March 1, 2004, The Philippine Star, Sayyaf owns up ferry blast,
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March 1, 2004, The Philippine Star, Sayyaf owns up ferry blast,
The Islamist Abu Sayyaf kidnapping group claimed responsibility yesterday for an explosion on the SuperFerry 4 that sparked a fire and left two people dead and at least 86 others still missing, but the military laughed off the claim.
Abu Sayyaf spokesman Abu Solaiman was quoted by Radio Mindanao Network (RMN) and dzBBas saying that the group was behind the fire that broke out on the ferry early Friday when it had nearly 900 people onboard.
Solaiman reportedly said the fire was in retaliation for the mistreatment of Muslim women and other incidents of violence in the South, where the Abu Sayyaf is active.
The military played down the Abu Sayyaf claim, saying it may have been a bluff by the bandits to project strength amid setbacks that have considerably weakened the group.
"They just want to ride and hitch on the media mileage on this SuperFerry fire," said military spokesman Lt. Col. Daniel Lucero. "They just want to resurrect the decaying image of the Abu Sayyaf."
Solaiman's claim, true or not, shows the brazen methods the Abu Sayyaf would use to sow terror and fear, he said.
Lucero added the military has not established any "corroborating evidence" that the bandit group was indeed responsible for the latest sea tragedy.
"We have no basis to confirm that claim. It is better for us to wait for the result of the investigation," Lucero said.
Lucero said the Abu Sayyaf has lesser chances to launch attacks from Manila, where the passenger ferry left port before the accident occurred.
"It is unlikely the Abu Sayyaf can conduct their operations in Metro Manila where they have strict security, and many personnel guarding our ports," he said.
Transportation and Communications Secretary Leandro Mendoza, who was tasked by President Arroyo to lead the investigation, also said the claim was "far-fetched."
"I hope anti-government groups would not ride on accidents like this," he said.
Coast Guard commandant Vice Admiral Arthur Gosingan also brushed aside claims of a terror attack by the Abu Sayyaf.
"Anybody can claim. We do not take that claim seriously... I am even waiting for other groups to make their own claim too," he said.
Gosingan suspected the Abu Sayyaf, already in disarray, owned up to the fire to gain prominence anew with the military still hunting them down.
Gosingan earlier rejected theories of a possible terrorist attack on the passenger ferry. Ferry operators WG&A also downplayed the possibility of sabotage, pointing out strict security being enforced in the ports and the presence of bomb-sniffing dogs aboard ships as well.
He said the explosion may not have necessarily been caused by a bomb, since the ship had a boiler, air-condition system and other equipment with pressurized gas.
Gosingan, however, admitted the possibility of terrorism will be looked into during the investigation.
Lucero also acknowledged yesterday that the military will not totally reject the claims since the Abu Sayyaf has been involved in at least two attacks on sea vessels in Western Mindanao in recent years.
"The Abu Sayyaf has been involved in Western Mindanao such as Sulu and Zamboanga, particularly the MV Dulos, a Christian floating library, in 1994, and a fast craft in Jolo, in 2002," Lucero said.
Police intelligence reports have cited the ferries, one of the main forms of inter-island travel, as a potential target of the Abu Sayyaf.
Lt. Col. Fredesvindo Covarrubias, the military's 4th Civil Relation Group (CRG) commander in Mindanao, said "the Abu Sayyaf would claim anything that brings impact to sow terror."
Covarrubias, however, said they could not discount any possibility that the bandit group was indeed involved in the explosion.
"We will not confirm that (claim of the Abu Sayyaf in bombing the passenger ship)," Covarrubias said. "These people will always claim to create fear."
Solaiman called up the radio stations claiming responsibility for the sea tragedy last Friday which occurred on the same day that two alleged Abu Sayyaf members were convicted of kidnapping American Jeffrey Schilling in 2000 and another was arraigned for a separate mass abduction.
Solaiman called anew RMN and claimed one of their members placed the bomb in a "blue cabin, bedding 5" of the ship then escaped with the other survivors. A seating plan of the SuperFerry 4, however, showed no such "blue section."
Solaiman is among the four Abu Sayyaf leaders wanted by the US government who put up $5-million bounty for their arrest for the kidnapping of four Americans, including Martin Burnham and Guillermo Sobero who were taken hostage by the bandits from the Dos Palmas resort in Palawan in 200.
The Abu Sayyaf has been linked by Washington and Manila to the al-Qaeda network of terror mastermind Osama bin Laden. The group is known mainly for staging kidnappings and bombings in the southern Philippines.
Many of its top leaders have been killed or captured in a harsh government campaign in recent months.
Mystified
The Coast Guard and WG&A said yesterday the number of people missing in the Friday maritime tragedy has risen to 86, with only one confirmed dead.
The adjustment was made after it was verified that the SuperFerry 4 had been carrying more people than it was initially thought when it caught fire, Gosingan said.
WG&A spokeswoman Gina Virtusio said the boat had 899 passengers and crew onboard, instead of the 86 reported earlier.
The number of missing had initially been put at 2.
Gosingan explained conflicting accounts of the number of people on board had been reconciled to confirm the boat had been carrying 899 passengers and crew.
