1.   Already in recent weeks, Pakistan has faced a flare-up in incidents of violence, including the kidnapping and killing of an American journalist.

2.   The government has also been diverted by an aggressive Muslim separatist insurgency in the south that has included repeated kidnappings.

3.   President Fidel Ramos has ordered police to combat an upsurge in crime, including kidnappings of wealthy businessmen and foreigners, which is tarnishing his last months in power.

4.   Crime, including ransom kidnappings, became widespread and the Chechen government, plagued by factional disputes, exerted little control.

5.   Ingushetia, a small republic in southern Russia, borders on rebel Chechnya and has been plagued by crime, including numerous kidnappings traced to Chechen armed gangs.

6.   President Aslan Maskhadov is anxious to demilitarize the republic and halt runaway crime, including kidnappings of Russian officers and foreign aid workers.

7.   Since its two-year war with Russia ended, Chechnya has been plagued by lawlessness, including numerous kidnappings.

8.   The Abu Sayyaf has been blamed for numerous violent attacks against Christians, including ransom kidnappings of foreign missionaries.

9.   Tensions have escalated in recent weeks over a suspected Chechen attack on an army base in southern Russia and other acts of violence, including kidnappings.

10.   Teresita Ang See, the head of the peace and order movement, said the list of victims of violent crimes, including ransom kidnappings, is getting longer.