Should terrorists be paid
the ransoms they demand?
There are a number of questions that are extremely difficult to answer
and the one I have chosen as the tittle of this article is truly one of the
hardest to answer. There are only two possible answers and they are yes and no.
That rules out—maybe with certain exceptions.
That question has hit all Canadians with respect to John Ridsdel, a
Canadian citizen who was murdered by the terrorists who had previously captured
him while he was in the Philippines. He
was murdered because the ransom demanded for his life was not given to the
terrorists. Ridsdel
was the president of a mining company that is based in the Philippines.
Robert
Hall (then 50 and also a Canadian citizen) and John Ridsdel, (then 68) a
Norwegian hotel manager (identified as Kjartan Sekkingstad who was
then 58) and a Filipino woman who is believed to be the manager’s girlfriend, and has
been identified only as Tess, (her age is
unknown) were kidnapped in September 2015 by gunmen from the Holiday Oceanview
Samal resort on Samal Island in the Philippines. The gunmen took the victims
from the island on a motorized outrigger boat.
The resort premises was guarded
24/7 by licensed armed guards but only two Japanese guests attempted to prevent
the abduction. A naval blockade had been
set-up to stop the gunmen from reaching Basilan Island, which is south of the
resort. The island is the stronghold of Abu Sayyaf militants and where the four
abductees were taken. Unfortunately, the militants were successful in reaching
their island unimpeded.
In 2001, gunmen with Abu Sayyaf,
the al Qaeda-linked terror group, attempted a similar attack, storming a resort
on Samail Island called Pearl Farm, The group failed to kidnap foreign tourists
from the resort, but three security guards were killed while fighting the
attackers.
Although the Abu Sayyaf's leaders have pledged
allegiance to Isis, analysts say they are mainly focused on their lucrative
kidnappings-for-ransom rather than setting up an Islamic caliphate.
The Philippine military came under
increased scrutiny on April 26th of this year to rescue more than 20
foreign hostages, with officials claiming "there will be no let up"
in the effort to combat the militants.
The large island of Mindanao in the Philippines has been a
frequent site of kidnappings and violence between government troops and several
rebel groups, including Muslim extremists who have pledged allegiance to the
Islamic State.
The kidnapping on on the Island of Mindanao was the first abduction
of Westerners in in more than two years. In 2012, a Swiss national, Lorenzo
Vinciguerra, and Ewold Horn, from the Netherlands, were abducted while
bird-watching off the coast. Mr. Vinciguerra escaped in December. Mr. Horn is still being held. I presume
he is being held in hopes of getting a ransom for his release.
Matt Williams, the country director in the Philippines for
Pacific Strategies & Assessments, a risk-management and security firm, said
Westerners in Mindanao had rarely been targeted for abduction in recent years,
partly because of warnings by foreign governments to avoid the area, as well as
heightened efforts by the Philippine security forces.
Abu Sayyaf is a
militant group based in and around Jolo and Basilan islands in the southwestern part of the Philippines, where
for more than four decades, Moro groups (coined term for the
population of Muslims in the Philippines) have been engaged in an insurgency for an independent province in the country.
This terrorist group is considered
very violent, and
was responsible for thePhilippines' worst terrorist attack—the bombing
of the ferry boat called the Superferry
14 in 2004, which killed 116 people. They have also been involved in
other criminal activities, including kidnapping, rape, child sexual assault, forced marriages, drive-by shootings, extortion, and drug trafficking, As
of 2016, the group is estimated to between have 400 and 600
members which
is down from 1250 in the year
2000.
Now I will deal with the issue of paying ransom money to get hostages
free from their abductors.
Kidnapping was a common occurrence in the United States and Canada many
years ago but nowadays, it is so rare, I
can`t even remember reading about a kidnapping for ransom for many years now.
But alas, it has become a common occurrence in other parts of the world and
for the most part, this crime is committed by Islamic terrorists. It was previously
committed by Somali terrorists who actually kidnapped freighters and their crew
and the owners of the kidnapped freighters paid millions of dollars to get
their freighters and the crew back. Now that crime in that part of the world is
history since a number of nations sent warships in the area to protect the
freighters and their crews.
