Chinese Nationals In Colombia Enter Second Week In Capitivity

BOGOTA -(Dow Jones)- Four Chinese nationals working in Colombia's oil fields for a subsidiary of China's state-owned Sinochem (600500.SH) entered their second week in captivity Thursday after being snatched from a pickup truck by alleged Marxist guerrillas.

The four men, three oil workers and their translator were doing field work for Sinochem's Emerald Energy when they were kidnapped June 8 in broad daylight on a remote road in the southern state of Caqueta. The only witness was their Colombian driver, who was also taken hostage but released a few hours later. The four men--the first Chinese nationals ever kidnapped in Colombia--haven't been heard from since.

Colombia's military immediately sprang into action and more than 500 troops including the elite anti-kidnapping squad Gaula are scouring the mountains and jungles of Caqueta for any sign of the hostages. The kidnapping was blamed on Colombia's largest rebel group, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC.

Colombia Defense Minister Rodrigo Rivera is traveling to Caqueta later Thursday to personally assess the search-and-rescue operations, a ministry official said. The military already has offered a $22,000 reward for information leading to a safe resolution, and Rivera might increase the reward amount during his visit, the official said.

A spokeswoman at the Chinese Embassy in Bogota said the workers are the first Chinese people taken hostage in Colombia, and said China will do what it takes to ensure their safety.

"We're going to take all the necessary measures to save the Chinese hostages as soon as possible," the official said, reading from a prepared statement.

Colombia army officials say the FARC likely will ask for a ransom to be paid for their release. Earlier this year, President Juan Manuel Santos warned foreign companies that they would be kicked out of Colombia if they paid extortion money to rebels. Such payments, he said, only encourage more kidnappings and violence.

The hostage situation comes just as Colombia has been making moves to increase trade with China. In the same week the kidnapping took place, Colombian lawmakers passed a Chinese "trade promotion and protection" bill that will provide legal guarantees to Chinese individuals and companies that invest in Colombia.

Colombia Trade Minister Sergio Diaz-Granados will lead a trade mission in July to several Chinese cities to drum up interest in Colombia, and President Santos heads to China in September.

The FARC has been waging a guerrilla war in Colombia for nearly 50 years with the stated aim of overthrowing the government and installing a Socialist-style rule. The rebels are heavily involved in kidnapping for ransom, which they use to fund their movement, and engage in drug trafficking.

A military offensive against FARC and other leftist groups in recent years has been effective in reducing the rebels' size and capability. But FARC still has some 8,000 fighters and remains especially active and potent in rural southern Colombia, where the kidnapping took place.

Sinochem is China's fourth-ranked oil company in terms of assets. It spent $876 million in 2009 to acquire the U.K-based Emerald Energy's oil assets in Colombia and Syria.

Calls and emails Thursday to officials at Emerald Energy's offices in Bogota weren't immediately returned.

The FARC in March was accused of kidnapping 23 oil workers for Canadian energy firm Talisman Energy Inc. (TLM, TLM.T). The rebels released all but one of the workers a day later amid heavy pursuit by Colombia's military. All of the Talisman workers kidnapped were Colombian nationals.

Copyright ? 2011 Dow Jones Newswires

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