KUALA LUMPUR/BEIJING: China demanded that Malaysia ensures the safety of its nationals yesterday, after armed men abducted two women, a Chinese tourist and a Philippine hotel worker, from a Malaysian diving resort on Borneo island.
The unidentified gunmen kidnapped the two women Wednesday night from Singamata island off the coastal town of Semporna in Malaysia’s eastern state of Sabah. Some Malaysian media reports said the 29-year old tourist was in her room when the gunmen forced her out into a waiting boat. Those reports were unclear where the hotel worker, aged 40, was when she was abducted.
China’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei told a regular news briefing in Beijing that its consulate in Malaysian Borneo had demanded “that local police fully put into effect rescue work on the basis of guaranteeing safety and to ensure the safety of Chinese tourists there.”
“The Chinese foreign ministry will pay close attention to how the situation develops,” he added.
Malaysian media quoted Prime Minister Najib Razak as saying he did not rule out the possibility that the kidnapping in Sabah was an attempt to sour ties between China and Malaysia.
“There may be those who are attempting to drive a wedge between us and China,” Malaysia’s The Star newspaper quoted Najib as saying during his visit to Australia, where he was observing search operations for the airliner.
Malaysian security forces have launched rescue operations and were checking getaway routes that the kidnappers may have used, a security official said.
Maritime enforcement and anti-kidnapping forces in neighbouring Philippines were working with their Malaysian counterparts to quickly resolve the case, the Philippines embassy in Kuala Lumpur said.
“The embassy has alerted Philippine police authorities in nearby areas for possible interdiction, in the event the perpetrators and their victims were headed their way,” it said in a statement.
Sabah has become a popular tourist destination for Chinese in recent years, but has faced security problems due to its proximity to the restive southern Philippines where Muslim rebels have fought the government for decades and sprouted multiple armed splinter groups.
Last February, more than 100 armed Filipinos landed by boat and launched attacks on Malaysian security forces, sparking a major security crisis in the area close to the Singamata resort. Reuters
