DAVAO CITY (MindaNews/12 October) – A 79-year old Irish priest based in the Diocese of Pagadian was abducted by still unidentified armed men who reportedly stormed his convent at around 7:30 p.m. Sunday.
Father Michael Sinnott, a member of the Missionaries of St. Columban, has been working in the Philippines since the early 1980s.
According to the CBCP (Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines) News Online, three of the convent’s employees were about to close the gate of the compound when a man pushed the gate and said he wanted to talk to the priest.
Father Sinnott was reportedly doing a post-dinner walk inside the compound when the armed men barged in.
“Witnesses said three or four other men immediately entered and took Father Sinnott to a vehicle and brought him to still unknown destination,” CBCP News Online reported.
Police said the priest was taken to a waiting van which was later found abandoned and burned in the city’s coastal area.
CBCP News Online quoted the Columban’s regional director, Fr. Patrick O’Donoghue as saying they were “very shocked” because they never expected such an incident would happen inside Pagadian City.
He added he was worried because Fr. Sinnott has a heart condition and has to take his medicines regularly.
According to the Diocesan Profiles of the Union of Catholic Asian News (UCAN), Father Sinnott as of 2008, was coordinator of Hangop Kabataan (Caring for Special Children), is a dwelling place for children who need special attention, children with physically and mentally challenged like blind, deaf.”
In a statement, the Consortium of Bangsamoro Civil Society-Zamboanga Peninsula and Ummah Fi Salam, said the Muslim community in Pagadian City laments the kidnapping of Father Sinnott.
“This act is against the morality of Islam. In solidarity, we join our Christian brethrens in strongly condemning this act. We also pray for his safety and immediate release,” the statement signed by Sultan Maguid Maruhom, chair of the CBCS-Sibugay Region and Executive Driector of the Ummah Fi Salama of Pagadian City, said.
The CBCS also appealed for “calmness and sobriety and ask that we work together in solidarity for the early and unconditional release of Fr. Sinnot.”
“As a peace advocate, Fr. Sinnot, a Columban missionary priest is the founder of Hangop Kabataan Foundation who caters to the needs of disadvantaged children. He is also a respected member of the Interfaith Forum for Solidarity and Peace in Pagadian City, an organization of religious and concerned Christians, Muslims and Subanens, who had contributed a lot in bridging understanding and peace building,” Maruhom’s statement read.
Fr Sinnott is the third Irish priest to be kidnapped in the Western Mindanao-Lanao area in 12 years.
On October 27, 1997, Irish priest Desmond Hartford, then the acting bishop of the Prelature of Marawi, was abducted in Kolambugan, Lanao del Norte. He was freed after 12 days.
Four years later, on Aug. 28, 2001, Rufus Halley, an Irish Columban missionary, was shot dead in Malabang, Lanao del Sur, while resisting a kidnap attempt. (MindaNews)
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