| OCR Text |
Show The Salt Lake Tribune Al0 NATION/WORLD Monday,May8, 2000 Hostages Plead for Cooperation Clinton Eager To Lend Hand, _ Help Elect Gore They ask governmentto end military moves,start talks Clinton takes a back seat whenit comes f¢ ‘THE ASSOCIATED PRESS WASHINGTON — Publicly, Preside Vice President Al Gore’s campaign. vately, he is more involved than any othen modern presidentin trying to help his president become his successor. BYJIM GOMEZ ™ Wistful over the end of his own terms in office, Clinton can seem like overeager parent at times, shameless THE ASSOCIATED PRESS his plugs,insistent in his unsolicited JOLO, Philippines — The hostages’ faces were smudged, their eyesblank, their voicesflat with despair as they begged the Philippine government to pull back its Clinton praises the vice president sively while raising money from the Democratic faithful. But his effort doesn’t stop spokesman Joe Lockhart. “Thepreside} tree branchesin the hot, green hills near Talipao on southern Jolo island. dim Gomez/The Associated Press Hostagestakenfrom a diving resort in Malaysia two weeksago sit in a jungle campon Jolo island in the southem Philippines. Twojoumalists, accompanied by a doctor, wereallowed tovisit the captives atthe rebel hide-out Saturday. The hostages — three German, two French, two South African, two Finnish, one Lebanese, nine Malaysian and twe Filipino — were snatched from a Malaysian diving resort two weeks ago and brought by boat to Jolo, about an hour away. The kidnappingis part of a wave of violence in recent weeksacross impoverished Mindanao,a regionaboutthe size of Indiana where Muslim guerrillas have spent 28 yearsfighting for a separate Is- lamicstate in the mostly Roman Catholic Philippines. As the hostages spoketo the journalists, more than 100 Abu Sayyaf guerrillas armed with M-16 rifles, grenades and long knives roamed theclearing ringed by coconut trees. Some set up a rowoftents madeofbluerice sacks. Others cooked rice over a wood fire. “Weare hoping for release in the coming week,” said Risto Mirko Jahanen, his face drawn. “If that will not take place, I think our mentalstate will be quite low,” he said. Many of the hostages appeared exhausted. Some wore the same clothes they had been wearing whenjournalists visited is always interested in how it’s going of, there.” Lockhart adds,“I wouldn’t say that’s a major part of his effort, to be provi campaign advice. He certainly believ this Js the vice president’s campaign at run.” Several of the hostages appealed for urgentefforts to free them becauseof the poor province, including many children. Fif- health of Renate Wallert, a 57-year-old German woman whothey said had col- military last week. Four adults were killed. lapsed twice. Wallert lay in a hammock, her sweaty, tanned face turned away, eyes closed and gray hair ruffled. Her son, Mare Wallert, was tense and terse: “Get us outof here, please. Weare ill and conditions are very bad.” Later, he begged the rebels to let his mother leave with the visiting journalists, but his cap- tors refused. The hostages urged the military to stop all operations in the area so negotiations can begin. Every new battle means they have to trudge to another hide-out, they said. teen of those hostages were rescued by the The rebels there are believed tostill be holding abouteight people. Soldiers battled rebels Sunday in Lantawan, near where the military rescued the 15 Basilan hostages last week, Col. Ernesto de Guzman said. GMA television, which had a crew near the scene, reported that 12 soldiers, three guides anc a local village leader were killed. More than 10 other soldiers were wounded,it said. Besides the two Abu Sayyaf groups, the military has been battling the larger Muslim rebel group, the Moro Islamic Libera- tion Front. The clashes and bombings in several cities havekilled dozens of people in Mindanaoin the past week. The rebels have clashed repeatedly with On Sunday, President Joseph Estrada governmentsoldiers since Tuesday, when paid a visit to the southern city of Zamboanga to encourage the military’s cam- the military encircled the guerrillas inside a tight cordon. On Sunday, the rebels and troops traded mortar and automatic weap- onsfire, a governmentofficial said. A rebel anda soldier were killed. them