MANILA – Actress Ruffa Gutierrez admitted that it was fear that prevented her two daughters from seeing their father, Yilmaz Bektas, for 15 years.

In a vlog of celebrity doctor Vicki Belo, Gutierrez clarified that she did not prohibit Bektas from seeing Lorin and Venice but she did ask him to meet them in the Philippines or a “neutral country.”

“I just told Yilmaz that, ‘If you want to see your kids, come and visit them in the Philippines. Or we’ll meet in a neutral country like the United States, Europe, anywhere. Pero huwag muna sa Turkey,’” Gutierrez said.

Gutierrez said she just wanted to make sure of her children’s safety.

“I was scared because of what happened sa paghihwalay namin and hindi mo ako mabe-blame kasi siyempre gusto ko naman na maging safe ako, maging safe 'yung mga bata,” she explained.

She went on to admit that the recent heartwarming reunion of Bektas and his daughters was three years in the making.

Gutierrez said they were trying to set up a meeting several years ago but they usually ended up fighting over the phone.

Then last Holy Week, Bektas had a dream about Venice and had to ask Gutierrez about their daughter.

“He said, ‘Is Venice okay? I feel like she’s going through a lot and I don’t understand why I had a dream about her.’ So nag-usap sila,” she narrated.

“This was in April for Holy Week and we were in Boracay. So I was there when they initially had a conversation. It was on speaker phone. Lahat ng hinanakit ni Venice linabas niya talaga and she cried. She felt very angry and once her bubba said hello, she just started crying and I know this is very personal for Venice and it’s very private.”

Last June, Venice and Lorin flew to Istanbul to reunite with their father and their half-sister.