10 Americans missionaries charged with kidnapping in haiti

[2ND COMING]

Port-au-Prince, Haiti (CNN) -- Ten Americans who were detained last week while trying to take 33 Haitian children out of the country were charged Thursday with kidnapping children and criminal association, a government official said.

Information Minister Marie Laurence Lassegue's announcement came shortly after the five men and five women left a hearing at the prosecutor's office.

Under Haitian law, anyone accused of kidnapping a child is not eligible for bail.

The Americans -- members of a church group -- got into two vehicles, which were driven back to the jail where they have been held since they were taken into custody. Appearing solemn, they did not respond to questions from reporters. A few sang hymns.

The Americans were turned back Friday as they tried to take the children across the border into the Dominican Republic without proper documentation. They said they were going to house them in a converted hotel in that country and later move them to an orphanage they were building there.

"We can confirm that the 10 American citizens remain in custody in Haiti," said State Department deputy spokesman Gordon Duguid. "We continue to provide appropriate consular assistance and to monitor developments in the legal case."

The Americans have said they were just trying to help the children leave the earthquake-stricken country.

Some of the detained Americans have said they thought they were helping orphans, but their interpreters said Wednesday that they were present when group members spoke with the children's parents. Some parents in a village outside Port-au-Prince said they had willingly given their children over to the Americans, who promised them a better life and who said they could see their children whenever they wanted to.

Government approval is needed for any Haitian child to leave the country, and the group acknowledged that the children had no passports.

Some members of the group belong to the Central Valley Baptist Church in Meridian, Idaho.

P.J. Crowley, a spokesman for the U.S. State Department, has said that U.S. officials have been given unlimited consular access to the Americans and that U.S. and Haitian authorities are "working to try to ascertain what happened [and] the motive behind these people.

"Clearly, there are questions about procedure as to whether they had the appropriate paperwork to move the children," he said Wednesday.

[BodyProSite]

and look at all we have done and are doing for those people down there   fucking ungreatful fucks

[Hereford]

I call BS on all this.

Nobody wants black kids.

[BodyProSite]

I say if thats how they are going to be then america should pull our troops and money and all help from that shit hole  and let them deal with it on their own

[drkaje]

Trying to help doesn't mean you don't have to obey laws.

[BodyProSite]

I didnt say that did I? These people have documented histories of helping children and doing humanitarian work, and this is happening due to some mixed up paperwork. The haitian government is working at the pace of snails to conduct their investigation into it. I bet if America said all of our help was on hold until they finish the investigation, the government would speed it up. My brothers wife is haitian and she even says that what is happening to them is bull shit, and makes the same comments I make.

[Straw Man]

bible thumpers from Idaho = not that bright

wtf are they trying to move kids across borders without proper documentation

what did they expect was going to happen when they got to the border

[BodyProSite]

some of these kids needed medical attention and were without parents or anyone to help them, they were taking them to the dominican rep to recieve med attention and to be tended to until the haitian government found out if their parents were dead or alive

[BodyProSite]

my mother in-law who is haitian and has a house there  says that there are almost as many kids wondering around alone as there is adults in that country, many are ill and need attention but arent aware of their condition cause they are only children and dont know better, these missionaries were just doing what they have done many times in the past, they also make effort to reunite kids with parents. This makes you wonder whats wrong with the haitian government. The people in haiti have been in small groups rallying for the government to let these people take the kids across the boader

[drkaje]

bible thumpers from Idaho = not that bright

wtf are they trying to move kids across borders without proper documentation

what did they expect was going to happen when they got to the border

Papers?! We don't need no stinking papers!!

[BodyProSite]

they did fill out documentation, thats the thing  the papers that were given to them by that government are the ones they filled out, then that same government said that there are missing documents??? wtf,  you would think that they would be greatful that people are wanting to care for these children and get them into hospitals where id can be established, and med treatment can be provided

[2ND COMING]

so we should pack it in because a few stupid fucks thought they could side step the law? na.

[BodyProSite]

Straw who cares what state they are from? or if they read the bible or the coran? what have you done that compares to the humanitarian work these people have done over the years?

[BodyProSite]

they werent trying to side step the law .  it was a simple miscommunication that coulda been settled in a couple hours, instead the haitian government drags their feet for a week conducting a half ass investigation, mean while the same kids that were going to be helped are dieing? dont you get that??

[BodyProSite]

If thats the thanks that Americans that could have stayed home to begin with are going to get, then fuck that government, let them deal with it alone. We have enough problems in America that we can spend time and money on.

[2ND COMING]

they werent trying to side step the law .  it was a simple miscommunication that coulda been settled in a couple hours, instead the haitian government drags their feet for a week conducting a half ass investigation, mean while the same kids that were going to be helped are dieing? dont you get that??

they were bringing these kids in to the D.R. without proper documentation. i.e. passports. What dont you get about that? Did they mean good by it? sure. But it was breaking the law. Case closed. Good luck to them.

[BodyProSite]

Do you expect 10,000 7,8,9 year old kids to be carrying around passports on the slim chance that someone may want to take them to get treatment out of the country?

[BodyProSite]

Way to say ( hey thanks for your help.)