British hostages: "Please help us, we have nobody to help us"

[t0dd]

Source: CNN



A British couple kidnapped by Somalian pirates in the Indian Ocean have issued another desperate plea, saying they are being badly treated and need urgent help.

Paul and Rachel Chandler, from Kent in southern England, were taken by pirates from their yacht, the Lynn Rival, on October 23, just days after setting sail from the Seychelles islands for Tanzania.

The couple was brought ashore and are being held in separate locations in central Somalia.

Their captors initially demanded a ransom of $7 million, but the British government -- in line with longstanding policy -- has refused to pay.

In a video filmed on Thursday in Somalia by the French news agency AFP, Rachel Chandler begged the British government to help secure the couple's release.

"Please help us, these people are not treating us well," she said. "I'm old, I'm 56 and my husband is 60 years old. We need to be together because we have not much time left."

Read more: http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/africa/01/31/uk.pirates.chandlers/index.html?hpt=T1

[dkf]

1. Are they nuts sailing in pirate infested waters?

What were they thinking?

[zalinda]

2. They're rich, they have a yacht

they weren't thinking. After all, nothing bad happens to the rich.

zalinda

[zonkers]

4. Ahh, compassion.

[crim son]

7. Yeah, really.

It's hard to understand why liberals have compassion for all people in their times of trouble, unless they happen to be blessed with wealth.

[No Elephants]

14. Delete.

[pattmarty]

16. c'mon, jesusfuckingchrist. Stupid IS STUPID. I feel sympathy for............

..........them and BECAUSE of their wealth they probably will be released. Any person of limited resources would probably already be dead.

[t0dd]

20. It's been over three months already.

Wouldn't their wealth have already saved them by now? We don't even know how rich they are. Their financial status is irrelevant. And yes, their actions were stupid, but let's scold them after we save them.. or, do we just want to make an example of them?

[pattmarty]

22. Don't put words in my mouth. It would still be "stupid" if you or I did it...........

.......and didn't I say I had sympathy for them? I would be willing to bet that the British government is working behind the scenes for their release. Their family members are probably doing the same. Sheesh, give it a fucking break. If G W Bush was sailing off the coast I would be again willing to bet that you wouldn't have the same concern.

[t0dd]

25. Lol @ swearing constantly to make a point

All I said was discussing the stupidity of their actions right now is unnecessary. I think most thinking people are able to realize their actions weren't the smartest. But I see this conversation has really aggravated you! :crazy:

[pattmarty]

26. They're only words, ace. And I am not aggravated. You pissed.........

...........me off by insinuating that because they may be wealthy that I did not care about them and I said nothing of the sort. I said it would be "stupid" if you, I, or your fucking neighbor did it and IT WOULD BE.

[crim son]

65. t0dd notices you responded to my post

which was about having sympathy or not based on the victims' wealth.

As for giving it a fucking break, what if they were your family members? Would you be irritated by peoples' obvious concern about their lives? Eh, maybe you would be.

[pattmarty]

66. So what is it, are you and todd siamese twins or what? Some kind.........

..........of fucking tag team? Ok, if it "were" my family, I would be working through the US State dept and contacting whatever other orgs might be able to help. ALSO, if my family had "money" I would be seeing exactly what demands they are asking. Let's face it, these people are thugs and they would have killed these people if they thought they would get nothing out of this. That's why they hijack ships, for the fucking money.

[The Stranger]

63. Of course their financil status isn't irrelevant. They are being held FOR RANSOM.

Come on, man. Come on.

[t0dd]

70. Their financial status is irrelevant when it comes to how much sympathy they deserve

Try to read the post, man.

[The Stranger]

62. If they have extraordinary wealth, they are not likely to really be in trouble.

They only seem to think they're in trouble.

[No Elephants]

13. Were these people, regardless of their economic status, unaware of Somalian pirates?

I hate for anyone to suffer. On the other hand, some folks would have to risk their own lives to try to save this couple--emphasis on try==when it seems as though the situation could have been avoided. I hope they are rescued, but I also hope no one dies trying to rescue them.

[lumberjack_jeff]

36. Do you know exactly where they were?

1000 miles from Somalia. They were in the middle of the Indian Ocean, less than 200 miles from the Seychelles.

