Abductee’s parents suffer sleepless nights

PETALING JAYA: Vera Yam cannot sleep well at night. Nightmares cause her to shout and cry during her sleep.

She also has high blood pressure and can’t eat properly.

Yam, 72, cannot stop thinking about the fate of her son Bernard Then Ted Fun who was kidnapped by Abu Sayyaf gunmen from the Ocean King Seafood Restaurant in Sandakan.

Then is now being held hostage in Jolo, southern Philippines.

“We are waiting for him to come home but we don’t know when.

“We are always thinking of him. We don’t understand what happened to him,” said Yam between sobs.

Distraught: Then’s parents Yam and John haven’t been able to sleep properly since he was abducted by militants in May. Chan (right) received a call last month from the kidnappers.

Bernard, 39, was kidnapped along with restaurant manager Thien Nyuk Fun, 50, on May 14.

The abduction has been a tough test for his parents.

“Bernard is in our thoughts every minute and every second,” said his father John Then.

“My wife has high blood pressure. Because of her sleepless nights and worries, she has been given a double dose of medication by the family doctor.

“She has bad dreams at night. She screams and sometimes she even cries in her sleep,” he said.

He said Yam’s condition worsened since the threat of beheading by Abu Sayyaf gunmen last month.

Bernard’s wife Chan Wai See had received a call last month from the kidnappers, who threatened to behead him if ransom was not paid.

The last time the family saw Bernard, the youngest of four siblings, was during Chinese New Year in February.

John said the last time he spoke to his son was a day before he was kidnapped. He had told his son over the phone that Sabah was safe to visit.

“When we heard the news, it was like the sky falling down,” he said, adding that Bernard was a very good son who took care of his parents.

John said his family members and friends from all religions had been praying for his son’s safety.

He also appealed to the Government to help them secure a safe release for his son and Thien.

“We only want him to come back to his family. Please end our torture. Nobody else can help us except the Government,” he said.