Schilling to have Easter homecoming

After almost eight months in the hands of his Abu Sayyaf captors, rescued American hostage Jeffrey Schilling is expected to be reunited with his mother in Oakland, California in time for Easter.

Airport officials confirmed that Schilling was booked on Continental Airlines flight CO 912 which was set to leave at past 11 last night for Guam, where he was scheduled to take a connecting flight to San Francisco.

Schilling, 25, was assigned seat number 14E and was to be accompanied by Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agent Gary Hewitt.

It was not clear if Schilling would be accompanied by his Filipino wife Ivy Osa-ni, a cousin of Abu Sayyaf commander Abu Sabaya, whom Schilling married in Muslim rites in April last year.

Schilling was first booked on Northwest Airlines flight NW 028 bound for San Francisco via Tokyo yesterday morning but the booking was canceled for unknown reasons.

According to Associated Press, Osani was preparing to fly to Manila from Zamboanga City yesterday to meet her husband for the first time since his release.

"He told me he wanted a simple life for us in America," AP quoted Osani as saying.

She said her husband had said in the past he wanted as many as 26 children and has prepared two sets of 13 names each for boys and girls.

In at least three telephone conversations she has had with Schilling since he was freed, they only talked about his ordeal once, when she asked it it was true he tried to commit suicide as Abu Sayyaf bandits had claimed.

"Why will I commit suicide? I needed to be strong because I know there’s somebody to return to," Osani quoted Schilling as saying.

Schilling said he passed the time in captivity by writing letters to her and other loved ones but there was nobody to deliver the messages, Osani added.

The Abu Sayyaf allegedly detained Schilling, a Muslim convert, after he visited an Abu Sayyaf camp with his wife in August last year as the government was trying to deal with the bandit group’s kidnapping of tourists in the Malaysian resort island of Sipadan off Sabah.

Schilling was rescued by government troops on Maundy Thursday at a remote barangay in the jungles of Luuk town in Sulu, where the Abu Sayyaf are mainly based.

US lauds RP government for Schilling release

Meanwhile, Washington lauded the Philippine government for rescuing Schilling without giving in to the bandit group’s demands, including a $10-million ransom.

"The United States looks forward to continuing its close cooperation with the Philippines to combat terrorism and prevent future terrorist acts. We are pleased that the Philippine government refused to give in to terrorist demands," the US Department of State said in a statement.

Washington issued the statement right after it was informed of Schilling’s rescue on April 12.

"The United States is grateful to President Macapagal-Arroyo, the Philippine government and the Armed Forces of the Philippines for safely freeing Mr. Schilling from his long captivity," the statement read.

"The United States has been in close contact with the Philippines throughout Mr. Schilling’s ordeal and the Philippines deserves full credit for the successful outcome," the statement added.

Even opposition senatorial candidate Ricardo "Dong Puno" Jr. hailed Schilling’s rescue and urged the military to pursue its military offensive. "Schilling’s recovery has brought us nearer to ending this protracted hostage drama in Sulu," Puno said in a statement.

Puno claimed Schilling’s rescue "vindicated the hardline approach that the Estrada administration adopted last September to the long-winding hostage drama in Sulu."

In September last year, the Estrada administration launched a military offensive that included the shelling of Sulu towns, angering residents who subsequently refused to cooperate with the forces pursuing the Abu Sayyaf bandits.

Military officials said Estrada’s offensive failed because of civilians’ refusal to cooperate with authorities.

Puno, nonetheless, urged the military to continue the offensive until it rescues Roland Ullah, a dive instructor who was abducted along with several tourists from Sipadan Island in Malaysia.