If entire oceans are now "Pirate Infested Waters" then it is long past time to make some examples.

[t0dd]

6. Yeah, rich people don't deserve sympathy. Serves them right for being rich. Hope they get tortured

and think twice next time about their richness!

:sarcasm:

[Clovis Sangrail]

10. they were on the 38 foot sailboat

and they were retired.

That doesn't qualify as a yacht - and if they were "rich" they'd most likely have been on on something much bigger.

[t0dd]

11. Their wealth is irrelevant anyway

They are obviously in a precarious situation, and this is their desperate call for help. People should be compassionate about their plight instead of acting bitter over their financial status. That has nothing to do with the ordeal.

[The Stranger]

64. Are you out of your mind? Their WEATLH is the reason they are being held FOR RANSOM.

Wake the fuck up.

[dugaresa]

67. they are by US standard upper Middle Class but not Wealthy

of course by Somali standards that makes them wealthy but clearly the Somalis have no way of discerning that.

http://www.aolnews.com/story/somali-pirates-have-missing-couple-paul/738535

this article points out that these folks were living the dream of sailing after their early retirement. so clearly these aren't folks with inherited wealth and a staff on their yacht.

"We do expect a ransom demand," Rachel Chandler's brother, Stephen Collett, told the BBC. "The problem is they are not rich people. Most of the money is tied up with their yacht and other communications equipment, which is on board the yacht."
Paul Chandler's sister, Jill Marshment, pleaded for the Chandlers' release and also said they weren't wealthy. Even with only two aboard, the couple described the Lynn Rival as cramped. It is powered mostly by sails and has a small outboard engine.
"They are resilient people. They won't be weeping," Marshment said. "Instead, they'll be thinking: 'What are we going to do? What are we going to say?'"
Paul Chandler has been identified in the British media as a retired construction site manager, while Rachel, 55, is described as an economist. The couple, married for 28 years, took early retirement about three years ago and have spent six-month spells at sea. They have sailed to the Greek islands, Egypt, Sudan, Eritrea, Oman, Yemen, India, the Maldives and the Seychelles, chronicling their voyage on a Web log.
"

[Robb]

12. Fucking heartless. nt

[carla]

23. I have retired friends

who own a sailboat. Rich does not accurately describe them or many of their sailing friends.They are sailing enthousiasts who dedicate much of their meager incomes to their beloved sport. I hope these people will be helped. Wealth is an advantage, btw, but is it a reason to hate someone? Sounds cold.

[pattmarty]

24. You're going off the deep end. I really don't believe ANYONE here...........

.......hopes anything bad comes to them because of their wealth. AND, you have to realize that wealth is relative. Someone making 50K a year w/four kids sees someone with 500k a year and thinks that person is wealthy. The same person making 500K a year considers themselves middle class and someone making 2mil/yr as wealthy. I don't know if you realize that 2/3rds of Americans make under 50k per year? The most money I have ever made in my entire fucking working life has been under 50K and I could never even afford a fucking nice bass boat.

[boppers]

34. 75.39% of the US makes less than 50K a year.

It's higher than 2/3rds, it's 3/4ths... source with charts and breakdown (via the US census):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personal_income_in_the_United_States

[pattmarty]

49. I took my info out of a older Pat Buchanan book figuring he wouldn't............

..................lie about a statistic he put in his book. I guess it's worse than disgusting then. This is the kind of shit that ought to be put out there by the media as news which it in fact is. Maybe there would be a fucking revolution if people knew. You don't need conspiracy theories when you have explosive actual government figures like that.

[boppers]

71. I think the thing is that the 75% already know about it....

...and the top 25% don't want to make any noise about it, lest they be expected to live under the same standards. The whole "I got mine, screw you" attitude.

[lumberjack_jeff]

33. What is their net worth?

You have no idea? Simply talking out your ass? Color me surprised.

[naaman fletcher]

52. You don't have to be that rich to have a yacht...

Someone with a decent job and pension, who has saved up and works on his own boat, can easily live that life. It is simple, own a boat instead of a home. It may not be the choice of most of us, but there are people who do it. I used to sail quite a bit, and for every rich asshole sailor there was a regular guy I was fascinated to know. They simply spent their money on their boats instead of their homes.

I don't know which one this is, except that I don't know any really rich people who have sailed the oceans without a crew. That these people were alone suggests they are not all that rich.

