nine American Baptists who were trying to take dozens of Haitian children out of the country will appear in court in Port-au-Prince today after being arrested at the border with the Dominican Republic .
The Baptist Church group did not have proper documents to be able to take 33 children from Haiti.
Haiti's government has suspended international adoptions amid fear that parentless or lost
children are more vbulnerable than ever to child trafficking.
Haiti's Prime Minister said the Americans could face serious charges " we did not arrest Americans, we arrested kidnappers".

Sure, that 18 year old girl really looks like a human slave owner/seller!




Websites of both Central Valley Baptist Church in Meridian and Eastside Baptist Church in Twin Falls posted statements saying 10 members of a church team held since Jan. 29 on charges of human trafficking were "falsely arrested" and the result of a "misunderstanding."

Clint Henry, pastor of the 890-member Central Valley church, the largest Southern Baptist church in Idaho, spent much of his weekend in media interviews insisting his church members did not intend to do anything wrong.

"The intent of our group being down there is exactly the opposite of the kind of thing that is being reported," Henry said on CBS News. "We were not trying to traffic children. We were simply trying to minister to a desperate situation there in that country. We had a facility that could be used to do that temporarily, so we went down there with the very best of intentions, and it's very unfortunate at the way things have turned out."

The Utah-Idaho Southern Baptist Convention issued a statement Feb. 1 describing Central Valley as a "missions-minded church" that has involved numerous members in mission trips around the world and Henry as "one of our finest pastors."

"We have no doubt that the mission team had nothing but the best intentions for the children of Haiti," Rob Lee, executive director of the two-state convention, said in the statement.

Lee said the state convention did not organize the mission trip but encourages churches and mission teams to work through channels including the state convention and the Southern Baptist Convention's North American and International mission boards.

An itinerary of the mission trip posted on the Eastside Baptist Church website said the team was working with New Life Children's Refuge, a non-profit Christian ministry incorporated last November by Laura Silsby, founder and CEO of an online shopping site PersonalShopper.com. The ministry's stated purpose is to rescue and care for impoverished and abandoned orphans in Haiti and the Dominican Republic and to provide "opportunities for adoption into a loving Christian family."

Silsby, 40, is one of five members of Central Valley Baptist Church detained over the weekend at judicial police headquarters in Haiti's capital. Three members of Eastside Baptist Church being held included Paul Thompson, 43, the church's pastor since 2001, and his son, Silas. The remaining two team members are Drew Culberth, youth pastor at Bethel Baptist Church in Topeka, Kan., and Jim Allen of Amarillo, Texas, Thompson's cousin. One of the 10, Charisa Coulter, 24, of Boise, who is a diabetic, was taken to a hospital Sunday after nearly fainting but the following day was reported to be doing well.

According to the mission-trip itinerary, New Life Children's Refuge has been in the process of buying land and building an orphanage, school and church in Magante on the northern coast of the Dominican Republic. After the earthquake the group decided not to wait until the permanent facility is built and leased a 45-room hotel in nearby Cabarete to be used as a temporary orphanage in the meantime.

The group's goal was to drive a bus from Santo Domingo to Port-au-Prince on Jan. 23 and gather 100 orphans from the street and collapsed orphanages and return to the Dominican Republic. They managed to round up only 33 children, and they were stopped at the border for not having the proper paperwork to take them out of the country.

At first group members thought it was not a big deal, and one of them returned to Port-au-Prince to get the last of the documentation. The next thing contacts in the United States heard, the entire group was under arrest.

Haitian Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive called the U.S. Baptists "kidnappers," and Yves Christallin, Haiti's social affairs and labor minister, said they were suspected of being part of an illegal adoption scheme.

(The Haitian gov. - such as it is - is acting in a cavalier manner and playing with lives. While they focus the world's attention on serious Christians the real human slavers are going free - with gov. support via bribes)


Trafficking of Haitian children for domestic servitude was a problem even before the earthquake, but those concerns have only magnified amid growing fears that foreigners would attempt to exploit the most vulnerable quake victims. As a result, Haiti's government has suspended all foreign adoptions that weren't already being processed prior to the quake, and ruled that no new adoptions can take place without express permission from the prime minister.


(Like that idiot, that fool, has time to go through the papers of 400,000 orphans? What a nut case. No wonder Haiti was and is a lost cause!)


The US Embassy in Haiti sent consular officials, who met the detained Americans and gave them bug spray and field rations, according to Sean Lankford of Meridian, Idaho, whose wife and 18-year-old daughter were being held.

"They have to go in front of a judge on Monday," Lankford told the Associated Press.

"There are allegations of child trafficking and that really couldn't be farther from the truth," he added. The children "were going to get the medical attention they needed. They were going to get the clothes and the food and the love they need to be healthy and to start recovering from the tragedy that just happened."



But in Haiti, a long tradition of foreign military intervention coupled with the earthquake that destroyed much of the capital and plunged it even deeper into poverty, have made this issue even more emotionally charged. Of 20 Haitian parents interviewed in a tent camp by the AP on Sunday, only one said she would not give up her children to give them a chance at a better life.

