Gift of the Givers in bid to save SA man in Mali

GIFT of the Givers organisation wants to save another South African, who is being held hostage in Mali.

Stephen McGown has pleaded with the government to save him, and Gift of the Givers has intervened in an effort to bring him back to the country.

Yesterday, Gift of the Givers founder and director Imtiaz Sooliman made a commitment to help McGown, who has been held captive for more than three years.

“It has been a tough and trying time for the family, having waited three years and seven months since that fateful day of capture on November 25, 2011 in Mali,” he said, adding that a constructive effort had to be made to connect with his captors to start a meaningful dialogue.

“The McGown family do not know who the real captors are, what the demands are, where Stephen is being held and who to communicate with.

“We face that same dilemma on behalf of the McGown family, but are putting systems in place to initiate that opening contact with his captors,” said Sooliman.

According to him, McGown’s family had, through his father Malcolm, contacted him in February last year after Gift of the Givers had successfully negotiated the release of Yolande Korkie in Yemen.

Prior to Pierre Korkie’s killing, the McGown family prepared to wait.

“I could feel the pain and hurt in this man’s voice and would have loved to have helped him immediately, but two complicated hostage situations at once would be irrational.

“I called Malcolm to say my Joburg office manager was on his way to visit our office in Mauritania, and that we could use that opportunity to see if something could be done for Stephen.

“Malcolm was very excited, but there was sadness in his voice. He (Malcolm) said, ‘my wife is on oxygen and she would love to see Stephen soon’.”

Sooliman said Gift of the Givers had made several attempts in December to assist, but without any success. The hurdles were similar to those in Yemen.

He said they had to work through Mauritania, but even then, every turn led to a dead end.

However, the latest video released by the captors had given them a new opportunity.

From the contents, it was probably made in April this year.

“In the last 12 hours, we have commenced some significant meetings with spiritual and tribal leaders in west Africa… In the meantime, we welcome any assistance from any individual, locally or internationally,” Sooliman pleaded.

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