[redwitch]

3. probably not a wise move but I hope someone rescues them.

They are in a really horrible situation. And who ever in a million years thinks they are going to be kidnapped by pirates?

[tomm2thumbs]

5. my mom, every day

in the middle of Texas! bwahahahaha

(nearly true, though)

[dkf]

8. Is it illegal for them to use their own funds?

Why can't they negotiate their own release? Seriously?

[hayu_lol]

9. In this case, these people knew the risks going in...

this is neither the first nor will it be the last of these events.

Yes, they need help. But how to get help to them? That is the question...short of going to war on piracy. Drones anyone?

[iamjoy]

27. I Wonder The Same

It is no lack of sympathy. If they have means, why not pay up? But maybe they don't have that much.

[lumberjack_jeff]

32. It is my understanding that they did...

... but the British Government scotched the deal.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/dec/06/paul-rachel-chandler-ransom-pirates

[RaleighNCDUer]

69. maybe because the pirates are demanding 7 million, and their

best offer comes up to a few hundred thousand? And that would be selling the boat, their home, their cars, etc. AND, that would be difficult as they are not there signing the paperwork to make such sales possible.

[No Elephants]

19. Maybe people sailing off the coast of Somalia do think of Somalian pirates?

Anyone paying attention to the news this past year might think of them.

[naaman fletcher]

53. they were 1,000 miles from somalia.

[iamjoy]

28. Kidnap Insurance!

There's insurance for all kinds of stuff and you know if there's a buck to be made, some company will jump on board (pardon the puns)

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

38. There is such a thing and my employer has such a policy on my ass

If I get kidnapped, the insurer will pay ransom and other associated costs, up to and including sending Chuck Norris in after me.

I'm not terribly concerned about being kidnapped from an office building in Cape Town - but whatever, their money.

[redwitch]

45. Well DUH! If they're gonna send in Chuck Norris.

I think you are really, really safe. And any pirate would think twice, maybe three times before kidnapping you. :-)

[lumberjack_jeff]

35. Do you know exactly where they were abducted?

They were 1000 miles from Somalia. "Pirate infested waters" = the Indian Ocean. Unacceptable.

Every vessel in Somalia with a range of >200 miles should be sunk.

[SheilaT]

15. "I'm old, I'm 56

and my husband is 60 years old."?

I'm 61 and I'm not old.

Apparently the presence of Somalian pirates in the Indian Ocean happened after they set sail?

They don't deserve to be kidnapped and treated badly, but they also seem not to have been very aware of the realities of the world.

And if they're "old", what the hell are they doing sailing off in the Indian Ocean anyway?

[t0dd]

18. I don't really get the point of discussing the stupidity of their actions

considering they aren't dead yet, and it's a little premature to make an "example of them".

The government won't pay for their ransom, and they've been held hostage for over three months and are obviously being treated very badly. The better question is, how can they be saved?

[No Elephants]

21. I agree, but doesn't even trying to save them risk other lives. And paying off the pirates

encourages more kidnappings. And payment does not guaranty their safety anyway. Not as though pirates are honorable folk. So, it's a very tough situation.

Do you have a solution?

And the fact that it could have been easily avoided makes it all the more frustrating. So, I don't see why people should be scolded about posting that.

[t0dd]

29. I think they should be saved in a similar way to Capt. Richard Phillips

Snipers from a distance, if possible. Or how about giving them counterfeit currency? I guess it depends how they want the ransom delivered. There's a lot of variables I have no way of knowing about.

But these people are suffering, and the entire story deserves more media attention. I hope they can be saved.

[HipChick]

30. I don't think 60 is old..they've prob retired..kids off their hands..and wanted to sail around the

world..

[UpInArms]

17. this is so sad - I really wish these folks had thought longer and more

about sailing off is such a small boat.

[lumberjack_jeff]

31. Kill pirates and take their stuff.

Skull fuck the pirates. I don't give a shit what led them to that criminal fate. The only good pirate is a dead one.

