BY VICTOR REYES

A THREE-MAN team of the International Committee of the Red Cross was abducted yesterday in Sulu by a group of armed men suspected to be members of the Abu Sayyaf.

The team, composed of Swiss Andreas Notter, the leader, and Italian Eugenio Vagni and Filipino Mary Jean Lacaba, arrived in Sulu Tuesday to inspect humanitarian projects.

The incident could cause an international furor if the victims are harmed, said Sen. Richard Gordon, chairman of the Philippine National Red Cross and a governor of the International Federation of the Red Cross.

"Common Article 3 of the Geneva Convention prohibits the abduction or kidnapping of persons taking no active part in hostilities, such as the ICRC which is an impartial humanitarian body that offers services to both parties in conflicts," he said. "They are innocent people protected by international treaties under the Geneva Convention."

Roland Bigler, ICRC communications delegate, said the international organization might review its "security guidelines to better protect our delegates in exercising their missions wherever they are."

But he said the incident would not stop ICRC’s humanitarian missions in the Philippines.

Bigler would not answer specifically to a question if the ICRC is condemning the abduction. "We do not want to go into that aspect… But we are reiterating that our delegates are protected by the international Red Cross emblem that is respected by everybody all over the world."

The ICRC said the team had just completed a visit to the Sulu provincial jail in Patikul town, where they were working on a water and sanitation project to improve the living condition of detainees.

The team was in a vehicle belonging to the Sulu chapter of the Philippine National Red Cross when they were seized at around 11:30 a.m., a few hundred meters from the jail.

The ICRC said regular visits to detention facilities are part of its humanitarian activities in the Philippines.

"The ICRC currently has no indication whatsoever of who the abductors might be or of their motives. It is in contact with the authorities and other parties with the aim of resolving the situation as swiftly as possible," it said.

The vehicle was recovered later yesterday in Timbang village, Patikul. It was in this area where TV news anchor Ces Drilon and her crew were initially brought by their Abu Sayyaf abductors in June last year, said Lt. Esteffani Cacho, spokesman of the Western Mindanao Command.

"They were duly advised about the security situation in the island but being a neutral organization, declined armed escorts," Cacho also said.

Lt. Gen. Nelson Allaga, WestMinCom commander, said troops from the military’s Joint Task Force Comet under Maj. Gen. Juancho Sabban are pursuing the abductors.

The Abu Sayyaf has conducted high-profile kidnappings and bombings. In 2000, the group raided the diving resort in Sipadan island in Malaysia and seized 21 mostly Caucasian tourists who were later brought to Sulu.