COTABATO CITY—The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) on Thursday urged government security forces not to exert extreme force in their attempt to rescue Italian priest Giancarlo Bossi.

“We must avoid bloodshed to protect the life of Bossi. That’s our top priority. The captors were pressured because of the military’s operation. Now, we failed to establish contact with them,” Eid Kabalu, MILF spokesman told reporters.

“There is no proof of life yet but our own operation in the Lanao area is ongoing,” Kabalu added.

Earlier, MILF chief negotiator Mohaqher Iqbal said Moro gunmen holding Bossi are demanding a P15-million ransom.

“The front is not interested in the ransom issue. It is helping the rescue operation, but with strictly no ransom involved,” Kabalu said.

Muhammad Ameen, chairman of the MILF secretariat, said in statement that taking part in ransom negotiation is tantamount to participation in an evil act, adding that acceding to the kidnappers’ demands, especially money, will embolden them to commit criminal acts even more in the future.

“We are doing this rescue hoping that Allah will reward us in the hereafter, secondly to free the victim from [his] ordeal, and third to further the gains of the peace process with the government,” Ameen said.

The military said Bossi is in Zamboanga Sibugay, where he was kidnapped on June 10 in Payao town.

The government earlier sent three emissaries to the hideout of the kidnappers somewhere in northwestern Mindanao, to get a “proof of life” of the victim from the kidnappers.

The emissaries have not reported as of press time.

The group was reported to be in Sultan Naga, Dimaporo town in Lanao del Norte, but other sources said Bossi was taken to Lanao del Sur.

Maj. Gen. Ben Dolorfino, who heads a group of soldiers and Muslim rebels in tracking down Bossi’s captors, said he was directed by Malacañang to stop issuing statements or granting interviews on the Bossi kidnapping.

“Starting today, I’m not allowed to issue statements to the media because of conflicting statements coming out from the government regarding the Bossi kidnapping. It was agreed upon to have only one government’s statement, and that will be issued by the Armed Forces spokesman, Lt. Col. Bartolome Bacarro, who will give regular updates to the media,” Dolorfino said.

“Whenever there is a significant development in the [government-MILF] Ad Hoc Joint Action Group [that is working for Bossi’s release], I will relay [it] to Bacaro. If reporters will ask me, I will refer them to him. But so far, there is no development on the ground,” he added.

Bossi is the third Italian priest to be kidnapped by bandits in the Zamboanga peninsula since Fr. Luciano Benedetti was kidnapped in 1998.

In 2002, Fr. Guiseppe Pierantoni was kidnapped by suspected Pentagon gang members in Dimataling, Zamboanga del Sur. Both were released by their captors.

WHILE Sen. Manuel Villar appeared to have sewed up the Senate’s top leadership position, that of Speaker of the House remains to hang fire especially with the absence of the 13th Congress Speaker, Jose de Venecia, still one of the contenders.

COTABATO CITY—The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) on Thursday urged government security forces not to exert extreme force in their attempt to rescue Italian priest Giancarlo Bossi.

THE Armed Forces is willing to be investigated by the newly created Presidential Task Force against Media Harassment in the abduction of Jonas Burgos as it said it has been its stand to cooperate in any investigation involving its personnel.

Malacañang is confident that the negotiations with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MNLF) will go on smoothly with the appointment of a new chief negotiator.

SENATORS slammed the controversial $330-million broadband contract with China-based ZTE Corp., saying it is just as “anomalous” as the allegedly overpriced Northrail project, which is similarly funded by Chinese loan agreements earlier entered into by the Arroyo administration.