Pay the ransom with a gps-equipped briefcase. Once the Chandlers are safely away, drop bombs. Fuck'em.

http://www.savethechandlers.com/page/2/

[unabelladonna]

37. i know i should care,

but i don't. like many rich folks who have nothing better to do than indulge in their own whims, they got in trouble and expect everyone to stop what they're doing and bail them out.

maybe next time they'll use their wealth to do something useful. ...(oh and i'm not jealous)i'm almost a contemporary of these folks and my hudband and i are retired and living quite comfortably but i realize there are things which are just not safe). these people are idiots....and i do hope they're rescued but not at the cost of someone else's life or a dime from the british gov't.

[lumberjack_jeff]

46. That's right. If you were a normally adapted human being you would care. n/t

[unabelladonna]

50. i have no respect for stupidity

and that's why i really don't care. they should have been content to sail in safer waters. they remind me of infants who get introuble than cry for their parents to help them out.....except these are adults fer christs sake!
i'm being honest, these are my feelings.

[lumberjack_jeff]

59. Me either. So answer a couple of questions.

a) Where were they kidnapped? "pirate infested waters" doesn't cut it. How far were they from Somalia? And to really prove how not-stupid you are, what are the geographic extents of "well known pirate activity"?
b) What is their net worth? Would it be reasonable for someone living on a boat to complain about the stupid rich people who own homes where floods/snows/earthquakes/tornadoes/hurricanes/crime is likely to occur?

They sold their home so they could see the world in a way that allows them to get to know the people in it. I respect that a great deal more than I respect keyboard warriors who purchase plane and/or cruise ship tickets instead.

[cbayer]

39. I have just got to weigh in here.

Some of the assumptions posted here about people who we call cruisers are astoundingly wrong.

There are lots of people who live on sailboats and make wonderful and exciting trips that others can only dream of. Most are not rich by any means nor are they stupid. They live on shoestrings and leave some of the smallest footprints of any other people in developed countries.

Their boats are by no means yachts. They are bluewater sailing boats - generally very basic and built to take you long distances. Anyone who has been on one knows they are nothing close to luxurious.

These are adventurous, self-sufficient and admirable people, for the most part. They are people that experience and appreciate cultures and peoples all over the world to a degree that most people will never even approach. To condemn them as wealthy, yacht-living idiots is really unfair, IMO.

It is necessary to traverse this area in order to get to the Suez Canal. Cruisers are well aware of the dangers of piracy. Many choose to "buddy boat" , traveling with another boat, but even these have been targeted. In recent years, the "pirates" have been targeting large ships, but smaller boats are still at risk. Unless you are willing to take the greater risk of going around the Cape of Good Hope, you can't make a trip around the world without coming into this area.

That is all.

[uppityperson]

40. Thank you. I was almost ready to hit "hide thread" and you posted.

Thank you for your post.

[cbayer]

43. You are welcome. When you are a cruiser, people make two kinds of assumptions about you

1) You are a rich yachtie with too much money and time

2) You are a homeless vagrant without any money or brains

You just can't win.

In fact, cruisers are some of the most interesting, open-minded, diverse people I have ever known.

:hi:

[Tim01]

41. ignore,wrong place.

[naaman fletcher]

54. Thank you!!!!

I had a 35' C&C for a while. Sailed from to NY to Bermuda once. Various things in my life kept me from living that dream, although I am trying to get back here.

I sailed out of a "fancy" place in New England. Half the people I know were rich assholes, but a good half were solidly middle class who simply spent their money on their boats instead of their houses.

[dugaresa]

68. here is an article about this couple that backs up your information

We do expect a ransom demand," Rachel Chandler's brother, Stephen Collett, told the BBC. "The problem is they are not rich people. Most of the money is tied up with their yacht and other communications equipment, which is on board the yacht."

Paul Chandler's sister, Jill Marshment, pleaded for the Chandlers' release and also said they weren't wealthy. Even with only two aboard, the couple described the Lynn Rival as cramped. It is powered mostly by sails and has a small outboard engine.

"They are resilient people. They won't be weeping," Marshment said. "Instead, they'll be thinking: 'What are we going to do? What are we going to say?'"

Paul Chandler has been identified in the British media as a retired construction site manager, while Rachel, 55, is described as an economist. The couple, married for 28 years, took early retirement about three years ago and have spent six-month spells at sea. They have sailed to the Greek islands, Egypt, Sudan, Eritrea, Oman, Yemen, India, the Maldives and the Seychelles, chronicling their voyage on a Web log.


http://www.aolnews.com/story/somali-pirates-have-missing-couple-paul/738535

[Tim01]

42. I guess it would be illegal for us

to send in a team to hunt the pirates down and kill them? With enough money it should be easy to get the locals to give them up. Hunt them down and kill them.

