Human Trafficking Rings Busted in New York, Call Attention to National Issue

By Mark O’Brien
Impunity Watch Reporter, North America

WASHINGTON, United States — New York State Police announced on Thursday they arrested nine people connected to a sex trafficking operation in upstate New York involving a minor.

Colorado authorities fear Kara Nichols, 19, may have fallen to sex trafficking while attending a modeling gig in Denver last month. (Photo Courtesy of The Daily News)

After a nine-month investigation, Troopers charged Lynette Tilden of Utica, Edward Tilden of Orwell, and Alexandria Davall of Utica with felony trafficking.  Troopers said the Tildens—25- and 30-years-old, respectively—used an online classifieds website called Backpage.com to advertise in the Northeast for sex with the victim.  Police did not describe the role Davall, 23, played in the operation.

Troopers also charged two men from the Utica area with rape, two others with endangering the welfare of a child, and two others with a criminal sex act.  Investigators did not release the age of the victim.

The bust came a little more than a week after New York City Police and the New York Attorney General’s Office announced the break-up for a $7 million, three-state prostitution and money laundering ring.  On Nov. 20, authorities arrested more than a dozen people and rescued two human trafficking victims.

A 16-month investigation into Somad Enterprises Inc. revealed it operated a “one-stop shopping vehicle for prostitution rings,” authorities described.  The ad agency created listings for escort services on television and websites, including Backpage.com.

The 180-count indictment charged 19 people and one corporation with enterprise corruption, money laundering, and prostitution, among other crimes.  So far, only 17 of those indicted have been arrested, and each faces up to 25 years in prison.  Reuters reported three prostitution clients also were charged.

These arrests highlighted a growing concern about sex trafficking in other parts of the United States, as well.  In Colorado, investigators said an aspiring model who disappeared last month may have fallen victim to trafficking.

Kara Nichols, 19, was last seen on Oct. 9 when she went to a modeling gig in Denver.  But according to an El Paso County Sheriff’s Office bulletin obtained by KKTV, investigators feared she became trapped in a sort of front for a modeling business.

A search of modeling and fashion websites authorities believe Nichols visited involved drugs and prostitution, according to police.

“Someone that has big dreams with limited resources sometimes turn to the internet,” Lt. Jeff Kramer said in an interview with the Daily News.  He hoped someone who knows something might come forward to shed light on what happened to Nichols.

Dangers like those that may have befallen Nichols have prompted the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors to pass a motion to investigate sex trafficking.

County officials said the majority of youths arrested on prostitution charges in LA County are from the foster care system. Supervisor Michael Antonovich cited FBI and U.S. Department of Justice data showing the average entry age into prostitution in 12-years-old, and that participation lasts seven years.

For further information, please see:

The Corning Leader — Police: Upstate NY Sex Trafficking Ring Broken Up — 29 November 2012

The Huffington Post — LA Teen Prostitutes Come from Foster Homes a Majority of the Time, County Says — 28 November 2012

The Daily News — Missing Model May Be Victim of Colorado Sex Traffickers: Authorities — 26 November 2012

The Chicago Tribune — Human Trafficking Victims Freed in U.S. Prostitution Bust — 20 November 2012

Region of South Sudan in State of Humanitarian Emergency

By Ryan Aliman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

 JUBA, South Sudan – The Jonglei area of South Sudan is currently in a state of humanitarian emergency due to the ongoing ethnic bloodshed, according to international aid group, Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) or Doctors Without Borders.

 

Villagers from Jonglei return to their homes after escaping the ongoing violence in the region. (Photo courtesy of Robin Meldrum/MSF)

In a report published on Tuesday, the MSF called attention to the “devastating impact” of the ongoing violence on the lives and health of tens of thousands of people living in South Sudan’s Jonglei state.

The MSF special report, “South Sudan’s Hidden Crisis”, noted that civilians have become targets of attacks that are mainly caused by inter-communal, cattle rustling, fighting between government and rebels and a government disarmament process.

