to their request.

Jaafar allayed fears that fighting with government forces will ensue if the company-size MILF task force will be deployed to rescue Sinnot. “That is the reason why we are coordinating officially this plan...so that misencounter will be avoided,” he said.

Jaffar said a company-size force is actually “too small force” to cope with the task of securing Sinnott's freedom. He said the MILF hopes that the government would not suspect “the clean intention of the MILF to help.”

He said an MILF deployment of company-size force was needed “because the captors of Fr.Sinnott may be armed to the teeth."

"If they will see only a token force, the pressure that we want to send with them will not be felt if the troops we will be sending is only 20," he said.