Tourists kidnapped in Philippines: 2 Canadians among 4 kidnapped by masked men

On Monday evening, a Filipina and three foreign been kidnapped in a resort in the Island Garden City of Samal, Davao del Norte, 21 September 2015.

Brig. Gen. Allan Arrojado, commander of the Joint Task Group Sulu, said his group did not have any confirmation that the captors were Abu Sayyaf gunmen.

The report noted that initial police investigation showed that at around 11:23 p.m. Monday night, “more or less 11 men, wearing civilian attire with backpack and bandolier, armed with two long firearms and short firearms, on board two motorized bancas docked at the resort”.

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”.

The Canadian government has advised Canadians against traveling to the Davao region and nearby areas, including the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao due to what it said was “serious threat of terrorist attacks and kidnapping”.

Sekkingstad once lived in Vancouver before eventually moving to Samal Island.

Speculation communist rebels were responsible for the abductions was triggered by a note found investigators early Tuesday that said: “Katarungan ng aming (Justice by our) commander: by NPA”.

Philippine authorities have identified the abducted foreigners as John Ridsdel and Robert Hall from Canada and Kjartan Sekkingstad, the Norwegian manager of the resort.

Gunmen holding three foreigners and one Filipina hostage have slipped past a naval cordon and escaped to remote mountains in the southern Philippines without making ransom demands, police say.

Using a style reminiscent of past attacks by Abu Sayyaf bandits in the conflict-racked southern islands, the gunmen seized their four targets when they broke into a marina before midnight on Saturday.

The gang escaped with their hostages in boats.

While the city of Davao has remained relatively safe compared to other parts of the region, the Canadian government has travel warnings for the provinces of Davao del Sur and Davao Del Norte, where Samal Island is located just a 10-minute ferry ride away from the mainland. Lee-Kwen, who died in 2013, was a “driving force” in promoting Samal Island as a cruising destination and the couple created a “close community spirit” at the resort.

At present, the Abu Sayyaf, tagged in most kidnappings and terrorism attacks in Mindanao, holds nine captives – four foreigners and five locals. “They went straight for the yachts”, Superintendent Antonio Rivera, a local police spokesman, told AFP. But on the advice of a diplomat at the Canadian embassy in Philippines, who warned about the possibility of hostage-takings or worse, the Post backed out.

Another Philippine military source, who declined to be identified, said authorities had got wind of an Abu Sayyaf plot to kidnap people on Samal this month.

“The Philippines is committed to hosting a successful APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting by implementing security measures that would ensure the safety of all APEC Leaders, delegates and guests”, the Department of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.

“There was this note that said (the kidnapping) was in retaliation for the death of the suspects’ commander”.

“There is a lot of irresponsible mining going on in the Philippines”, he said.