Day: July 19, 2001

For Once, I Agree With Dan Rather

USA Today had a small little summary of this “controversy” today: until yesterday, CBS Evening News hadn’t broadcast a single story about the disappearance of Chandra Levy. Newsmax goes off on Dan Rather, who apparently objected to stories about Levy.

This is one of the few times I find myself agreeing with Dan Rather — the Chandra Levy story simply isn’t a worthwhile news story. I usually watch NBC News which has gradually transformed itself into “The Chandra Levy Update.”

The other day I was working out during lunch and was reminded of just how shallow broadcast news can be — CNN interrupted their Chandra Levy coverage to go live to Robert Downey Jr.’s sentencing.

Sometimes I get the feeling that E! now owns all the non-business cable news channels.

The Worldwide Traffic in Human Beings

The U.S. State Department recently released the first of a series of annual reports on the worldwide trafficking of human beings. According to the “Trafficking in Persons Report,” about 700,000 people — mostly women and children — are pressed into this modern form of slavery every year.

The report grades countries around the world based on their compliance with international treaties designed to prevent such trafficking. The report divides countries into three tiers, with Tier 3 being countries whose legal systems do not comply and are not making significant progress to achieving compliance. The list of Tier 3 countries includes Albania, Bahrain, Belarus, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Burma, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Greece, Indonesia, Israel, Kazakhstan, Lebanon, Malaysia, Pakistan, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Sudan, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, and The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.

Several of the countries on that list, of course, are close allies of the United States.

The victims of such trafficking end up working as cheap labor in construction sites or clothing factories, while many of the women involved in the trade are forced into prostitution. At a press conference announcing the release of the report, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell called the ongoing trafficking in human beings an “abomination against humanity.”

Source:

US decries ‘modern-day slavery’. The BBC, July 12, 2001.

Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act of 2000: Trafficking in Persons Report. The United States Department of State, 2001.

Modern Slavery … In Israel?

The U.S. State Department recently released a report on the continuing remnants of trafficking in human beings. Modern slavery in Sudan and other countries in Africa has received substantial press coverage, as has the trafficking in women and children in Asia. But I was genuinely surprised to see Israel listed as a country which does not meet the State Department’s minimum requirements on human trafficking and is not making significant progress toward compliance. It’s joined by countries like Sudan, Kazakhstan, and Burma.

The State Department summarizes the current situation in Israel:

Israel is a destination country for trafficked persons, primarily women. Women are trafficked to Israel from the New Independent States (specifically Moldova, Russia, and Ukraine), Brazil, Turkey, South Africa, and some countries in Asia.

The Government of Israel does not meet the minimum standards for combating trafficking in persons, and has not yet made significant efforts to combat the problem, although it has begun to take some steps to do so. The Government recognizes that trafficking in persons is a problem, but devotes limited resources to combating it. NGO’s and some concerned government officials have criticized the Government for failing to undertake vigorous efforts against trafficking, especially given the occasional violent methods of traffickers and the significant numbers of women who are trafficked into the country. In June 2000, the Knesset amended a 1997 prostitution law to prohibit the buying or selling of persons, or forcing a person to leave their country of residence to engage in prostitution. The penalties for rape and violation of the 1997 prostitution law require roughly a doubling of the sentence if the victim is a minor. The Government has convicted one trafficker under the new legislation. The Government has provided training to immigration officials at Ben Gurion airport. The Government has not formally begun cooperation with other governments on trafficking cases, but has worked with Ukrainian officials on one trafficking case. The Government has not conducted anti-trafficking information campaigns or other efforts aimed at prevention. Little protection is provided to trafficked persons. Victims of trafficking are detained, jailed in a special women’s prison separate from other female prisoners, and deported. Victims who are willing to testify against traffickers may be granted relief from immediate deportation, but the Government does not actively encourage victims to raise charges against traffickers. Israeli NGO’s have encouraged victims to take legal action. Some victims have accused individual police officers of complicity with brothel owners and traffickers. The Government provides limited funding to NGO’s for assistance to victims.

Other countries with close ties to the United States who are non-compliant and not making significant efforts to combat trafficking include Greece, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, and Turkey.

Bruce Friedrich Arrested for Streaking in Front of Buckingham Palace

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals activist Bruce Friedrich was arrested in front of Buckingham Palace today after streaking in front of the palace.

Wearing only a pair of tennis shoes and the words “GoVeg.Com” printed in marker on his back, Friedrich was detained shortly before U.S. president George W. Bush arrived to have lunch with the Queen.

The Press Association reported, “A spokeswoman for People For the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) said he was trying to shed light on the issue of cruelty to animals in food production and the alternative to a meat-based diet.”

Uh-huh. I’m not quite sure what the connection is between a naked Friedrich and vegetarianism, unless he’s trying to tell us that the animal rights movement is simply a modern updating of “The Emperor’s New Clothes,” passing off its foolishness and folly as if it were wisdom.

Source:

Streaking Activist Arrested. Wayne Veysey, The Press Association, July 19, 2001.

Lord Sainsbury's Strong Words about Anti-Huntingdon Protests

With animal rights activist in Great Britain and the United States actively targeting any bank with even the most tangential of financial relationships with Huntingdon Life Sciences for harassment, the British government recently stepped in and said it would provide banking facilities at the Bank of England (similar to the U.S. Federal Reserve) for the company. In announcing the move, science minister Lord Sainsbury had harsh words for banks who were abandoning the company on the heels of animal rights protests.

“This is very foolish on their part because it sends a signal to other groups which says if you don’t like a particular action taken by a company why not try a campaign in which you target the financial supporters of that company,” Sainsbury said. “We don’t think the medical research this company is involved in should be jeopardized and if it ceased trading that would make it very difficult for the research to be done.”

While certainly Sainsbury is correct that the banks gave in far too quickly and easily, lets not forget that they did so only after it was obvious that the British government was unwilling and/or unable to stop the massive wave of harassment directed at HLS. By the time the government woke up to the reality of the intense harassment and acts of terrorism, HLS was already on the verge of going out of business.

Had the Labor government responded from the beginning of the anti-HLS harassment with a consistent message that acts of terrorism and violence would not be tolerated, the anti-HLS campaign likely wouldn’t have reached the fever pitch that it did. Instead, Until late last year, the government response was tepid at best, and only served to underscore the view among activists that they could break the law without serious consequence.

Asking banks to stand up and be counted when their own government seemed to be lying down on the job is asking a lot. The government desperately needs to show the various companies and individuals that it will defend them against animal rights attacks. As a Daily Telegraph editorial put it,

The Government must now press home its advantage against the terrorists. It must lift the threat of terror from the market in HLS shares. Above all, it must encourage the forces of law to bring the terrorists themselves to justice.

And it must do so sooner rather than later if Lord Sainsbury and others are serious about protecting vital medical research.

Source:

Banks are ‘foolish’ in bowing to threats. Francesco Guerrera and Robert Shrimsley, The Financial Times (London), July 3, 2001.

Counter-terrorism. The Daily Telegraph (London), July 3, 2001.