There are four governments that I know of that have publically stated
that they will not pay the ransoms demanded by terrorists to save the lives of
its citizens who have been captured by terrorists and threatened with death.
They are the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada and Japan. Now I will
give you the updates on those policies.
United Kingdom
Home Secretary Theresa May said in
November 2014 that there was new legislation that was designed to
stop the families and employers of people kidnapped
by organizations like the Islamic State (ISIS) paying for their
release. She said, “Our position is clear.
Ransom payments to terrorists are illegal under UK and international law.”
May also said at a counter-terrorism event in London where she unveiled parts
of a new counter-terrorism bill to be introduced to the British parliament. “Agreeing to meet the demands of barbaric
groups like ISIL (an alternative name for ISIS) would only put many more lives
at risk.”
She was
right of course. If the terrorists really believe that they will receive large
sums of ransom money for hostages that they have kidnapped, then everyone who
is working, traveling or vacationing in areas where the terrorists are located;
are at risk of being kidnapped for ransom. We won’t be hearing about a few
hostages, we will be hearing bout hundreds of hostages. And they won’t all be
just adults. They will include children also.
What government
will then refuse to pay ransom to save a child from being beheaded by the
terrorists that kidnapped the child?
Australia
The
key policy shaping the Australian Government's response to the kidnapping of
Australian citizens overseas is that the government does not pay ransoms. This
policy existed in 1994 when David Wilson was kidnapped in Cambodia. At that
time, the three governments involved—the United Kingdom, France and
Australia—were united in their decision not to pay a ransom to any terrorists
demanding money to release their hostages. The Australian Government's
longstanding policy is that it does not make payments or concessions to
kidnappers. The Australian Government considers paying ransoms increases the
risk of further kidnappings. If a stray dog yaps at your door and you give the
dog food, it will return to your door yapping for more food.
Kidnapping
people for ransom can be a lucrative business and the payment of ransom by
terrorists creates an incentive for all kinds of individuals and groups to
engage in kidnapping. The Australian government's prime rationale in not paying
ransoms is to avoid creating any form of incentive for Australian citizens to
be kidnapped by anyone.
The
merest hint that the Australian government or any other government may become
involved in the ransoming of kidnap victims makes me apprehensive, because of
the perception in the minds of some people that this is an indication that any
ransom will be underwritten by many government.
In
international kidnapping cases, the Australian Government and any other
government is bound to respect the sovereignty of the State in which the
kidnapping takes place. This will mean that the government is often limited to
pursuing the release of an Australian hostage through diplomatic channels and
through assistance to local authorities. The degree to which Australian
government and other government’s agencies can become involved with armed
forces on the ground, will differ from cases to case and from country to
country.
Canada
Kidnapped hostages Ridsdel
and Hall appeared in a video, delivering messages as masked militants pointed
guns at them. Ridsdel was held sitting on the ground by one of the captors
throughout the video, with a knife pointed at his head. Later Ridsdel and Hall were seen in the
video with a long knife raised to their necks as they deliver messages, where
they say they are being ransomed.
Ridsdel said, “To
the Canadian prime minister and to the Canadian people in the world, please, do
as needed to meet their demands, within one month or they will kill me, they
will execute us,”
Hall said in the video, “I’m a
Canadian citizen. I’m being held hostage by Abu Sayyaf for one billion pesos.”
One billion Philippine pesos is equivalent to approximately 28 million dollars
in Canadian money.
As per Canada’s policy about paying ransom money to terrorists, no money
was sent to the terrorists and subsequently, Ridsdel was beheaded.
The next paragraph may not be
suitable for the squeamish but it is necessary to explain what is at risk if no
money is sent to the hostage takers to save the lives of the hostages who are
under a threat of death.
