Adult services censored on Craigslist, Children among 100s raped in Congo, U.N. says

Adult services censored on Craigslist By the CNN Wire Staff
September 4, 2010 (CNN) — Embattled online classified service Craigslist apparently made a change to its website early Saturday, censoring its adult services section. The section that usually reads “adult services” was replaced by the word “censored.” It was not immediately clear whether Craigslist removed the adult services and replaced them with the “censored” section that had a link that was not active. But for users who accessed the account outside the U.S., the erotic services link was still active. Craigslist representatives were not immediately available for comment. The website has been under fire for allegations that it promotes prostitution. Last week, attorneys general in 17 states banded together to urge Craigslist to discontinue its adult services. “The increasingly sharp public criticism of Craigslist’s Adult Services section reflects a growing recognition that ads for prostitution — including ads trafficking children — are rampant on it,” the attorneys general said in a Tuesday letter to Craigslist CEO Jim Buckmaster and Founder Craig Newmark.
http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/09/04/craigslist.censored/index.html?iref=NS1

Children among hundreds raped in Congo, U.N. says By the CNN Wire Staff September 4, 2010 (CNN) — More than two dozen children were among the hundreds raped by armed rebels in the war-torn eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, the United Nations said.
Twenty-seven minors, including one boy, were among the victims, the U.N. said Friday. One attempted rape was also reported.
The children were among 240 people raped by Rwandan and Congolese rebels who raided villages in North Kivu province between July 30 and August 3, aid groups said. Attackers blocked roads and prevented villagers from reaching outside communications. Many homes were also looted.

Many of the victims were raped by two to six men, according to the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO).
MONUSCO, the United Nations peacekeeping force in the country, raised the number of victims after earlier reports put it at 156.
Since the rapes were first publicly reported on August 22, more victims have come forward, the force said.
http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/africa/09/04/congo.rape.children/index.html

Facebook campaign to expose paedophiles removed, Craigslist, clergy abuse

articles:
Mothers’ group outraged after their Facebook campaign to expose paedophiles is removed from the internet
Attorneys general call for Craigslist to get rid of adult services ads
900 abuse cases in Dutch clergy

Mothers’ group outraged after their Facebook campaign to expose paedophiles is removed from the internet

By Daily Mail Reporter 26th August 2010 Six mothers who set up a campaign group on Facebook to track down and expose online paedophiles have been given a warning and had their page removed from the internet. Leanne Moss, 33, set up the Mommies on a Mission group after claiming she stumbled across Facebook profile pages featuring images of child abuse. The mother-of-four said she created the campaign page to raise awareness and to ensure the offensive profiles were reported. ‘All we were doing was posting links of profiles which featured sick images.’
Group member Joanne Bell, 32, from Carlisle, claimed it didn’t make sense that Mommies on a Mission was removed when what they considered to be ‘sick’ profiles featuring child abuse were still on the site. ‘If they are monitoring us so closely, why can’t they monitor these people?’

The group aimed to prevent a repeat of the murder of Ashleigh Hall, 17, who was groomed online by killer Peter Chapman before she was lured to her death.
Chapman, a convicted sex offender, was jailed for a minimum of 35 years in  March.  Ashleigh’s mother Andrea said Facebook’s decision to shut down Mommies on a Mission was ‘shocking’.
‘They are very quick to shut down people who are trying to do some good for a change.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1306286/Mothers-Facebook-campaign-expose-paedophiles-removed-internet.html

Attorneys general call for Craigslist to get rid of adult services ads By the CNN Wire Staff August 26, 2010 (CNN) — Attorneys general in 17 states have banded together to call on Craigslist, the online classified ad website, to discontinue its adult services section. “The increasingly sharp public criticism of Craigslist’s Adult Services section reflects a growing recognition that ads for prostitution — including ads trafficking children — are rampant on it,” the attorneys general said in a Tuesday letter to Craigslist CEO Jim Buckmaster and founder Craig Newmark. The letter continued: “We recognize that Craigslist may lose the considerable revenue generated by the Adult Services ads. No amount of money, however, can justify the scourge of illegal prostitution, and the suffering of the women and children who will continue to be victimized, in the market and trafficking provided by Craigslist.”

A Craigslist spokeswoman said Wednesday that the site agreed with at least some of the letter.
“We strongly support the attorneys general desire to end trafficking in children and women, through the Internet or by any other means,” Susan MacTavish Best, who handles media inquiries for Craigslist, told CNN Wednesday.  http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/08/25/craigslist.adult.content/index.html

900 abuse cases in Dutch clergy 2010-08-25  The Hague – A Dutch commission set up five months ago to look into suspected sexual abuse by Roman Catholic clergy in the Netherlands said on Wednesday it has received about 900 reports from alleged victims.  “The 900 reports come mainly from victims but also from relatives of the victims who contacted us,” Gert Jan Verhoog, a spokesperson for the commission told AFP….Some members of the clergy accused of abuse gave themselves up to the commission, Verhoog said….At the same time, a Catholic Church committee called Hulp & Recht (Support and Right), tasked with collecting reports from alleged victims, has so far received about 1 600 statements, spokesperson Ben Spekman told AFP. http://www.news24.com/World/News/900-abuse-cases-in-Dutch-clergy-20100825