Based on the findings of the MSF, women and children make up more than 50 percent of the gunshot injury victims treated by the MSF teams. One of their patients recalled her experience last March where she witnessed children thrown into a fire. “If the child can run, they will shoot them with the gun; if they are small and cannot run, they will kill them with a knife,” she told the humanitarian agency. Children as young as four months old are among the victims, according to the report.

Cases of violence are also likely to increase as the dry season approaches.

“What we are seeing is an emergency; the lives and health of Jungle’s population are hanging by a thread. The dry season is now upon us, making movement around the area possible again, and we fear a further spike in violence, injury and displacement,” said Chris Lockyear, the MSF’s Operational Manager.

The violent clashes between South Sudan army, the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) and a militia group in Jonglei have also caused massive displacement and insecurity in the region. Entire communities fled their homes to escape the conflict and to seek refuge in safer towns. Due to lack of shelter, food and safe drinking water, however, they have become susceptible to diseases like malaria, pneumonia, malnutrition and diarrhea.

Another problem pointed out by the MSF report is that healthcare facilities have likewise been targeted. Hospitals and clinics are usually looted and destroyed.

As it highlighted the gravity of the humanitarian crisis Jonglei’s population faces, the MSF called on the South Sudan government, the UN, donors and other humanitarian organizations for support “to ensure that there is adequate emergency response capacity.”

“Today we are sharing the medical consequences as our teams see them on the ground,” added Lockyear. “Jonglei is in the grip of an emergency. MSF remains committed to providing neutral and impartial healthcare in Jonglei, however we fear there may be even more medical needs among people who cannot reach our clinics – due to sheltering in the bush or for fear of travelling to seek care. MSF calls on all armed groups to respect medical humanitarian facilities and staff.”

 

For further information, please see:

All Africa – South Sudan: Juba Unveils Water Project to Mitigate Conflicts in Jonglei – 28 November 2012

All Africa – South Sudan: Silent Violence of Hidden Crisis in Jonglei – 27 November 2012

CBS News – Aid group raises concern on South Sudan violence – 27 November 2012

Doctors Without Borders – South Sudan: Displacement and Destruction of Health Facilities in Jonglei State – 27 November 2012

Doctors Without Borders – South Sudan’s Hidden Crisis – 26 November 2012

 

At Least 50 Injured by Riot Police in a protest over a Copper Mine in Myanmar

By Irving Feng
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

YANGON, Myanmar – Riot police used violence to disperse protestors in the town of Monywa located in the northwestern district of Sagaing, injuring at least 50 individuals.

An injured monk gets aid for his burns caused by the riot police. (Photo Courtesy of The Guardian)

Roughly 1,000 protestors, including local monks, gathered in a camp in Monywa to oppose a copper mining venture jointly operated by a subsidiary of the prominent weapons manufacturer, China North Industries Corp, and the military-owned, Union of Myanmar Economic Holdings Ltd.

The protestors alleged that the proposed billion dollar expansion of the copper mining venture was illegally usurping more than 7,800 acres of land.  Local farmers protesting the current expansion complained that they were forced to swallow an undesirable deal only two years prior when they gave up their land in exchange for new housing and cash compensation.

The riot police arrived early in the morning, around 3 a.m., and opened fire on the camp inhabitants with water cannons, tear gas and incendiary devices, or “phosphorous bombs.”  Some protestors suffered severe burns from the incendiary devices and, as they took off their burning clothes, fires started all across the camp.

Zaw Htay, a spokesperson for President Thein Sein’s office, denied any use of incendiary devices against the protestors and stated only water cannons, tear gas and smoke bombs were used to disperse camp inhabitants.

Some of the injured, many of them monks, have taken refuge in a nearby village to nurse their burns and other injuries suffered at the hands of Myanmar’s riot police.  The injured reported that there were no ambulances to take them to nearby hospitals, other emergency medical response measures, or doctors to help care for their burns.

