Spanish priest who escaped from Abu Sayyaf dies at 97
Spanish missionary priest Fr. Bernardo Blanco, who lived in the Philippines for nearly 50 years and was held captive for over a month by the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) while serving in Basilan in 1993, has passed away, according to the Claretian Missionaries. He was 97.
The Claretian priest died at 1:02 a.m. on March 10 at Diliman Doctors Hospital in Quezon City, his congregation announced.
“We humbly ask you to remember him in your prayers,” the Fr. Rhoel Gallardo Province of the Claretian Missionaries said in an obituary.
Blanco’s wake will be held from March 11 to March 14 at the Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish in UP Village, Quezon City. A funeral Mass will be held at 10 a.m. on March 15, followed by his interment at Himlayang Pilipino Memorial Park.
Blanco, who was ordained as a priest in 1953, arrived in the Philippines on Feb. 25, 1977, and was assigned to Bolong, Zamboanga City. He was later transferred to the Claretian Missions in Basilan, where he served as parish priest of the Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish in Maluso.
Kidnapped
While driving to church on March 18, 1993, he was abducted initially by a breakaway group of the Moro National Liberation Front and eventually turned over to the ASG.
“He endured 49 days of captivity before bravely seizing an opportunity to escape, ultimately regaining his freedom, an event that attracted international attention. His resilience and faith during this ordeal were widely acknowledged,” his congregation said.
The Spanish priest attributed his escape to “the help of the Lord.” With a full moon guiding him, he said he “ran and ran” through the forest until he reached a militia outpost.
