In incercarea de a ascunde adevarul sau de a minimaliza seriozitatea problemei, politia si autoritatile au acuzat (din nou) reprezentantii mass-media straine ca mint, ca incearca sa manjeasca imaginea Romaniei, ca sunt vanduti "agenturilor" si actioneaza -- evident -- la ordinul marsavului lobby pro-adoptie bla... bla... ---------------------------- Vali "Noble blood is an accident of fortune; noble actions are the chief mark of greatness." (Carlo Goldoni) "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace." (Jimi Hendrix) Aboneaza-te la <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> ngo_list: o alternativa moderata (un pic) la [ngolist] Please consider the environment - do you really need to print this email? http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/feb/20/itv.television?gusrc=rss <blocked::http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/feb/20/itv.television?gusrc=r ss&feed=media> &feed=media ITN stands by sex slave report Michael Leidig and <blocked::http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/taraconlan> Tara Conlan <blocked::http://www.guardian.co.uk/> guardian.co.uk, Wednesday February 20 2008 <blocked::http://www.guardian.co.uk/history/332506140> Article history . <blocked::http://www.guardian.co.uk/contactus/332506140> Contact us
ITN is standing by a News at Ten special investigation into underage sex slave traders in Romania after a woman featured in the report claimed she had been kidnapped by a British journalist. The broadcaster believes it is caught in the crossfire between Romanian authorities battling to stop sex trafficking and other officials in the east European state who insist the issue is not a problem. In a story that ran on ITV at the end of last month, the award-winning ITN journalist Chris Rogers described how he bought a 14-year-old from sex slave traders at a petrol station in Iasi, a town in north-east Romania. After Rogers bought her he took her to a shelter and she was given clothes and seen by a doctor. The story, for ITV1's ITN-produced News at Ten, was picked up in the Daily Mail's Night and Day magazine and also by international news channel CNN. Following the coverage, Romanian police investigated the case and interviewed the teenage girl, Monica Ghinga. However, to the surprise of ITN and Rogers, the police then claimed to local news reporters that the girl was in fact aged 25 and that she had been kidnapped. ITN has said it has identification papers which show she is a minor. Despite the claims by the police, the broadcaster has not been contacted by any Romanian authorities, nor has Rogers been interviewed, asked to make a statement or provide any footage that was not broadcast. In another twist, the police have told the charity that looked after Monica before she was interviewed by officers that she has now disappeared and that they do not know where to find her. A spokeswoman for the charity, Reaching Out, said: "We don't believe she is 25 - she was around 15, though she said to us she was 16. "She was at our shelter for about two weeks. She should not have been on the streets, she is a minor. We did not force her to stay and bought her a train ticket when she wanted to leave and work as a babysitter." The spokeswoman added: "We spoke to her two days after she left. But after the reports about her age came out, we tried to contact her again and have been told by the police they don't know where she is - even though she is supposed to be a witness." A number of Romanian newspapers have backed ITN's Rogers and condemned the local police. An article in Romania Libera on February 8 said Rogers was "the victim yet again of the Romanian government and police who refuse to accept his claims in the face of criticism". "Instead they accuse him of being paid by adoption campaigners to make false films to encourage adoptions to be allowed - as well as [reporting about] trafficking they fail to point out that Rogers has also reported on the many children who have disappeared from Romania, some only three years old," Romania Libera reported. The kidnapping allegation came from Iasi police spokesman Madalin Soranu, who claimed: "We have identified the girl featured in this report as Monica Ghinga, a 25-year-old prostitute, who claims she was kidnapped by the British journalist shortly after they had offered her 800 euros for sex. "Monica is actually 25 and pretended to be 14 during her negotiations for sexual favours with the British journalist." Soranu added: "We opened the investigation because we wanted to see if it was really human trafficking. Monica Ghinga has claimed she was kidnapped and taken by force to Pitesti by the British man." However, Iasi police have not contacted ITN about the allegations, nor have they asked for any statements from Rogers and his team. An ITN spokeswoman said: "We have not been contacted by the Romanian police and none of these allegations have been put to us. ITV News fully stands by the story - it was fair, accurate and in the public interest." . To contact the MediaGuardian newsdesk email <blocked::mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> [EMAIL PROTECTED] or phone 020 7239 9857. For all other inquiries please call the main Guardian switchboard on 020 7278 2332. . If you are writing a comment for publication, please mark clearly "for publication". guardian.co.uk C Guardian News and Media Limited 2008
