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MalacaƱang directed the Department of Foreign Affairs to pursue a diplomatic solution to the hijacking of French cruise ship Le Ponand in the Gulf of Aden Tuesday.

Deputy spokesman Anthony Golez said the president has been notified of the incident and the families of the kidnapped Filipino seamen have in turn been notified, ABS-CBN reported.

The DFA told Golez the Philippine government, through the embassy in Paris, is coordinating with the French government for the release and safe return of the Filipino crewmen.

"The safe return of the Filipinos must be of paramount importance," the President reportedly said.

The six Filipinos are part of the Le Ponands crew of 30. Five of them are male and one is female.

No hostages aside from the crew were held as the ship was en route to Alexandria, Egypt to pick up passengers.

DFA Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs Esteban Conejos asked that the identity of the six crewmembers be withheld.

Agence France-Presse reported last April 4 that the French luxury cruise ship Le Ponand was taken hostage even before they could pick up their passengers. However, the AFP report said the crew was composed of 22 French nationals and around 10 Ukrainians.

A company spokesman said it was doing everything it could in consultation with the French government to ensure "the security of the hostages and bring about a speedy end to this crisis."

Company priority ā€“ safety of the hostages

The spokesman said a family liaison group has been set up by the company, adding that its "absolute priority is to support the families and respect their privacy in this difficult moment."

But French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said Sunday that "the matter could last a long time" and he did not rule out the payment of a ransom to secure the release of the crew.

French Defense Minister Herve Morin said there could be no military intervention unless the safety of the crew could be guaranteed.

The 32-cabin yacht Ponand lay anchored off Puntland in Somalia Monday. Puntland is relatively peaceful and has proclaimed autonomy from the rest of the conflict-wracked country.

Anchored off Puntland

Bile Mohamoud Ali, an advisor to Puntland's president, had said the hijackers were heading to Haradere port, a pirate haven some 500 kilometers north of the Somali capital Mogadishu.

However, naval Captain Christophe Prazuck of French military command later said the ship remained moored in waters near Garacad on the eastern Somali coast.

"Since and its arrival off this village, the situation remains unchanged and calm," Prazuck said.

A senior Puntland government official did say residents had been urged to fend off attempts by the pirates to come on shore and that two civilians were killed Sunday in clashes with the hijackers as they attempted to dock.

Boost naval security

The International Maritime Bureau called on the international community to boost security on the northern Somali coast.

The IMB's Malaysia-based Piracy Reporting Center said anti-piracy activities, including patrols by coalition warships, had suppressed incidents on Somalia's east coast, but pirates had now headed north to the highly strategic Gulf of Aden.

"The UN Security Council or someone must take some form of action to stop these pirates from attacking innocent seafarers," its manager, Noel Choong, told AFP.

"There are a lot of tankers carrying vulnerable cargo, and we are worried about an environmental disaster if there's any attack on chemical or crude oil tankers," he added.

Somalia, which lies at the mouth of the Red Sea on a major trade route between Asia and Europe via the Suez Canal, has not had a functioning government since the 1991 ousting of dictator Mohamed Siad Barre.

In Paris, a defense source said troops from the gendarmerie's elite counter-terrorism and hostage rescue unit were sent to Djibouti where they will remain until further orders.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy was due to host family members of the crew at the Elysee Monday afternoon.

The ship's owners, CMA CGM, stated that the crew were being "well treated".

"We know that members of the Ponand crew are on board and well treated," said a spokesman. "All we know is that they are in good spirits, that they are safe and well," he added. With reports from Nadia Trinidad, Apples Jalandoni and Agence France-Presse