Online plea seeks release of IS-held hostages

AMMAN — I AM KENJI, an online petition whose aim is the release of the Japanese journalist Kenji Goto and Jordanian pilot Muath Kasasbeh, both held hostage by the so-called Islamic State (IS) terrorist organisation, was created on January 20.

According to Taku Nishimae, one of the five organisers of I AM KENJI, the petition has been signed by more than 37,000 people so far, from countries as diverse as Japan, Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and Turkey. 

The Facebook page has received close to 40,000 likes and 600,000 visits, not counting Facebook accounts of users who posted a picture of themselves holding a sign saying "I AM KENJI.”

"Everyone is wishing and praying for Goto's safe return. We all want him back home," Nishimae told The Jordan Times in a telephone interview. "Of course, we are equally compassionate about the situation of Kasasbeh," he added.  

The petition is addressed to the Royal Family, the Jordanian government and the people of Jordan in general. 

"We understand that the Jordanian government is in a very difficult situation," Nishimae said.  

Nishimae, a New York based journalist and filmmaker, has been a close friend of Goto for years and has collaborated with him on several TV-documentaries. 

Mark Tchelistcheff, another organiser of I AM KENJI, described Goto as a "great lover of the Middle East". 

"We are aware that there are hundreds of people being killed every day. Still, we have the chance to save these two precious lives," he told The Jordan Times in a telephone interview.

"He has done a lot for the people there, especially for the children," Tchelistcheff said. "Goto has a huge heart."

The petition can be signed on chn.ge/1BviYAO and on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/IAmKenjiGoto?fref=ts

The story was done as part of the Goethe Institute's journalistic exchange project "Close-Up"