"Some parents I know have already given their children to foreigners," said Adonis Helman, 44. "I've been thinking how I will choose which one I may give."

"My parents died in the earthquake. My husband has gone. Giving up one of my kids would at least give them a chance," said Saintanne Petit-Frere, 40, a mother of six. "My only fear is that they would forget me, but that wouldn't affect my decision."

Haiti's overwhelmed government has halted all adoptions unless they were in motion before the earthquake amid fears that parentless or lost children are more vulnerable than ever to being seized and sold. Sex trafficking has been rampant in Haiti. Prime Minister Max Bellerive's personal authorization is now required for the departure of any child.

GP:

If that is the case, let us hope that the judge finds the evidence in their favor and there is a good outcome for all when the dust settles, but dont blame the Haitians police for doing their job.

All seems a bit far fetched. Church ministers charge adoptive parents high fees - quite a business for these 'ministers' involved in the inter-country adoption business.
Hope those organiising this scheme to take advantge of the situation get a jail term or a high fine. If they really want to help children give money or goods to the Red Cross.
S.

The Baptist pastors in the USA (part of a denomination) are under close watch in terms of their finances.

The Red Cross is great (started by a Christian) but obviously can not do it all so you are quite wrong!

Giving is the easy ARM CHAIR response (appreciated mind you) but these people - MOST of them NOT PASTORS - gave up a lot and paid a lot to go and hel

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[QUOTE=Glimmertwin]
GP:

If that is the case, let us hope that the judge finds the evidence in their favor and there is a good outcome for all when the dust settles, but dont blame the Haitians police for doing their job.


[/QUOTE]
All seems a bit far fetched. Church ministers charge adoptive parents high fees - quite a business for these 'ministers' involved in the inter-country adoption business.
Hope those organiising this scheme to take advantge of the situation get a jail term or a high fine. If they really want to help children give money or goods to the Red Cross.
S.

[/QUOTE]

The Baptist pastors in the USA (part of a denomination) are under close watch in terms of their finances.

The Red Cross is great (started by a Christian) but obviously can not do it all so you are quite wrong!

Giving is the easy ARM CHAIR response (appreciated mind you) but these people - MOST of them NOT PASTORS - gave up a lot and paid a lot to go and hel[p these kids. What is happening to them is WRONG!
[/QUOTE]
Yes, I appreciate there are saints and sinners. And the baptists in my experience have a fair measure of both.
But in todays world someone graduating out of expensive training to be a minister is not subject to temptation?
With sufficient funds an organisation properly respected by all governments given the funds can do much more than sectarian baptist bigots.
Take a look at the Red Cross charter - nothing about inter-country adoptions.
http://www.redcross.org/images/pdfs/charter.pdf
Does inter-country adoption help the desparate situation of the Haitians - I don't think so. What is needed is good agriculture, stable jobs paying decent wages, education of the Haitans to be doctors, nurses etc. and work in their own country not bribed by Americans to work saving 80 year old rich geriatrics in the US.
So the US baptists queue at Wal-Mart to buy the cheapest clothes and then adopt a trophy child to show off their neighbors.
Yes, the 'pastor/salesman' made the sale and organised the trip. But are you sure he doesn't get a 1/4 million dollar salary like some baptist pastors?
Americans spend their billions of doallars in Sin City and spend 22 billion dollars on the George Bush Aircraft carrier. This is the reality of the evil empire. Meltdown is happening - good!
What the hell does the average pastor in Columbia spend his average 80,000 dollar salery on - living like JC, buying loaves and fish for the poor - I don't think so in general! Haitians make 2 dollars a day!
http://www.baptistpress.org/bpnews.asp?ID=23433
So what is with your stupid post - arrest the charlatains and fine them heavily!
Jer 23:14 I have seen also in the prophets of Jerusalem an horrible thing: they commit adultery, and walk in lies: they strengthen also the hands of evildoers, that none doth return from his wickedness: they are all of them unto me as Sodom, and the inhabitants thereof as Gomorrah.
Yes people love false phrophets for sure!
Jer 5:31 The prophets prophesy lies, the priests rule by their own authority, and my people love it this way. But what will you do in the end?
S.



S.

You sound like a typical forum ignorant ass!




Every forum has to have a few. Rather than respond to your folly I will allow you to go on displaying your ignorance for all to see ...and I am sure you will be happy to oblige! Post away and go on proving us right in our take on you!

So I take it that you are one of these mean selfish people who does not give money to the Red Cross to help the children of Haiti? And you laugh at people who do?
What goes around comes around!
Put 50 dollars in your pastors collection plate so he can buy a new SUV.
Galatians 6:7: "Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap."
You are a crazy poster!
You will be telling me you have an 80,000 dollar a year job as a pastor! Good on you!
S.

See, I knew we could count on you! Thanks for proving my point, as you will again and again!