Disputes over land usurpation, like the one presented in the expansion of the copper mining venture, has been a growing problem in Myanmar, especially after the central government under Thein Sein has relaxed the laws governing individuals’ rights to protest.

Prominent Burmese politician and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Aung San Suu Kyi, has offered her services to ensure a peaceful resolution to the current conflict between the interests of the joint mining venture and local land owners.

Aung San Suu Kyi has already met with the companies behind the mining venture and desires to meet with the thousands of protestors and local land owners to ensure better cooperation between the conflicting parties.

The hiccup in the mining venture’s progress has caused the Chinese media to characterize the ordeal as a losing situation for the Chinese interests involved.  The Chinese media has also gone as far as to blame Western interests as the cause for the unrest and stall in the project, claiming that only third party Western interests will benefit from the current result.

For further information, please see:

BBC – Burmese police break up copper mine protest – 29 November 2012

The Guardian – Burma: riot police move in to break up copper mine protest – 29 November 2012

Reuters – Riot police move in to end Myanmar copper mine protest – 29 November 2012

The Telegraph – Burma copper mine protest broken up by riot police – 29 November 2012

Democratic Voice of Burma – Hundreds protest against Burma copper mine – 21 November 2012

Protests Over Detentions Lead to More Detentions in Saudi Arabia

By Justin Dorman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – On Tuesday about fifteen men, twenty-two women, and eight children were detained for participating in a protest just outside the Human Rights Commission in Saudi Arabia’s capital of Riyadh. The women and children were let go that day, however, the men are still being held by the Saudi Arabian security forces.

Saudi Arabia’s religious leader, the grand mufti, believes that protests are nothing more than danger that can only bring chaos. (Photo Courtesy of Ahlul Bayt News Agency)

The participants of the peaceful protest claimed that its purpose was to criticize the states improper treatment of their detained relatives. They congregated outside of the Human Rights Commission hoping to be heard by the body because no other Saudi Arabian authority would previously listen to their complaints or attempt to resolve the dispute. The protestors’ complaints centered around two main issues concerning their detained relatives. Some cited inadequate medical care for detainees was a source of frustration. One woman claimed that her husband had been urinating blood for six months without ever receiving medical assistance.

Many others were protesting the complete lack of basis under which their relatives were being detained. Mohammed Al-Qahtani, a human rights activist and board member of the Saudi Civil and Political Rights Association, described the protests as demonstrations by family members for prisoners who have been, “languishing in jail cells without due process” for years.

One woman said that her husband has been held against his will for twelve years despite being found innocent at trial. Others claimed that their relatives were being held captive despite never being charged or put on trial. As a result of their protests, the demonstrators became detainees themselves. Only after the women and children signed a document stating that they would not protest again otherwise they would face punishments if they did, were they eventually released.

The grand mufti, Sheikh Abdul Aziz bin Abdullah al-Sheikh, has condemned the use of protests claiming that they are used by, “enemies to spread chaos.” He also states that to protest is inherently anti-Islamic. The grand mufti purports that Islam promotes dialogue, while protests promote nothing more than danger.

As an Islamic religious leader, Sheikh Abdul Aziz bin Abdullah al-Sheikh is adamantly against the Arab Spring uprisings which have taken place across the Middle East for the past couple of years. He sees protests and demonstrations as a chief reason that four Islamic autocratic regimes were ousted from their positions of power. As a result, it is illegal to partake in a protest or demonstration in Saudi Arabia.

For further information, please see:

Daily Times – Saudi Grand Mufti Slams Protests as Anti-Islamic – 29 November 2012

Ahlul Bayt News Agency – Saudi Grand Mufti Condemns Protests and Blames Iran for Unrest Among Shiite Muslims – 28 November 2012

Amnesty International – Saudi Arabia Must Release or Charge Detained Peaceful Protesters – 28 November 2012

CNN – Saudis Protest for Release of Political Prisoners, Activist Says – 27 November 2012

Reuters – Saudi Authorities Detain Families at Rights Prtoest – 27 November 2012