a weekearlier. Others wore clothes The AbuSayyaf, the smaller and more provided by the rébels. They said they needed clothing, clean water and personal region, is also holding another group of care items. Filipino hostages seized in nearby Basilan extremeof two Muslim rebelgroupsin the paign againstthe rebels. Wearing military camouflage, he pinned medals on wounded soldiers and comforted rescued hostages hospitalized there. OnJoloisland, the two AP journalists traveled to the Abu Sayyaf hide-out with a doctor, Huda Lim, who wentto treat the hostages and bring them donated medicine. Rebel guides led them along muddyjungletrails. While they were at the camp, four top rebel leaders drafted and signed letter to Estrada rejecting the governmentappointed hostage negotiator, Nur Misuari, a former rebel leader who signed a peacetreaty with the government in 1996. The rebels demanded to negotiate instead with presidential Executive Secretary Ronaldo Zamora and with the ambassadors ofall the hostages’ countries, as well as representativesof Libya, the United Nations and the Organization of the Islamic Conference. A high-ranking European Union diplo- mat, Javier Solana, was to leave for Manila today to underline Europe’s concern for the safety of the hostages. From their jungle cage, several of the hostages wroteletters to their families or their ambassadors urging them to ask the government to find a peaceful solution. Marie Moarbes, a Lebanese hostage seated cross-legged on a blanket of banana leaves on the ground, struggled to find strength in a message forherparents. “T wantto tell you that I’m OK.. . . It’s going to be fine. I'm confident,” she said. “So please hang on, guys.It will be OK: I love you.” ‘ or 4 de Still, according to a high-ranking ai ministration official, Clinton sometimes comments on Gore’s campaign duri meetings in the White House residencé saying “I would handle it this way” “Here’s whatI would do.” a OL easton mse journalists allowed to visit them late Saturdayin their jungle prison, a cage made of fe 'm notsureif I will comeoutof here,” Filipino hostage Roland Ullah said. He wiped tearfrom-his face, then broke into sobs as the younger guerrillas standing nearbyjeered. The 21 hostages, including 10 Western tourists, spoke with two Associated Press le there. Heis also quick to telephone Gore to share ideas. And occasionally, when Gore comesacross as clumsy, he'll puthis o' smoothnessondisplay almostas ifhe wer giving Gore an on-the-job tutorial. “The president has been through this before, so from timeto time he has somg thoughts. They talk,” says White House troops from around the Muslim rebel hide-out where they are being held in a cage. The official described the president as frustrated that he can’t do more. History doesn’t offer great hope for‘ € successful handoff. Only four vice presi-’ dents have succeeded their bosses: Jolt Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Martin vai Buren and George Bush. None got much support from the ret ing president. Ronald Reagan madeseveral campaigii’ j appearances for Bush, but steered clear of blatant boosterism. Endorsing his vice! president at a May 1988 fund-raiser, he’ mispronounced Bush’s name to rhyme with “rush.” In Bycontrast, Clinton made his support’ clear well before Gore formally entered the race. He sent out fund-raising letters om Gore’s behalf in May 1999. His aides huddled with women activists last year fe glean adviceonissues, a session that gave Gore a jumpon endorsements. Though h has Joined Gore on the campaign trail only. twice in the past two months, he acts in, tandem with the vice president on stump issues almost Sey day. | | | | ‘) *79 @ YOUR CHOICE HAVE A LESLIE FAY DRESS OR SKIRT SET FOR [= MOTHER’S DAY.| Choosefrom Leslie Fay floral [® dressandskirt sets. [ Shownare a few from our large selection. A. Floral jacket with skirt. Misses. B. Floral border jacketwith solid skirt. Misses. C. Floral 1-piece belted dress. Misses. D. Solid jacket with floral skirt. Women's World. Alsoavailable in Misses and Petites, 79.00. hep vod? Bie Lae nbsreal Shop try Salt Lake City: Fashion Place and South Towne Center. in Ogden: In Provo: ¢ Dillard's Credit Card, The American E: a8" Card, Dinars Club parenMastorcard? Visa* and The Discover Card. |
