Italian trader denies ransom for Vagni Kristine L. Alave Philippine Daily Inquirer
July 13, 2009
MANILA, Philippines -- Italian businessman Armando De Rossi denied on Monday that he provided ransom money in exchange for the release of his compatriot, Eugenio Vagni, by the Abu Sayyaf.
De Rossi told reporters that he did not give cash to the extremist group in exchange for Vagni's freedom. When asked if he was the “foreigner” identified in media reports who provided the ransom, De Rossi replied: “No, that's not true.”
De Rossi, who grew up in Sicily and started working in the plantations in Mindanao 30 years ago, was one of the civilians who met with Vagni after he was released around 1 a.m. last Sunday, after 179 days in captivity in the jungles of Sulu.
From the beginning, De Rossi said he noticed that the ICRC kidnapping case was different from other kidnap cases masterminded by the Abu Sayyaf.
“From day one, they never asked any amount of ransom. Even Albader [Parad]. They never asked anything. It's the first time. They're different,” he said.
De Rossi stressed that the foreign parties involved in the negotiations, like the Italian government, the ICRC, and his foundation, did not pay ransom.
Although he was involved in the negotiations for Vagni's release, De Rossi said he was there in his capacity as chairman of the Seattle-based 3P Foundation, a non-government organization that has built various small infrastructure in Mindanao for the past 10 years.
De Rossi said he was tapped by the military and Sulu local officials to help secure the release of Vagni, an aid worker of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), who was abducted, along with two colleagues, last January.
Parad was the Abu Sayyaf leader who held hostage the ICRC workers, after they were kidnapped in Jolo on January 15. Aside from Vagni, Parad's group also abducted Filipino Mary Jean Lacaba and Swiss Andreas Notter, who were freed separately last April.
De Rossi said he joined the talks for Vagni's release about a month and a half ago, which gave him plenty of "sleepless nights." De Rossi said he knew Sulu Governor Abdusakur Tan and Vice Governor Lady Ann Sahidulla for years now and they tapped him to help.
“They said, 'I know your foundation is active here. Can you help the people of Indanan?” De Rossi said.
It was easy to accept the invitation because he had been doing aid work in Mindanao for years, De Rossi said.
The businessman, who travels around Mindanao without bodyguards and depends on people's “goodwill,” said he has donated various small infrastructure all over Mindanao during his three decades of stay in the restive region.
De Rossi said his foundation, which is based in Seattle, had organized cooperatives and built warehouses all over the region. They also built mosques in Sulu, he added.
For Indanan, where Parad and other Abu Sayyaf members are based, De Rossi's foundation pledged to give tractors and other farm implements to the residents. Noting that Indanan coffee farmers dry their coffee beans on the road, 3P Foundation intends to donate a dryer, he said.
The foundation will also organize a cooperative in the town, he said, adding there were also plans to build a housing project.
Senator Richard Gordon, De Rossi's friend and chairman of the Philippine National Red Cross, lauded 3P's initiatives.
“There should be an alternative so that they can continue their income and they can support their children to school,” Gordon said.
The group's projects, he said, would help the government gain the trust of residents in Mindanao, some of whom have lost hope in the government.