A couple of years ago, I watched a video where a man was beheaded with a
knife by a terrorist. The terrorist was behind his victim who was on his knees
with his hands tied behind his back. The terrorist grabbed the man’ jaw and began
drawing the knife across the throat of his victim in a sawing motion. Blood
began spurting from his throat. At first the victim began screaming but soon
the sound from his mouth were moans and as the knife sliced deeper into the
man’s neck, all I could hear was a hissing noise coming from his windpipe.
Seconds later, there was no sound coming from the victim. He was alive for at
least a minute before he died.
This is
what all the victims who are beheaded by terrorists go through when they are
being beheaded and there is no doubt in my mind that Ridsdel suffered in the same manner that the other victims did.
Now you can understand how difficult it is for governments (including
Canada) to refuse to pay the ransom demanded by the terrorists to spare the
lives of hostages.
Prime
Minister Justin Trudeau said after he learned of the murder of Ridsdel, “On behalf of the
Government of Canada and all Canadians, I would like to express my deepest
condolences to the family and friends of Mister Ridsdel, They have endured a
terrible ordeal and this is a devastating moment for all of them.”
But he also said, “My conversations with President (Benigno) Aquino of the
Philippines were concentrated on ensuring that we bring these terrorists to
justice, while at the same time ensuring the continued safety of Canadians
while not in any circumstances paying a ransom to terrorist organizations or
terrorists.”
Trudeau cited two reasons for his refusal to pay
ransoms, with the first being that it helps fund terrorist organizations so
they can commit crimes around the world. “But more importantly,” he added,
“paying ransom for Canadians would endanger the lives of every single one of
the millions of Canadians who live, work and travel around the globe every
single year.”
Sadly, he is absolutely right. We are in what is referred to as a Catch
22 situation. If no ransom is paid, the hostage dies. If the ransom is paid,
more citizens will be at risk of being kidnapped and many more will be killed
in that hideous way that others have been murdered in the past when no ransom
was paid by their countries.
But has Canada paid ransoms in the past? A leaked U.S. State Department cable suggests
that al-Qaeda in Africa was paid a ransom that freed two kidnapped Canadian
diplomats in 2010.
Musa Kusa, Libya's former intelligence chief and
acting foreign minister, told U.S. ambassador Gene Kretz, according to a cable
disclosed. In the cable, he said, “There had been
eight kidnappings in the past six months, including the two Canadian officials
who were recently released in return for a ransom payment. Such payments were
unfortunate and only increased the strength of al-Qaeda.” It is unknowns as to
who paid the ransom.
Japan
Japanese
nationals have been the target of Middle East extremists in the past, but Tokyo
will be under pressure from international allies not to pay the ransom demanded
by the terrorists.
In a video
released by Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), shown in January 2015, a knife-wielding man was
demanding a ransom of $200 million for the freedom of two
Japanese hostages; Kenji Goto and Haruna Yukawa.
The
two men were paraded before the cameras in orange jumpsuits three days after
Shinzo Abe, the Japanese prime minister, announced in Cairo that Japan would
provide $2.5 billion to help stabilise the Middle East. Of that total, $200
million in grants would be specifically set aside to step up international
efforts against ISIL, including extending support to refugees from Iraq and
Syria.
The captors of
24-year-old Shosei Koda issued a statement saying they would execute him if
Japan failed to withdraw its troops from Iraq within 24 hours. The government of Junichiro Koizumi
said Japan would not cede to terrorists. In
October 2004, Shosei Koda was beheaded by a group headed by Abu Musab
al-Zarqawi after ignoring warnings not to travel to Iraq.
Koda’s
execution was recorded on video. While
he was seated on an American flag, his captors read a speech before holding
Koda down on his belly and decapitating him with a knife. His body was later found
in Baghdad and repatriated to Japan.
In that same year, three Japanese aid workers, including a woman,
were seized in Iraq. Militants held knives to their throats and demanded that
Japan withdraw the 550 troops that were providing logistical support to allied
nations operating in Iraq. The three Japanese
hostages—Nahoko Takato, 34, Soichiro Koriyama, 32, and 19-year-old Noriaki
Imaiwere released a week later.