Of this number, 72 had been confirmed as rescued with only one dead, leaving 86 still unaccounted for.
The Coast Guard had earlier said 65 were still missing but later withdrew the number, saying it had to be confirmed. Virtusio said her company and the Coast Guard were meeting to reconcile all figures and confirm all reports of people rescued.
There had also been unconfirmed reports of people rescued as well as crank calls, she said.
Virtusio said they are trying to check on unconfirmed reports that fishermen had picked up many of the missing but had failed to report them.
"We appeal for anyone who can give us additional information on other passengers who are not on the list (to call us)," she said.
Virtusio conceded that it was "a possibility" that many of the missing were dead and still aboard the ship.
Virtusio and the Coast Guard said there had been no confirmed reports of any survivors since Saturday.
Rescuers were able to board the vessel only yesterday to look for victims as the smoldering wreck had been too hot to enter earlier. The 0,92-ton ship had continued to burn even as it was towed to a cove in Mariveles, Bataan, where it lies half-submerged and smoking.
Mystified
The Coast Guard and WG&A said yesterday the number of people missing in the Friday maritime tragedy has risen to 86, with only one confirmed dead.
The adjustment was made after it was verified that the SuperFerry 4 had been carrying more people than it was initially thought when it caught fire, Gosingan said.
WG&A spokeswoman Gina Virtusio said the boat had 899 passengers and crew onboard, instead of the 86 reported earlier.
The number of missing had initially been put at 2.
Gosingan explained conflicting accounts of the number of people on board had been reconciled to confirm the boat had been carrying 899 passengers and crew.
Of this number, 72 had been confirmed as rescued with only one dead, leaving 86 still unaccounted for.
The Coast Guard had earlier said 65 were still missing but later withdrew the number, saying it had to be confirmed. Virtusio said her company and the Coast Guard were meeting to reconcile all figures and confirm all reports of people rescued.
There had also been unconfirmed reports of people rescued as well as crank calls, she said.
Virtusio said they are trying to check on unconfirmed reports that fishermen had picked up many of the missing but had failed to report them.
"We appeal for anyone who can give us additional information on other passengers who are not on the list (to call us)," she said.
Virtusio conceded that it was "a possibility" that many of the missing were dead and still aboard the ship.
Virtusio and the Coast Guard said there had been no confirmed reports of any survivors since Saturday.
Rescuers were able to board the vessel only yesterday to look for victims as the smoldering wreck had been too hot to enter earlier. The 0,92-ton ship had continued to burn even as it was towed to a cove in Mariveles, Bataan, where it lies half-submerged and smoking.
Stench Detected
Rescuers detected the stench of death as they boarded the ferry for the first time since it caught fire three days ago, raising fears for the chances of more than 80 missing people.
Rescuers detected the stench of death as they boarded the ferry for the first time since it caught fire three days ago, raising fears for the chances of more than 80 missing people.
"There is a smell of something dead," Gosingan said. "They (rescuers) will have to look for that."
"That can mean something but they have not yet found anything (whether) survivors or dead at this time," he said.
The rescuers later failed to find any bodies in initial searches of the wreckage.
Divers, who worked their way through the front section of the vessel, also were mystified, although they said the intense heat that crumpled the metal interior would make it extremely difficult to identify human remains.
"We didn't even see any bones. Where did the missing go?" one Coast Guard diver said after returning from inside the ship. "With more than 00 missing, it's impossible we won’t find anything if there are people inside."
Gosingan said the rescuers would search for victims of the fire, but they hoped those still missing had already been rescued and had merely failed to report in.
"There are people who survived but just went home. We are appealing for these people to just call up," he said.
A total of 57 investigators, rescuers and divers are sifting through what was left of the ship.
The team of investigators are composed of arson experts from the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP), forensic experts from the Philippine National Police (PNP), medical personnel and 6 scuba divers.
Gosingan said they will formally start the investigation as soon as investigators make the initial findings on the wreckage.
He said investigators will focus on the claims made by WG&A officials that the fire broke out in the ship’s mid level tourist dining area before the order to abandon ship was issued 40 minutes later.
Investigators are puzzled with the number of missing people and the injuries despite claims by the ferry operators that firefighters and crisis management personnel were immediately deployed as the fire broke out.
"Let us leave that to the investigators to find out. The investigation will check on what the crew did before the abandon ship order was made," Gosingan said.
The nine-man Board of Marine Inquiry will meet today to discuss the mechanics of the hearing. Gosingan said he expects better information will start trickling in as to what really occurred last Friday.
The fire was caused by an explosion of undetermined origin in the engine room and quickly spread to the passenger decks. It started around two hours after the ferry had left Manila for Bacolod City and was passing Corregidor Island at the mouth of Manila Bay.
On the other hand, relatives of the missing passengers awaiting developments had decided to pack up and leave for Manila from Bacolod City. About 93 of the missing passengers were listed on the ship’s manifest bound for the city.
Most of them complained that the WG&A personnel in Bacolod hardly gave them information on the whereabouts of their loved ones.
They also complained they were not being apprised by the ferry operators on the developments in the search and rescue operations. — With Christina Mendez, Jose Aravilla, Antonieta Lopez, Raffy Viray, Ding Cervantes, Roel Pareño, wire reports
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