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Don’t pay ransom to pirates, VP tells ship owners
Vice President Jusuf Kalla has urged shipping companies whose boats and crewmen are being held hostage by suspected Abu Sayyaf militants to not negotiate or pay ransoms to secure the release of the hostages.
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President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, accompanied by Vice President Jusuf Kalla (left), greets heads of state institutions and ministers during a post-Ramadhan gathering at the State Palace on July 11. (Photo courtesy of Presidential Bureau/Intan)
V
ice President Jusuf Kalla has urged the employers of crewmen that have been taken hostage by suspected Abu Sayyaf militants to not negotiate or pay ransoms to secure the release of the hostages.
"I am 100 percent sure the government has never negotiated in regard to money. But it's possible the companies did. For the safety of their employees they have negotiated, but this has led to the [repeated abductions]," Kalla said on Tuesday, as quoted by Antara news agency.
Kalla said paying ransoms only encouraged kidnappings in the future, reiterating the government’s claim that it never paid a ransom to release Indonesian citizens abducted by the violent militants in the southern Philippines.
Three Indonesian sailors were kidnapped on Saturday in Sabah waters in Malaysia and subsequently taken toward Tawi in the Philippines.
Previously, seven men were also abducted and are believed to be held hostage in the Sulu province, Philippines, bringing the number to a total of 10 Indonesians who are now highly suspected of being held hostage by the Abu Sayyaf group. The notorious militants are known to dominate the area. (ary)
