By Emma Bouthillette 

Staff Writer

Harvey Rohde had been the keeper of a secret for seven months. Now he is happy to share what he knows.

When acquaintances, friends and extended family members asked the Kennebunk resident how his son David Rohde, a foreign correspondent for the New York Times, was doing, Harvey Rohde’s standard answer was, “He’s over there (Afghanistan) doing research for his book.”

But David Rohde’s June 19 escape from Taliban insurgents after seven months of captivity, has allowed his father to tell the true story.

In November, Harvey Rohde said his son had planned to meet him at a Brown versus Dartmouth football game. He said he received an email from his son saying he had an interview opportunity with a Taliban commander and wouldn’t be able to make it to the game. 

On his way to the Nov. 10, 2008, interview 60 miles away from Kabul, Afghanistan, Harvey Rohde said his son’s car was stopped and “they were snatched.” David Rohde left a note advising if he was not back at a certain time to call his brother, and Harvey Rohde said he received the news the next day. 

“My outlook was pretty grim because David had not planned this latest trip,” Harvey Rohde said. “He was going into hazardous territory and I just said take care of yourself.”

After learning of his imprisonment, the immediate family along with federal agencies decided it would be best not to publicize the kidnapping, Harvey Rohde said.

“The decision was to stay quiet, because if we went public, the thought was we would increase his risk as well as the risk of other journalists in the area. If they see the more he’s publicized, they would assume he is important,” Harvey Rohde said. 

This decision was different from the experience Harvey Rohde faced in 1995 when Bosnian Serbs arrested his son as a suspected spy for the CIA. Harvey Rohde said the family and press coverage was instrumental in his freedom. 

“That was his first real brush with a dangerous situation,” he said. “In 1995 we were convinced that publicity would matter.”

Following his abduction in Afghanistan, an Italian news source caught wind of David Rohde’s situation right after he was kidnapped and “a couple blogs” picked it up as well, but federal agencies were able to stop further media coverage and the news did not leak, Harvey Rohde said. He said the immediate family, David Rohde’s mother, brothers, sister and wife, knew, but the extended family received Harvey Rohde’s same standard response. 

During his captivity, the Rohde family had help from the New York Times and other federal agencies in arranging contact with the insurgents and maintaining updates on David Rohde’s condition. Harvey Rohde said even though his son was on a leave of absence from the New York Times, the company still assisted.

“The New York Times treated him as if they would if their number one correspondent would have been abducted, even though fact of the matter is he wasn’t their employee,” Harvey Rohde said. 

An email to New York Times Executive Editor Bill Keller was not returned as of press time.

In a June 20 New York Times article Keller was quoted saying, “From the early days of this ordeal, the prevailing view among David’s family, experts in kidnapping cases, officials of several governments and others we consulted was that going public could increase the danger to David and the other hostages. The kidnappers initially said as much. We decided to respect that advice, as we have in other kidnapping cases, and a number of other news organizations that learned of David’s plight have done the same. We are enormously grateful for their support.”

Harvey Rohde’s eldest son, Lee Rohde, and David Rohde’s wife, Kristen Mulvihill, acted as the family’s point of contact. Harvey Rohde said they received “proof of life” videos and he saw two of three or four. He said the first showed his son on his knees reading from a script with guards behind him resting the butt of their guns on the ground. The second video he saw was similar, except the guards were aiming their guns at his son’s head, Harvey Rohde said.

“In all [David is] reading, it’s what he’s told to read,” he said. “The first was what I expected. The second was heart wrenching.”

Harvey Rohde said he prepared himself for the worst news as he kept his son’s captivity a secret.

“It was tough because there’s no release, but I had to do it,” Harvey Rohde said of keeping his secret. “The thing I was most worried about was the day I’d turn around and they’d tell me, ‘Send ransom money in two weeks or we chop his head off.’ I was told it would happen, but it never did.”

Harvey Rohde said his son and another hostage, local reporter Tahir Lundin, had stashed a rope to aid in their escape. He said Lundin arranged with the guards to take him to see a doctor and later convinced them to take him to a cricket match. The outing allowed him to examine the exterior of their prison and plan an escape. 

“They waited until a night with the air conditioner running. It made a lot of noise to squelch any [noise] they made,” Harvey Rohde said. “He got up and woke [Lundin]. The guards were sleeping right next to them.”

They were able to sneak out the window and lower themselves to the ground, Harvey Rohde said. The rope was too short, leaving Lundin with a sprained ankle and foot, but they were able to reach a Pakistani military base, he said. 

David Rohde returned to New York June 24, and Harvey Rohde said he has talked with his son.

“With seven months, things just spilled out. Just random thoughts,” Harvey Rohde said. “I let him spill what he wanted and to date I’ve asked him no questions. He’ll tell me what he wants to tell. It’s just too soon.”

David Rohde did not respond as of press time to an email requesting an interview. 

While Harvey Rohde never discouraged his son from traveling to the Middle East for his work as a reporter, Harvey Rohde said he told his son to “let things settle” before making a decision to return. 

“Enjoy the moments right now – your wife, your freedom,” Harvey Rohde said to his son, who spent seven of his nine months of marriage in the hands of Taliban insurgents. 

“It’s what some chose to do for their occupation. It’s one of the dangers they face,” Harvey Rohde said. 

Staff writer Emma Bouthillette can be reached at 282-4337 ext. 237.