good point, leigh. i don't think we need to be too careful here because the story is quite wide spread. Haji Din Mohammad, a portion of whose interview i included, is surely an afghan authority. the problem is serious enough to get haji's attention; and for him to soft pedal it in his interview. there are many other sources of the story.
the story reflects a dismal situation doesn't it. i doubt it's only in afghanistan. but since the US govt pretends to care about afghanistan, it's one more problem that reflects badly on us all.
R
>Example of legitimate information reporting:
>
>"Afghan authorities say, "kidnappers are the first link in an international
>chain of organised criminality that sees the kidnapped children sold as
>servants and sexual playthings, primarily in Arab countries. Many are
>killed and their body parts sold.""
>
>Subtle, but important distinction.
>
>IRIN is a source I place some faith in, but by nature
>it *is* an international political information outlet of the
>United Nations, and does spin stories to suit the needs
>of the U.N. That means the needs of western interests.
>
>Leigh
>
>----- Original Message ----- From: R
>To: lbo-talk at lbo-talk.org
>Sent: Saturday, September 04, 2004 1:46 AM
>Subject: [lbo-talk] killed and their body parts sold
>
>
>something shrub left out of his acceptance speech.
>
>"Afghan authorities say kidnappers are the first link in an international
>chain of organised criminality that sees the kidnapped children sold as
>servants and sexual playthings, primarily in Arab countries. Many are
>killed and their body parts sold."
>
>R
>
>
>AFGHANISTAN: Child kidnapping on the rise [News]
>
>Afghan authorities in the capital Kabul have said
>that child kidnapping is on the rise. According to Interior Ministry
>officials, at least 200 children have been kidnapped or abducted over the
>past 12 months.
>
>"The Interior Ministry recognises child kidnapping as a serious issue and
>is taking positive steps to stop this crime. We have arrested 100
>kidnappers in two years and this shows the efforts the ministry is
>making," Lutfullah Mashal, spokesman for the Interior Ministry, told IRIN.
>
>The UN's children's agency UNICEF is also working to eradicate the
>problem. "Certainly UNICEF is increasingly concerned at the number of
>reports of child abductions and trafficking in Afghanistan. We take the
>reports seriously and are working closely with our partners in the
>government and at community level to try to reduce the risks to children,"
>UNICEF spokesman Edward Carwardine told IRIN in Kabul on Tuesday.
>
>He said that UNICEF was focusing on both prevention and on the
>reintegration of children who have been intercepted while in the process
>of being trafficked. This has included training for police officers and
>border patrols to raise awareness and understanding of the trafficking
>issue. There has also been training for key government officials.
>
>UNICEF is also working with partners on the ground in areas where
>trafficking has been reported to increase awareness amongst communities
>themselves, through meetings with village elders and local workshops.
>
>The children's agency has also been working with religious leaders and
>community Shurasa (councils) to promote the value of education,
>emphasising that the school is a safe environment for children where the
>risk of abduction was reduced.
>
>Afghan authorities say kidnappers are the first link in an international
>chain of organised criminality that sees the kidnapped children sold as
>servants and sexual playthings, primarily in Arab countries. Many are
>killed and their body parts sold.
>
>"We seriously condemn the kidnapping of children in this war-torn country
>and we will have a session with the justice, foreign and social affairs
>ministries as well as with UNICEF, at which we will call on the government
>to punish the kidnappers," Babrak Zadran of the child rights department of
>the Human Rights Commission told IRIN.
>
>UNICEF, along with the government, is drawing up a National Action Plan to
>combat child trafficking that would cover a range of issues from
>prevention, law enforcement and reintegration of children affected by
>trafficking. The plan is expected to go to the cabinet for final approval
>in June.[Source: IRIN]
>
>Posted on 2004-06-24
>http://acr.hrschool.org/mainfile.php/0180/323/
>
>and
>http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=41467&SelectRegion=Central_Asia&SelectCountry=AFGHANISTAN
>
>
>
>Tuesday, 31 August 2004
>
>Interview: Nangarhar Province Governor On Elections, Drugs, And Security
>By Tanya Goudsouzian
>http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2004/08/e5259719-c880-4bc2-9e16-31b8abc87c89.html
>
>Haji Din Mohammad, a former mujahedin fighter from the Khales faction of
>Hizb-e Islami, became governor of the eastern province of Nangarhar after
>the assassination of his brother, Haji Abdul Qadir, in July 2002. He is
>also the brother of slain commander Abdul Haq. In an exclusive interview
>with RFE/RL in Kabul on 27 August, he talked about "Afghan-style" democracy
>and the need to start rehabilitating opium farmers before they sow seeds
>for the next season.
>
>[...]
>
>RFE/RL: What is the state of security in Nangarhar?
>
>Mohammad: Well, at one point, the kidnapping of young children was a
>problem. They would abduct the children for their kidneys or eyes, for the
>black-market trade of human organs. But in recent months we have worked
>hard to raise awareness across the province so that now people here are
>very vigilant. If they see someone talking to a child in a suspicious
>manner, they would act. Of course, this has resulted in some rather comical
>incidents.... Someone may want to affectionately tease a child on the
>street and bystanders have misinterpreted it as an attempt to abduct the
>child. But all in all the campaign has been successful and such kidnappings
>have been reduced.
>
>RFE/RL: Do you plan to run for the parliamentary elections coming up in six
>months?
>
>Mohammad: There's some time to go for that. Let's now prepare for the
>presidential elections.
>
>-end
>
>
>
>
>___________________________________
>http://mailman.lbo-talk.org/mailman/listinfo/lbo-talk
>___________________________________
>http://mailman.lbo-talk.org/mailman/listinfo/lbo-talk