Hi Chatters

There is a second story to be found on CNN at http://www.cnn.com. Since I am
sure CNN gets paid by its advertisers by how many people visit their site, you
may want to visit them, since they are the source of these news stories,
thereby allowing them to make a living from us. Also, while you are there you
can set up your own news clipping service so that you do not have to wait for
me to forward these posts. It is simple, free and is done by paging all the
way down their home page. On the right side, almost the last thing on the
page is a hot-key that is head with"Custom News" Register for your personal
news. Click on it and answer the questions and you will receive a daily news
service with only stories you are interested in. Well, almost only. In the
personal section of your personal news put "Birdwatching or Birding" This is
were I am find the news story waiting for me each day about the kidnapping.
Other interesting news stories have appeared under "birds" in the past, which
is also one of my options.

Also, please read my reminder at the end of this post. Thanks!!!

This is a copyrighted story by CNN-Reuters.

Bid to Free U.S. Hostages in Colombia Stalled

Reuters
31-MAR-98

BOGOTA, March 31 (Reuters) - Efforts to negotiate the release of four
Americans and an Italian being held hostage by leftist rebels in mountains
just east of Bogota were stalled on Tuesday, officials said.

Representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and
Colombia's Human Rights Ombudsman said they had been unable to make fresh
contact with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) unit holding
the foreigners.

The Americans and Italian were snatched more than a week ago, together with at
least seven Colombians, at a rebel roadblock on a main highway about 35 miles
(50 km) east of the capital.

The rebels have threatened to kill the U.S. citizens if they prove to be
undercover intelligence agents.

``There's nothing new to report. The ICRC team is still in (the town of)
Villavicencio. There are some logistical difficulties,'' an ICRC spokesman
said.

``I'm waiting for further instructions,'' Rocio Lopez, a regional official of
the Human Rights Ombudsman's office said.

The army continued its low-key approach on Tuesday and scaled back military
operations around the isolated farming village of El Calvario, near where the
hostages were seized.

The U.S. State Department has said the Americans were on a bird-watching trip
to Colombia.

Colombian immigration authorities said on Tuesday that all four -- who they
named as Thomas Fiori, 42, Todd Mark, 32, Louise Agustine and Peter Shen --
had arrived in Bogota on March 19 from New York and been granted 30-day
tourist visas.

Colombia's Human Rights Ombudsman Fernando Castro condemned the threat to kill
the Americans.

``This act is a grave offense to civilized minds throughout the world,'' he
said in a statement. ``The FARC's comments have caused us great concern and
worry.''

The FARC recently said it would target all U.S. military advisers in Colombia,
accusing them of heading covert counterinsurgency operations.

But the group's international spokesman, Marco Leon Calarca, told Reuters late
on Monday the kidnapped Americans would be released quickly ``if they had
nothing to do with the war.''

The rebel commander holding them, known by the alias ``Romana,'' has said he
will demand a hefty ransom.

The FARC, thought to have about 10,000 fighters nationwide, was blamed for
abducting some 900 people last year, using the ransoms to finance its war
against the Colombian state.

Copyright 1998 Reuters Limited.All rights reserved.


REMINDER: Again as was stated by several chatters yesterday, we must leave
the freeing of the hostages to the experts and any action by us, no matter how
well intentioned on Birdchat or the net, may actually hurt the release of the
hostages instead of helping. I know that if we are needed that there are
enough people who are close to the families, who are also chatters who can
come to us through Birdchat for help. So please let us all wait for the news
of their release and in the meantime, keep them in your thoughts and prayers.


John (One of Birders2)

John + Irma = 2, we are birders, too.

John C. LeVine
Birders2 at aol.com
Los Angeles, CA

Please put <To Birders2> in subject line when e-mailing us personally. I do
not open all of the 200-300 e-mails I receive each day, but I want to be sure
to read your e-mails to us. Thanks!

March 31, 1998
7:56 pm PDT