|
|
Friday, November 05, 2004
Hostage's wife appeals for his release (4:50 p.m.)
MANILA -- The wife of a Filipino accountant kidnapped by Iraqi militants appealed Friday for his release and reminded his abductors that there are no longer any Filipino troops in the war-torn nation.
Gunmen abducted Robert Tarongoy, 31, on Monday in Baghdad, along with an American, a Nepalese and two Iraqi guards working for the Saudi Arabian Trading and Construction Corp.
The kidnappers later released the two Iraqis and officials said Friday the Nepalese hostage also had been freed.
There has been no word, however, on the other captives.
The Iraqi government and the coalition forces have provided no information about the identity of the kidnappers or their demands, the Department of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.
A crisis management team and the Philippine Embassy in Baghdad are "activating all their contacts in Iraq to ascertain the whereabouts" of Tarongoy and his abductors, the statement said.
A Philippine official said the United States has asked Manila not to give any concessions to the kidnappers and to provide the Americans with an "open-ended authority" to deal with the crisis.
It was the second abduction of a Filipino worker in Iraq.
"Robert is a good man with deep respect for all Muslims," Tarongoy's wife, Ivy, said. "My country, the Philippines, has no troops in Iraq. My husband and I wish only the best for the Iraqi people.
"I ask that he be freed as a symbol of goodwill and friendship between the peoples of Iraq and the Philippines," she told The Associated Press. "I do not see any more possible grievances that the kidnappers may have against the Philippine government."
"I feel so very much in pain. I'm still wondering if he is still alive," she said.
Ivy Tarongoy said her husband bargained hard for his US$900 (euro 708) monthly salary - nearly nine times what he earned in his southern hometown of Davao.
"Robert went to Iraq to find decent work for our family's future," she said. "The pay was good, but that means nothing if we lose him." (AP)
|
|
|
|
