Why kidnapping is a growth industry in the Philippines



By Rasheed Abou-Alsamh



REPORTS OF ransom being paid to kidnappers in Mindanao continue to be rife, the latest one being the 2 million peso ransom allegedly paid for the release of the journalist Arlyn de la Cruz last Saturday.



Covered with insect bites, De la Cruz’s worried face was flashed around the world on TV screens as she was reunited with her children and mother. Pale, haggard and looking a little shell-shocked, the journalist who had made a reputation by getting inside scoops on the Abu Sayyaf and their captives that no other journalist could get, she finally had become a prey too alluring to pass up on and was kidnapped herself. Strangely enough, Sen. Loren Legarda was also seen next to her, claiming to have helped in the negotiations to free De la Cruz.



Legarda has since strongly denied that any ransom was paid for De la Cruz’s release, contradicting military reports that 2 million pesos were paid, and that the original ransom had been 11 million pesos. I find Legarda’s denials hard to believe. These kidnappers are ruthless criminals who would do anything for money. Obviously, it is in their best interests to keep their captives alive and relatively well if they ever expect to get any ransom. And since monetary gain is the sole aim of kidnapping these days in Mindanao, why would De la Cruz’s captors give her back for free? Just because Legarda sent them messages asking for her release? Who are we kidding?!



Now Abu Sabaya, the spokesman of the Abu Sayyaf, is denying that the group received $300,000 in ransom payment for the release of the American missionary couple Gracia and Martin Burnham. Some officials have speculated that the ransom money may have been stolen by the intermediaries that were supposed to pass it on to the Abu Sayyaf.

Whatever the truth is behind the payment of ransoms in the two kidnappings mentioned above, the fact remains that kidnapping today remains, unfortunately, a growth industry in the Philippines, and especially in Mindanao. The solution of course is simple on paper: Improve the living standards of the population and they won’t be driven to such desperate measures such as kidnapping people to make money. Successive administrations have pledged billions of pesos to develop Mindanao, but where has that money gone? Obviously not into creating jobs for the local population, but most likely into the pockets of local officials. It’s really too bad.


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The benefits of dual citizenship



THE CURRENT heated debate in the Philippine Congress on whether or not to grant dual citizenship rights to Filipinos who have migrated abroad and acquired another citizenship (or to immigrants living in the Philippines), has some politicians saying some rather silly things.



Veteran Sen. Blas Ople is one of them. This week he suddenly became blatantly anti-Chinese when he declared: "What would you do when the thousands of Chinese living here are suddenly (turned into) Filipinos? They might haul off all the riches they have gathered in the Philippines and suddenly bring them to China where it is now more profitable to do business."



What utter nonsense. To begin with, Filipino-Chinese tycoons already have ways, both legal and not so legal, to move capital abroad, and some have already invested in businesses in mainland China. Acquiring Philippine citizenship would not suddenly give them the right to move capital abroad.



The whole point of granting dual citizenship is to reinforce loyalty to the Philippines, instead of forcing people to choose between two nations. But I think a distinction should be made between native-born Filipinos who migrate abroad for economic reasons, and between foreigners who move to the Philippines. As part of an effort to integrate foreign immigrants into the Philippines, such as Indians and Chinese, I think they should be encouraged to adopt Philippine citizenship and give up their original nationality. This should be viewed as a test of how committed they are to their new nation.



In the case of Filipinos who migrate to say the United States, I think the Philippine government should consider giving some of them dual citizenship as a way of tapping their economic and intellectual powers. Of course any Filipino with dual citizenship who wanted to run for elective office or work for the government in a sensitive position would be required to renounce his/her second citizenship.



I do agree with Sen. Ople though that the dual citizenship issue should be voted on as a separate bill and not be tacked onto the absentee voting bill. It is a complex and difficult issue, one that has to be studied carefully and in depth. There are no easy solutions to this question. Obviously, no nation likes to encourage split loyalties, but in these times of increased economic migration and easy jet travel, issues of dual citizenship will only increase, and nations would do well to tackle some of its challenges now before it becomes even more complex.


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