No, no, no, no, no. There can be no excuse for the debacle created either by design or stupidity by the Baptist group in Haiti that now have been formally charged with kidnapping over 30 children. What could possibly have been running through their minds when they committed this heinous act?
Let's look at the legalities and not being a lawyer only what must be common knowledge will be stated here. To remove a child from the care of the parents or legal guardians of the child without consent is kidnapping. To cross a border with an undocumented child is child trafficking. Most parents would find that if their child had no papers that they would not be allowed to travel internationally with the child. These facts are simple and known to any with any connection to the real world, in fact they should be known to anyone who has read any recent reports from Haiti regarding just this subject. Here are two charges that this group is obviously guilty of doing.
Earlier in the week Haiti's Prime Minister announced that no more adoptions would take place without his expressed consent to prevent just such a thing as this from happening. Concerns in Haiti and around the world were mounting regarding child trafficking as a problem that would be out of control amongst the chaos in the country. The government and registered international aid groups have called for a halt to all movement of out of the country until circumstances allow for a search for parents or relatives inside the country who would be able to care for these children.
Yes, life for children in Haiti is a hell. There is insufficient food, water, shelter and the other most basic necessities of life. But not all of these children are orphans. And those that have a family still struggling to put their lives together may prefer to stay with their Mum and Dad or other relative. All children and all of the members of their families deserve much better than what has been left after the earthquake. Removing children from the hopes of reuniting with their family is by no means a solution. What good could possibly be imagined that would arise from stealing these children, removing them from the possibility of ever being reunited with their loved ones and dumping them in a country that speaks a language they do not understand?
Let's look at the criminals. Is this group a registered internationally recognized aid agency? Does the group have a history of successfully rescuing orphans and finding ideal adoption placements for them? Are any of the group medical or psychological professionals able to aid and succor the children in this time of great stress that the children are naturally feeling? Does the group have a registered orphanage within the country the children were being taken to? Is the group recognized as an even ad hoc charity or aid organization at any level of the government in the country of the group's origin?
And why were only 33 children kidnapped? Could no more be crammed into the bus to be saved? Were there only 33 free bedrooms in the 'orphanage'? Did the kidnappers think that they would only be able to control 3.3 children each? Or was it the symbolism of the number representing the number of years that Jesus was supposedly alive?
Who has checked into the place the children were alleged to be taken? What are the conditions there? Medical resources? School resources? Basic needs resources? Child care resources? Were these things in place? And if so who is responsible for the authorization of the implementation.
Finally, if after some disaster in the groups' home country (USA) some unauthorized, unrecognized, unorganized group of foreigners (perhaps they could be: Hindi, Buddhist, Muslim, or new age Free Thinkers) entered the country with the specific goal of removing children from the possibility of a family reunion, and attempted to take them to a foreign country where the children would not be able to communicate in any way there would be the largest hue and cry amongst the citizenry. Nasty labels would be placed upon these invading child snatchers and demands for long prison sentences would be emblazoned across the entire media.
No. This group whether they acted through idiocy (this can never be termed 'simple ignorance') or by evil design they should and must be punished to the limit of the law. Rest assured that the limit of the law would not satisfy many citizens in the USA if this were happening there.
There are those who will say that this group thought they would help those 33 children. The Rosenbergs thought they were helping humanity, not only in their time but for eternity. The Rosenbergs were executed for trying to help.
by Peter Bracking
No comments:
Post a Comment