Originally published by the Voice of America (www.voanews.com).
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March 28, 2007

Manila Hostage Takers Free Children From Bus, Surrender to Police
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=16D46DD:A6F02AD83191E16039FE82C95AE5EB559574F7DCC14957C0 Police say the man
will free the 31 pre-schoolers and two teachers at 7 p.m. local time
Wednesday The owner of a day-care center in the Philippine capital,
Manila, who took a busload of his students and teachers hostage, has
released them and surrendered.







Children peer from the window of their tourist bus where they were
taken hostage in front of the Manila City Hall in Manila, Philippines,
28 Mar 2007The man and an accomplice freed the 31 pre-schoolers and
two teachers Wednesday evening outside Manila's city hall, about 10
hours after the incident began. Both men were taken away by police.

The hostage taker, named Jun Ducat, had demanded that authorities
provide free education and housing for the 145 children who attend his
facility in a poor Manila district.

After seizing the bus earlier today, Ducat told police he was armed
with two grenades, an assault rifle and a handgun.

Ducat was involved in a previous hostage-taking case in 1989, in which
he held two priests using fake grenades. No charges were filed in that
incident.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP and Reuters.


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