Was a ransom paid for their release?
The Japanese government said at the time that no ransom was
paid, although a team of negotiators who were sent to hold talks with
intermediaries reportedly emphasized that the Japanese forces operating in the
region were unarmed and were tasked with rebuilding infrastructure and delivering
aid and supplies to local people.
Back in Japan, the three were criticized for
"causing trouble" for Japan and the government charged them $6,000
for the chartered aircraft that brought them home.
That
would cause problems with Tokyo's allies, which insist that nations cannot give
in to extremists or otherwise it will open the floodgates to more kidnapping incidents.
United States
President Obama has ordered a
complete review of the government's policy regarding U.S. hostages taken
overseas, the White House confirmed in November 2014. National Security Council (NSC) spokesman Alistair Baskey said
that the review was ordered over the summer in response to what he called
"the increasing number of U.S. citizens taken hostage by terrorist groups
overseas and the extraordinary nature of recent hostage cases
White House Press Secretary Josh
Earnest clarified that that the review does not include a
"reconsideration" of the long-standing policy that ransoms should not
be paid to terror organizations.
The review, which was first
reported by The Daily Beast, became public one day after the
White House confirmed that American aid worker and former Army Ranger Peter
Kassig had been beheaded by ISIS in Syria. The terror group had posted a video
claiming that it had beheaded Kassig to various social media sites. Kassig was
the third American to be beheaded by ISIS since August 2014.
The beheadings have sparked a fresh debate over the U.S.
government's policy of not paying ransom to terror groups. The parents and
brother of journalist James Foley, who was beheaded by ISIS in August, 2014
told Fox News in September that
government officials had told them that they could face prosecution if they
attempted to negotiate a ransom. U.S. law prohibits American citizens from
paying money to terror groups.
However, an October of that same
year, an article in Foreign Policy magazine reported that U.S.
efforts to free hostages held in Syria had become bogged down amid general
confusion as to the exact policies of the U.S. government on issues such as
ransom payments.
According to Foreign Policy,
the debate over ransom payments pits the White House, NSC, and State Department
against the Justice Department and the FBI. The former entities believe that
paying ransoms to terror groups would encourage more kidnappings of Americans
abroad. By contrast, the latter offices believe that the issue of whether to
pay ransom should be made on a case-by-case basis, and reportedly are willing
to aid families if they believe that paying up represents the best method to
ensure the hostages' freedom.
The beheadings had sparked a fresh debate over the U.S.
government's policy of not paying ransom to terror groups. The parents and
brother of journalist, James Foley who was beheaded by ISIS in August
2014, told Fox News in next month that government officials had told them that
they could face prosecution if they attempted to negotiate a ransom. U.S. law
prohibits American citizens from paying money to terror groups.
Suppose ISIS had kidnapped a small child of a
diplomat serving in Syria. If the diplomat paid the money demanded by ISIS from
his own personal source, would he really be prosecuted?
And
finally
As I said in the beginning of
this article, this kind of question is extremely difficult to answer.
My youngest daughter and her four
young children visited the Philippines a number of months ago and they were
there for a month. If they had been captured by terrorists who demanded a
million dollars for their release, I couldn’t save them because I don’t have that
kind of money. I would beg my government to pay the ransom and if they refused,
I would ask the people to contribute money towards the ransom even if I would
be jailed for doing so. Fortunately,
they returned back to Canada safely.
There is only one way to stop this plague that seems to be circulating
around the world. Hunt the terrorists down and exterminate them like the bugs
they are.
During the Second World War with Germany and Japan, this was what was
done. Hitler knew that his empire was dwindling right up to his bunker in
Berlin so he killed himself. The Americans brought Japan to its knees and they
hanged Tojo, who was the man who brought that horror to China, the Americans
and the rest of the nations in the Pacific.
If it cost billions of dollars to hunt down and kill the terrorists
worldwide, so be it. Once they have been done away with, demanding ransom for
kidnapped hostages will be something of the past.
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