South Koreans recount threats, false hopes in captivity

SEOUL: Two of the South Korean women kidnapped by Afghanistan’s Taliban described on Monday their weeks-long nightmare, marked by threats of death and false hopes of freedom.

Kim Gi-Na and Kim Kyung-Ja told a press conference of the last time they saw fellow captive Shim Sung-Min alive, and how another hostage gave up her chance of early release so they themselves could go free.

The guerrillas seized 16 female and seven male South Korean Christian aid workers on July 19 as they travelled by bus through insurgency-plagued southern Afghanistan.

They killed two of the men to press demands for the release of jailed insurgents, a demand rejected by the Kabul government, but freed Kim Kyung-Ja, 37, and Kim Gi-Na, 32, on August 13.

The other 19 finally walked to freedom last week after a deal between the Seoul government and their captors. They are being treated in a hospital south of Seoul.

Both women said they wrote last messages before leaving Seoul, apparently acknowledging they were aware that the heavily criticised mission would be dangerous.

After they were seized, the Koreans were split into several groups to frustrate any rescue mission. Kyung-Ja and Gi-Na were held with another woman Lee Ji-Young and with Shim, 29.

“We were moved endlessly, changing places 15-17 times,” Gi-Na said.

“Sometimes we were put into what seemed to be stables, and storerooms and houses. We were moved only at night.” One night, she said, a Taliban told Shim to come with him and blindfolded him. They thought he had been taken to join another group, and it was not till they were freed that they heard he had been murdered.

Shim was the second hostage to be killed after group leader Bae Hyung-Kyu.

“When we heard the news we were really shocked and cried a lot,” Gi-Na said. “Although Sung-Min was the youngest, he always tried to console us.” She said some Taliban guards threatened them with rifles. “Others were more friendly so we tried to chat to them.” “But they constantly lied to us. Whenever they moved us, they said they were going to take us to South Korea.” On August 13 the Taliban came to the three women and said two of them could go free. Lee Ji-Young offered to stay behind so that the other two could leave.

Hospital chief Cha Seung-Gyun said the 19 ex-hostages are suffering from post-traumatic stress but have no particular health problems.—AFP