Irish priest Fr. Sinnott freed after one month in captivity

One month after he was abducted in Pagadian City, Irish priest Michael Sinnott finally gained his freedom Thursday, hours before US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was due to arrive in the Philippines for a brief visit. Government and church officials said no ransom was paid for the release of Sinnott. “It was a rescue operation. I don’t think nagkaroon ng pera (I don’t think there was money involved)," said Western Mindanao Command head Maj. Gen. Benjamin Dolorfino.

"Members of a Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) task force (who were) ordered to rescue him turned the priest over to government peace panel chairman Ambassador Rafael Seguis and government Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities head Maj. Gen. Reynaldo Sealana," Dolorfino said in an interview on dzXL radio. He did not say where the MILF team recovered the 79-year old Sinnott, but said the priest and the rescue team traveled nine hours by boat before Fr. Sinnott was turned over to government officials in the Muslim community of Bgy. Sangali in Zamboanga City at 4:25 a.m. Thursday. Dolorfino said “civil society groups" helped exert pressure on Sinnott’s kidnappers, along with police and military units that cordoned off possible escape routes of the abductors. A few hours after his release, Fr. Sinnott was welcomed by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo and Irish Ambassador Richard O’Brien at the Villamor Air Base in Parañaque City. Armed men abducted Sinnott in Pagadian City last October 11. Last October 31, a local television station aired a video of Sinnott holding an Oct. 22 newspaper and saying his abductors want $2 million for his release. 'I hope to stay in Mindanao' Despite his abduction, Sinnott said he wanted to remain in Mindanao, but added that the decision rests on his superior in the Columban Missionaries. “I hope to stay in Mindanao. I have to see my superior yet. My plan is to continue as usual. I don’t know if that’s possible," Sinnott said in an interview on GMA News’ Unang Hirit with anchor Arnold Clavio. Asked if he knew who his abductors were, Sinnott replied: “When they asked me to make a statement…their leader was Abu Jandal.’ The missionary was referring to the statement he made in a video of him which surfaced last October 31. In the video, Sinnott said his abductors asked for a $2 million ransom. The priest said his health was “good" and that he was feeling “very well" despite “hiking and traveling" last night. Sinnott added that he has not yet talked to his relatives in Ireland. No ransom? While the government has denied that money was not involved in Sinnott’s release, a military source privy to operations in Mindanao said money could be the motive behind the Irish priest’s kidnapping. The source said because the elections are just around the corner, the abductors might have links to local government officials who could benefit from ransom money. Even as the source said there is no verified information that money changed hands, he noted that the history of kidnappings in Mindanao usually involve ransom. He added that Sinnott's release might have something to do with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's arrival. MILF mum on Sinnott’s abductors “The Philippine National Police’s law enforcement operations against the abductors will continue with the support of the Armed Forces of the Philippines," Dolorfino said. The MILF refused to discuss who Sinnott’s abductors were, and insisted that their “help" in securing the priest’s release was for humanitarian reasons. “The MILF did help for humanitarian reason and as a government partner in the peace process in Mindanao," MILF vice chairman for political affairs Ghadzali Jaafar said on Church-run dzRV Radio Veritas. Jaafar refused to comment when asked what group was behind Sinnott’s abduction. Interior Secretary Ronaldo Puno earlier claimed that the MILF was behind the abduction. Armed Forces spokesman Lt. Col. Romeo Brawner Jr. also said the government still suspects the MILF was behind Sinnott's abduction. “Ang paniniwala namin ay MILF (We believe it was the MILF)," he said in an interview on dzBB radio. “Well, hindi ito ang panahon para magpalitan ng accusation bagama’t di maganda ang pahayag ng Col. Brawner na yan. Hindi namin papatulan sa ngayon (This is not the time to exchange accusations, although we do not like such accusations. But for now we will not dignify those claims)," Jaafar said. He said the MILF has nothing to gain from abductions, adding that some sectors want to make the MILF look bad before the international community. CBCP glad over Sinnott release The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines was relieved over the release of Sinnott, according to a report by dzBB radio’s Carlo Mateo. CBCP spokesman Msgr. Pedro Quitorio III said they got information as early as Wednesday that Sinnott would be “freed anytime soon." Quitorio also said there was no ransom paid for Sinnott, at least from the Catholic Church, which he said adheres to a no-ransom policy. Coincidence? The release of Sinnott came hours before the scheduled arrival of US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Four months earlier, another foreigner abducted in Mindanao was released, also hours before a key US official visited to the country. Italian Eugenio Vagni, a worker of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), was released on July 12, hours before the visit of Central Intelligence Agency head Leon Pannetta. Vagni was among three ICRC workers abducted in Sulu last January 15 in Patikul town in Sulu. The others - Filipino Mary Jean Lacaba and Swiss Andreas Notter - were released on April 2 and April 18, respectively. - with Sophia Dedace, GMANews.TV