Mum wants to trade places with daughter
Published on: Wednesday, September 02, 2015
Kota Kinabalu: The mother of kidnap victim Thien Nyuk Fun, 50, being held by Abu Sayyaf militants in southern Philippines, is willing to be exchanged with her daughter if the threat to behead her (Thien) is carried out.Chin Foh Thai, who is nearly 80, made an impassioned plea to the kidnappers to let her daughter go.She reportedly said, "They can have my head but let my daughter go", when an elder daughter Thien Nyuk Thau spoke to her (Chin) last week, telling her that if there is no ransom paid, the militants will behead Nyuk Fun.ADVERTISEMENT The old lady's intention was revealed in a heart-rending piece written by Nyuk Thau and entitled Voice of the Heart. It was faxed to the media on Tuesday. "When my mum (who lives in Sandakan) intimated this to me, I felt helpless. Tears had dried up," she said.In retrospect, Nyuk Thau, who works as a human resource (HR) assistant in Kota Kinabalu, said: "We had lived a quiet life, earned an honest living. All this came to an end one night (May 14). Within minutes, she was taken into the night, God knows to where.ADVERTISEMENT "How did it come to this? We are Malaysians. But we could so easily be intruded upon. We deserve better protection."According to her, she feels anxious and has lost her appetite.
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"For 110 days, I have waited. How can I still be patient? It is a matter of life or death for my younger sister. We cannot just say 'Be patient' and think that everything will be fine. Surely no," she lamented in response to Deputy Home Minister Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed.The victims' next-of-kin met with him at his office in Putrajaya on August 24. The family members had requested the Ministry to try to rescue both the victims, the other being Bernard Then Ted Fen, 39, as soon as possible.On behalf of the family, Nyuk Thau again pleaded to the Government to do something fast to bring her sister back.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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Last week, Sabah PKR Deputy Chief Christina Liew said it would be a blow for tourism in Sabah if the Abu Sayyaf militants were to carry out their threat to behead one of the two Sandakan hostages. She urged the Malaysian Government not to take the threat lightly.