Imtiaz Sooliman – updates on Pierre Korkie
AI: Summary ©
A speaker discusses negotiations with the Saudi Arabia government and the government's actions to help speed up the process of the negotiations. They emphasize the need for trust and faith in the government and for people to build trust and faith. The speaker also mentions the need for people to understand the government's actions and use them to influence their actions.
AI: Summary ©
Dr Imtiaz Suleiman, from gift of the givers, is joining me on
Google Hangout to talk about Pierre Corki, a teacher from
Bloemfontein that is being held hostage in Yemen by al Qaeda. Dr
Suleyman, can you tell me what is the most up to date information
you have on Pierre's situation
as a moment, we've cooled down negotiations simply because we
need them to give them time to think, and we have nothing else to
offer if we meet them within the next 24 hours, the first question
they're going to ask us is, where's the ransom money? And you
know for a fact that we don't have $3 million and the moment we say
that to them, they're going to get a very annoyed and irritated, and
then they cut the extension by two weeks. It's very, very possible,
so we just keep it a friendly relationship. But actually, from
Saturday after today, we just haven't called them. They know
that the South African Deputy Minister has been in the country.
They know he has talked to the Prime Minister and other
government officials, so they probably assume that we're busy
with that, which suits a sign. Okay? And can you just expand a
little bit more on what the government has been doing to help
speed up this process? Well, you know, the government's viewpoint
is very clear. Our government and most governments around the world,
it's very clear that they don't negotiate with terrorists. And
secondly, they don't pay any ransom money, but they try to do
it through different not paying ransom money, but doing talks to
different matters manners, or trying to go to the media or some
kind of public announcement. Our government was informed of this
last year in May. At that point, when it happened, they did send a
team to fetch the two children. The two teenage children were left
behind in Yemen, and our government fetched them and
brought them home. But since then, till now, of course, they couldn't
do much, because they don't talk to terrorists. But the ambassador
from Saudi Arabia was to Mohammed Sadiq Jafar, who represents both
South Africa, in Saudi Arabia and Yemen, simply because we don't
have an embassy in Yemen, was in constant contact. What my office
in Yemen and Dr Suleiman, on that note, are you worried if we do
give the rant some money, this will encourage terrorists and
future to kidnap foreigners for money? Yes, that's a fear for from
a government point of view, and from a civilian population point
of view, anywhere in the world, you're afraid that once you pay a
ransom, they will be encouraged to take more hostages. But from a
family point of view, if your sister or your brother or your
child is kidnapped, those kind of things are not your concern, you
will do anything possible to take a family member out from a hostage
situation, irrespective of what implications may be. No human
being is that man going to say, Okay, I'm going to leave my father
there, because if I take him out, maybe they will capture some it's
silent. Let him kill him. Nobody's ever going to say that. So you've
mentioned that the negotiations are in a cooling down period at
the moment. Can you take me through what the negotiations are
like on the ground? It's very complicated, because you never,
you can. You can never be sure of the adversary. On the one hand,
they very nice and friendly. What happened in the first week, unless
my office representative was invited for breakfast with al
Qaeda? Can you imagine that took them to the he went to the house.
He was eating. He was eating with them because their trust and faith
in him. The first four days, I told him, honest, your only job
now is to build a trust and relationship with them, because
they don't trust you. Everything else that we do is going to be
meaningless, and in the process, they may kill you also. So you
have to build trust and faith. Thereafter, they took him in their
cars. They even knew where he stayed. He made it very clear
where he was staying there. It was very transparent and very open,
showing that we had no hidden agenda. We didn't come with any
other purpose except to release Yolandi, and that's what he wanted
to speak to them about. The other strange thing is, which I don't
expect anywhere else for this to happen. He took pictures of all
our projects that we are doing in Yemen, you took project folders.
And can you imagine that again, al Qaeda guys sitting at the table,
looking at all these projects pictures, and analyzing all the
work that is done in Yemen. And on that basis, I guess, okay, you
guys have done a lot of stuff here, maybe we can consider giving
Yolanda to you for free. And then on Friday morning, when you get to
fetch Yolandi, there's a whole change of mood again. We promise
you Yolandi, you can have her for free, but you got eight days. We
need three. We need $3 million or, you know what we're capable of, a
complete change in the tone, in the attitude and very menacing.
And then the guy who helps Yolandi over tells the other guy, tell
Yolandi what we are saying. So when he starts speaking, annus
tells the guy, please don't say that. You know what? It's too
harsh. Let me explain it to her more gently. She's not in a right
frame of mind to listen to this. He says, No, it has to be said
right now, the way we saying it.
It so as they say it, Anas changes the words around it doesn't say
the words they are saying. It translates to something completely
different. The guy looks him in the eye and tells him, you didn't
say what I said. So I asked others, does this guy speak
English? Says Not a word. So I said, and how does it know that
you change the words around you say it must be my body language,
or in something he must have perceived in the way I was saying
it. So then under says the words correctly, and what are the words
you've got eight days. We want $3 million otherwise, next week,
Sunday, peer head in a box. To you. Well, they seem very
unpredictable. I know you yourself have spoken with them on the
phone? Have they shown this demeanor to you as well? The guy
was totally emotionless. The guy that spoke on the phone. When I
spoke to him, I grilled him on religious grounds, saying that
what you're doing is incorrect. Can you answer me? And I took him
step by step. He just answered. But no emotion, whatever. I told
him. I