[RogueBandit]

44. Not safe even 1000 miles from Somalia?

If it's not safe 1000 miles from Somalia then boycott 2000 miles from Somalia. If there's no tourism or shipping then those neighboring countries would do what they needed to do years ago. I sympathize, think some groups should go in and start shooting, but still think they're stupid (from prinction.edu Stupid ... <dazed: in a state of mental numbness especially as resulting from shock; "he had a dazed expression on his face"; "lay semiconscious, stunned (or stupefied) by the blow"; "was stupid from fatigue" >

Stupid, so dazed by their boating they forgot the basics ... stay away from pirated waters, and yes, 1000 miles should be safe but apparently isn't.

[Control-Z]

48. So were they stupid,

or were they at a distance they (as you) thought "should be safe" from pirating?

[lumberjack_jeff]

60. They were at a distance that the UN thought was safe from pirating.

The pirates use hijacked ships as bases of operation to operate ever farther afield. "Pirate infested waters" are growing because we don't kill the pirates.

[Jefferson23]

47. I hope for a good outcome, scary stuff.

[JoeyT]

51. Is there even anything our government can do for them?

Their own government left them there, so I'm not sure it would be legal for us to send anyone in after them.

By the way, that alone suggests they aren't as rich as some people seem to think they are. Governments don't leave their high end citizens in other countries. Not that how much money they have matters one way or the other anyway.

[naaman fletcher]

55. yes...

We have this massive Navy that roams the seas enforcing the coporatocracy.. patrolling for pirates is one of the few legit things they should be doing, but don't do it enough.

Our Navy should sail up and down the Somali coast blasting them out of the water.

[hayu_lol]

56. International Marine Law is one of the world's strangest kinds ...

of Law. Much of the East Asian coastlines, including the Philippines, is listed as areas of piracy. The threat continues on around India and then extends down the coast of the African continent. The Caribbean area is another historic danger point. Crews of large ships and private boats like this one are well aware of the danger.

Seems as if the only agency that could take action would be the UN...an organization not noted for it's speed of action.

For any major power to take some sort of military action would actually be an act of war once having entered the territorial waters of any of the countries involved.

A sailboat, no matter the size, cannot outrun any power craft under normal conditions. International Maritime Law prevents private yachts from carrying firearms. I believe that condition also applies to commercial vessels as well.

The only answer to the pirate problem in the above mentioned areas would be a very powerful satellite or a group of them over these areas. Suspicious craft, provided laws allowed this, could be a target of aircraft loaded with air to surface missiles. Ships and boats are too slow for interrogation efforts.

Quite a problem. Hard on these folks.

[lumberjack_jeff]

61. The firearms prohibition isn't maritime law...

... it's the ports you visit.

IOW, you're welcome to carry firearms on your boat as far at sea as you wish... provided you only stop at US ports. Get caught in Mexico with it and you have a big problem.

[JoeyT]

58. I know we have a Navy, heh.

I meant if anything could be done for these people specifically.
They're not in the ocean anymore. What I was asking was if it was legal for a country to send in troops to retrieve the citizens of another country when the country they're citizens of isn't interested in doing it.

Hell, our whole Navy wouldn't even have to do it. Two or three ships could cover the entire area with a lot of overlap.

[KeepItReal]

57. British Navy tried to rescue once. Doubtless they will try again if chance arises.

"Last November it emerged that a Royal Navy vessel, Wave Knight, was in range when the Chandlers were first taken from their yacht to a container ship but military officials said taking action would have put the couple's lives at risk.

The BBC reported that a Special Boat Service team was deployed from the UK to try to rescue the Chandlers but it said that, according to a Whitehall official, the secret mission was aborted because of a combination of technical problems at one of the transit staging posts and delays in decision taking in Whitehall.

The official told the Corporation: "There was some bungling here."

The Special Boat Service team arrived nearby, but was not in time to rescue the couple, it reported."

http://news.uk.msn.com/uk/articles.aspx?cp-documentid=151848043