Public pressure appears to be growing for the Canadian government to bring home kidnapped journalist Amanda Lindhout, as dozens of letters have poured into Ottawa pleading for her rescue and Canadian reporting organizations have begun quietly petitioning the government to secure her release.

Lindhout has been missing since August 23, 2008, when she and Australian freelance photographer Nigel Brennan were kidnapped near Mogadishu, Somalia.

It was later revealed that the Australian photographer and the freelancer from Sylvan Lake, Alta., were being held for ransom. They have still not been freed.

Letters sent in to Ottawa demonstrate Lindhout's low profile in the media in the earlier part of her captivity, as several citizens told Foreign Affairs that they did even know about her story until the one-year anniversary approached.

Ambroise Pierre, the head of the Africa desk at the Reporters Without Borders headquarters in Paris, told CTV.ca that Lindhout and Brennan were originally being held north of Mogadishu. But for the last six weeks or so, they have been held about 120 kilometres south of the Somali capital.

Foreign Affairs recently released more than 80 e-mails and letters to CTV.ca, all of which were sent to the department between December and mid-August. All of the letters, obtained through the Access to Information Act, were penned by members of the public who wrote to Ottawa about Lindhout's situation.

Additionally, a number of journalistic organizations including the Canadian Journalists for Free Expression, recently started a petition to bring home Lindhout and Brennan, who have now been held against their will for 14 months.

The petition calls on the Canadian government "to make it a top priority to work for the immediate and unconditional release of Canadian journalist Amanda Lindhout and her Australian colleague Nigel Brennan."

But CJFE Manager Julie Payne said the reporting organizations involved in the petition are "really not trying to get any media coverage" because they are not sure that will help achieve Lindhout's release.

Foreign Affairs spokesperson Lisa Monette told CTV.ca in an e-mail that Canadian authorities "continue to pursue all appropriate channels to seek further information" about the welfare of the missing journalists.

But Monette said the government "will not comment or release any information which may compromise these efforts and jeopardize the safety of a Canadian or other citizen."

Lindhout's story

In the lead-up to the one-year anniversary of her captivity this past August, Lindhout's story hit the airwaves, papers and online news sites repeatedly. Readers and listeners, in turn, told Ottawa about their concerns.

A woman claiming to be Lindhout, made several calls to Canadian media outlets, including a June 10 phone call to the CTV national newsroom that disturbed many of those who wrote to Ottawa in the ensuing days and weeks.

"Last night on our news we heard a fellow Albertan asking for help. Actually this person was begging for help! This is the first time I have heard of this. I would like you to know my wife and I are very upset over this matter," wrote one Albertan, the day after the phone call was broadcast.

Two days after the call, a Grade 7 student sent a hand-written letter to Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon "begging you to help Amanda and get her out of this situation!!"

Many members of the public wrote to say they were impressed with Lindhout's interest in reporting in dangerous locales, like in Baghdad and in Mogadishu, where she chose to work as a freelancer.

"Amanda, as a freelance journalist, put her safety and life in jeopardy because she thought it important to bring attention to injustices happening in high risk areas in the third world. Her efforts give me a sense of pride to say she is a Canadian," wrote one concerned citizen on June 16.

Ransom concerns

But not everyone who wrote to the government thought that a ransom payout was the best resolution, with some preferring to negotiate a non-monetary settlement.

On June 16, a letter sent to Prime Minister Stephen Harper laid out the case against paying ransoms, which could have the unintended effect of increasing the number of kidnappings.

"I do hope, however, that the Government of Canada sticks to their policy of not paying ransoms. Doing so would encourage more kidnappings of Canadians not only in Somalia, but in other parts of the world as well," the author of the letter said. "We need to resolve these issues by other means. I do condone efforts for her release that do not involve paying the kidnappers."

Another person wrote to the prime minister on June 11 to say that "paying the ransom is not an option as it sets a dangerous precedent for future Canadian travellers, but support can be given in facilitating contact between our government and the abductors."

At the 10-month mark of Lindhout's ongoing ordeal, one letter-writer heard a radio report that mentioned the reporter's name.

"She was kidnapped in Somalia last August, nearly 10 months ago. I hadn't heard her name and foolishly assumed she had been released. She has not," the letter-writer said in a June 29 e-mail sent to Cannon.

"I can't help but think the situation might be different if her last name was Trudeau, rather than an unknown small town girl. What if this was your daughter, or sister? What does it take for our government to stand up for its citizens?"

Lindhout's family has said little since she went missing nearly 14 months ago. But shortly before the one-year anniversary of her kidnapping, they issued a brief statement along with the Brennan family, saying that they were working tirelessly for the two journalists' release.

"With little outside support, the families -- who have been united as one throughout this horrendous ordeal -- continue to do everything and anything to gain the earliest possible release for their loved ones Amanda and Nigel," the statement said.