From the New Straits Times (Aug 3, 2022): Filipinos honoured for rescuing Indonesians kidnapped by Abu Sayyaf
Indonesia awarded 52 Filipinos with medals for rescuing three of its citizens, who were kidnapped by Abu Sayyaf terrorists in Sabah, Malaysia in 2019.- Pic credit www.pna.gov.ph/
Indonesia awarded 52 Filipinos with medals for rescuing three of its citizens, who were kidnapped by Abu Sayyaf terrorists in Sabah, Malaysia in 2019.
Among the recipients were Former Defense chief Delfin Lorenzana and former Armed Forces of the Philippines chief of Staff General (Ret.) Cirilito Sobejana, the Philippine News Agency reported.
Both received the "Medali Perdamaian" or the Medal of Peace, the first from the Philippines ever to be accorded the honour. The ceremony was held in Makati on Wednesday.
The other recipients were 50 members of the Western Mindanao Command who were directly involved in the rescue mission. They were given the Medal of Dharma Defence.
The three Indonesians were kidnapped while fishing in the waters of Tambisan Island in Lahad Datu, Sabah on September 23, 2019.
Two of them were eventually rescued in Sulu, Philippines on December 22 while the remaining one was freed on January 15, 2020.
During the mission, Sergeant Romnick Estacio of the Philippine Navy Marine died and two others sustained gunshot wounds. Estacio was posthumously awarded along with the 49 AFP officers.
Sobejana, at the time of the incident, was the commander of the Western Mindanao Command.
Lorenzana said the trilateral cooperation between the Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia had greatly contributed to the progress in curbing the kidnappings in Sulu Sea.
"(The actions taken by the Philippines) and the trilateral cooperation among the three countries proved to be very effective, that for a while, there were no kidnappings in the Sulu Sea. But sometime in 2019, the (Abu Sayyaf) kidnapped three Indonesian nationals and tried to bring them to Sulu," he shared.
"Our theory proved correct that the kidnappers need the islands to successfully bring their hostages to Sulu," he said adding they discovered Abu Sayyaf's "elaborate operations" using the islands in Sulu Sea to initially hide their hostages, moving them from island to island, until they reach Sulu.
Indonesian Ambassador to the Philippines Agus Widjojo said the awards were accorded by Indonesian President Joko Widodo to those who "contributed greatly to advancing peace".
"I have always believed in the capabilities and professionalism of the Philippine soldiers under the leadership of their commanding officers in ensuring favorable results," Widjojo said.
"It is their sense of commitment to uphold the righteous and condemn the lawlessness that made Indonesia decide to grant them two of Indonesia's tokens of honour: the Medal of Peace and the Dharma Medal of Defence," he added.
Widjojo said the award shows the "success of effective defence and security cooperation" between the two nations.
He expressed hoped the two nations could further strengthen this area of cooperation as terrorism and other kinds of transnational crimes remain an ever-present threat.
"It could take the form of joint patrolling, intelligence sharing, enhancing capacity and learning of best practices. It can take many forms but the purpose is so that when we come together to conduct a joint mission, we are already familiar with the other," he said.
Indonesia awarded 52 Filipinos with medals for rescuing three of its citizens, who were kidnapped by Abu Sayyaf terrorists in Sabah, Malaysia in 2019.
Among the recipients were Former Defense chief Delfin Lorenzana and former Armed Forces of the Philippines chief of Staff General (Ret.) Cirilito Sobejana, the Philippine News Agency reported.
Both received the "Medali Perdamaian" or the Medal of Peace, the first from the Philippines ever to be accorded the honour. The ceremony was held in Makati on Wednesday.
The other recipients were 50 members of the Western Mindanao Command who were directly involved in the rescue mission. They were given the Medal of Dharma Defence.
The three Indonesians were kidnapped while fishing in the waters of Tambisan Island in Lahad Datu, Sabah on September 23, 2019.
Two of them were eventually rescued in Sulu, Philippines on December 22 while the remaining one was freed on January 15, 2020.
During the mission, Sergeant Romnick Estacio of the Philippine Navy Marine died and two others sustained gunshot wounds. Estacio was posthumously awarded along with the 49 AFP officers.
Sobejana, at the time of the incident, was the commander of the Western Mindanao Command.
Lorenzana said the trilateral cooperation between the Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia had greatly contributed to the progress in curbing the kidnappings in Sulu Sea.
"(The actions taken by the Philippines) and the trilateral cooperation among the three countries proved to be very effective, that for a while, there were no kidnappings in the Sulu Sea. But sometime in 2019, the (Abu Sayyaf) kidnapped three Indonesian nationals and tried to bring them to Sulu," he shared.
"Our theory proved correct that the kidnappers need the islands to successfully bring their hostages to Sulu," he said adding they discovered Abu Sayyaf's "elaborate operations" using the islands in Sulu Sea to initially hide their hostages, moving them from island to island, until they reach Sulu.
Indonesian Ambassador to the Philippines Agus Widjojo said the awards were accorded by Indonesian President Joko Widodo to those who "contributed greatly to advancing peace".
"I have always believed in the capabilities and professionalism of the Philippine soldiers under the leadership of their commanding officers in ensuring favorable results," Widjojo said.
"It is their sense of commitment to uphold the righteous and condemn the lawlessness that made Indonesia decide to grant them two of Indonesia's tokens of honour: the Medal of Peace and the Dharma Medal of Defence," he added.
Widjojo said the award shows the "success of effective defence and security cooperation" between the two nations.
He expressed hoped the two nations could further strengthen this area of cooperation as terrorism and other kinds of transnational crimes remain an ever-present threat.
"It could take the form of joint patrolling, intelligence sharing, enhancing capacity and learning of best practices. It can take many forms but the purpose is so that when we come together to conduct a joint mission, we are already familiar with the other," he said.
https://www.nst.com.my/world/region/2022/08/819165/filipinos-honoured-rescuing-indonesians-kidnapped-abu-sayyaf
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