Hostage crisis victim undergoes jaw surgery

Manila hostage crisis survivor Yik Siu-ling was yesterday undergoing a fresh round of surgery to rebuild her shattered lower jaw at one of Taiwan's top hospitals.

The 37-year-old was said by staff at Chang Gung Memorial Hospital to be looking "somewhat nervous but brave" before being taken to the operating theatre for the jaw reconstruction operation.

Yik's surgery is being financed by Filipino businessmen as part of an attempt to reconcile Manila and Hong Kong, more than three years after eight Hongkongers died at the hands of sacked policeman Rolando Mendoza.

The surgical team led by Dr Wei Fu-chan, one of the island's top craniofacial and microsurgical reconstruction specialists, declined to reveal details of the operation nor how long it would take. But one hospital worker said such operations typically took between 10 and 13 hours.

The staff member, who declined to be identified, said the surgery would involve removing part of the patient's calf bone for use in the jaw reconstruction. New teeth would be implanted only after the reconstruction of the jaw.

Another member of staff said the hospital had performed more than 20,000 jaw reconstruction operations, with a success rate of more than 90 per cent.