Aquino to Arab journalist: Explain Abu Sayyaf interviews without informing gov’t

Jordanian journalist Baker Atyani. AP

DAVAO CITY—President Benigno Aquino on Wednesday said a Jordanian journalist would be asked to explain why he should not be banned from entering the country again for interviewing Abu Sayyaf bandits without informing local authorities.

“I think it will lead toward that but I want due process to be given him, and that he be given the chance to explain,” Mr. Aquino said when asked by reporters if he supported Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo’s plan to ban Baker Abdulla Atyani.

Atyani, the bureau chief for Southeast Asia of the Saudi-owned Al Arabiya television network based in Dubai, disappeared last week with his two Filipino crew members in Jolo while reportedly attempting to interview leaders of the notorious gang of kidnappers for a documentary.

“If you imperil yourself and create problems for us, I think you should not be allowed in the country again,” said Robredo, who was with the President at the convention of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) at Waterfront Hotel in Davao City.

Robredo said authorities had confirmed that Atyani was “somewhere in Patikul,” outside Jolo town, together with his crew and that they were  “safe and not threatened.”

He said the government was taking a “wait-and-see” attitude and hoped that Atyani’s group would soon reappear.

Uncooperative

Robredo said his recommendation to ban Atyani was for the journalist’s own good, pointing out he had been “uncooperative.”

He said the government is responsible for the Jordanian while he is in the country but that the government was more concerned about the Filipinos.

Robredo said Atyani’s project in Jolo, where foreigners had been kidnapped for ransom in recent years, was a “mission impossible.”

The interior secretary said the President was aware of the developments in Atyani’s case.

Interviewed by reporters after the ARMM convention, the President said that Atyani had “not behaved as a guest of the country should.”

He said the journalist had made a commitment that he would not venture outside Jolo, but he left the area without notifying authorities.

Atyani should explain what he has done and why he is in touch with a terrorist force in the country and purposely misled government authorities trying to secure him, Mr. Aquino said.

Likewise, Atyani should also explain “why he put so many people in danger and put the reputation of the country in danger,” according to the President.

No rush to judgment

In Manila, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima on Wednesday said the government should err on the side of caution before making any conclusion about the purported ties of Atyani to terrorist groups.

Responding to Robredo’s suggestion that Atyani be banned, De Lima said:

“I don’t see any overt acts tending to show that he’s in a conspiracy, a collusion or in cahoots with the Abu Sayyaf. I think we should not rush to prejudgment and jump to conclusions without determining what exactly happened. We should know what exactly is the agenda, if any, of that journalist other than his work.”

De Lima said the department planned to question the Jordanian once he shows up.

“Of course, he has a right as a journalist. So it’s a sensitive matter. But we must balance national security and national interests against a journalist’s right,” she said. With a report from Marlon Ramos in Manila

Originally posted at 02:34 pm | Wednesday, June 20,  2012