Metro Manila (CNN Philippines) — As chairman of the Regional Peace and Order Council, Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte immediately called a crisis meeting with key leaders of security groups in the Davao Region to discuss the kidnapping of three foreigners and a Filipino from the Holiday Oceanview Samal Resort on Samal Island.
Two of those kidnapped — John Ridsdel and Robert Hall — are Canadians connected with TVI Pacific, Inc., a Calgary-based mining group which has operations in Zamboanga del Norte.
The company has launched “an intense rescue effort” for Ridsdel, a semi-retired consultant and Hall, a geologist, according to Shirley Anthony, a spokeswoman for TVI.
Professional kidnappers
“Right now we are actually in the midst of an intense rescue effort for John, a total manhunt,” Anthony said. “The military is involved as well.”
She said she did not believe there had yet been any contact with the kidnappers, but that “the people who have abducted him are professional kidnappers for ransom.”
Nicolas Doire, a spokesman for Canada’s foreign ministry in Ottawa, said they were aware of the kidnapping but declined to comment or release information that might compromise rescue efforts or the safety of Canadian citizens.
For its part, the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) issued a statement of reassurance about the security of leaders, delegates, and guests at November’s Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Economic Leaders’ Meeting (AELM) in Manila.
“The incident on Samal Island is being addressed by our concerned authorities to resolve the issue and ensure that the hosting of the AELM is not affected,” said Assistant Charles Jose, DFA spokesman.
Diversionary tactic?
The Davao Region has been relatively peaceful for more than a decade. In 2014, a peace agreement with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), largest Muslim rebel group in the south, ended 45 years of conflict in which about 120,000 people were killed and 2 million displaced.
So the kidnapping, which happened on Monday night, took military and officials by surprise.
As of this writing, no group has claimed responsibility for the kidnapping.
But Duterte dismissed the possibility that the New People’s Army (NPA) was behind it.
According to police, five hours after the kidnapping, a private security found a note at the resort gate, apparently left behind by the kidnappers, saying: “Katarungan ng aming commander, by NPA.”
[Translation: “Justice for our commander, by the NPA.”]
The NPA has long stood against mining. But authorities said they doubted whether the NPA had the capability to carry out such an attack.
“We’re still validating that information,” Senior Supt. Samuel Gadingan, chief of the Davao del Norte Police Office, said.
Senior Supt. Aaron Aquino, deputy regional director of Police Regional Office 11, said the note could merely be part of a diversionary tactic to mislead investigators.
‘ ’35’: ‘image’: ‘jcr:cabcd388-2bb5-4424-88f3-7e00b514bcb0’ ‘imageCaption’: ‘L-R: Kjartan Sekkingstad, John Ridsel, Robert Hall, and Marithes
‘Not taken at random’
There were about 30 foreign tourists at the resort at the time of the raid, according to a Reuters report, citing as source Army Capt. Alberto Caber, spokesman of the Eastern Mindanao Command (EastMinCom) of the Armed Forces.
“Four people were taken but we do not know what group was behind the attack,” Caber told reporters, according to the Reuters report.
“It appeared the foreigners were the targets, they were not taken at random.”
Also kidnapped was Kjartan Sekkingstad, the Norwegian manager of the resort, and a Filipino woman identified only as Tess, reportedly Hall’s partner.
The gunmen spoke in a mix of English and Filipino.
“A Japanese couple was initially seized but they were able to escape with some head injuries,” Lt. Gen. Aurelio Baladad, EastMinCom commander, reporters. “The gunmen and their captives headed to the east in two boats.”
Three Navy ships were sent to search for the gunmen’s boat, while ground units were also alerted to locate possible landing sites in southeastern Mindanao, an army commander said.
In 2001, Islamist militants from Abu Sayyaf, a group linked to al Qaeda, failed to kidnap foreign tourists on Samal island’s Pearl Farm resort. Three security men died fighting off the attack.
