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Russia restarts trial of Texas man accused of child abuse
By Paul Godfrey
He's 65? Seriously?
Jan. 19 (UPI) -- An American detained in Russia on child abuse charges stemming from a custody dispute with his Russian ex-wife will be back in court Thursday when his trial resumes after a two-month delay.
David Barnes, 65, of Woodlands, Texas, was arrested during a trip to Russia in late 2021 after his Russian-born ex-wife illegally removed their two sons from the United States, alleging Barnes had abused them.
Authorities in Texas investigated Svetlana Koptyaeva's allegations but found no evidence and no charges were filed. Barnes had hoped to secure custody or visitation rights in Russian family court, according to his family, following a Texas judge's 2020 decision to designate Barnes as the sole managing conservator of his children.
But Koptyaeva repeated her allegations to Russian authorities who detained Barnes a month after he arrived in the country.
The trial resumes after a series of false starts due to issues associated with transporting Barnes to the courthouse and the failure of trial participants to show, his family says.
"My hope is that they can actually get him transported to the courthouse and there's no confusion again as to when the trial is scheduled to begin," Carol Barnes, David Barnes' sister, told ABC News. "My real hope is that they dismiss the case, but we know that's not going to happen."
Speaking to the local newspaper, The Courier, Carol Barnes said she had crowdfunded $5,000 to assist her brother.
"You can't live on what they feed you over there," she said, explaining how she sends food to Barnes via his commissary. "He'd be malnourished if he wasn't getting outside help."
Barnes' employer, KBR, a Houston-based engineering firm, has him on administrative leave, continuing to pay for his benefits, his sister said.
"Today's not a good day at all," I just feel like ... I try not to feel hopeless, but you know, it's getting really hard. I have faith and I pray to God. And I am just scared that no matter what, they're going to convict" him.
Barnes' congressman, Rep. Kevin Brady, R-Texas, has previously said Barnes' arrest and detention are political and said he is working with the State Department to bring him home.
Texas authorities filed a felony charge of interference with child custody against Koptyaeva 2 1/2 years ago, after she allegedly violated a court ruling and took the children out of the United States.
Interpol, the International Criminal Police Organization, considers the children to have been missing since Koptyaeva took them out of the country in March 2019.
In December, the Biden administration won the release of WNBA star Brittney Griner from a Russian penal colony by exchanging convicted Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout. Meanwhile, former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan has been in Russian custody since 2018.
Of course, Whelan is just a Marine hero, not a star athlete who happens to be gay. This is how screwed up the Biden government's moral compass is.
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Excellent article on South Africa. Read the whole article on Spiegle Int'l.
Cape Town Women Are Waging War on Gender-Based Violence
In few other places in the world are as many women killed as in South Africa. The country's president has even described it as "war." And it is one that a handful of courageous women are intent on winning.
By Heiner Hoffmann und Lee-Ann Olwage (Photos) in Cape Town
17.01.2023, 15.07 Uhr
Zur Merkliste hinzufügen
For our Global Societies project, reporters around the world will be writing about societal problems, sustainability and development in Asia, Africa, Latin America and Europe. The series will include features, analyses, photo essays, videos and podcasts looking behind the curtain of globalization. The project is generously funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Jehaan Is no Longer
The sun is shining, the buildings are colorful, the lawn is green. Jehaan laughs loudly as she talks to her aunt Tasneem, whom she calls "mother" because Tasneem is raising her. Hearts are emblazoned on the facades, it looks a bit like it could be straight out of an Astrid Lindgren children's story, a peaceful, idyllic place. Only, it's not the reality. Jehaan drew the picture shortly before her death. It was a depiction of how she wanted life to be in Hanover Park, one of Cape Town's most violent neighborhoods. A few days later, she was dead, likely beaten to death with a concrete block. "Unnatural cause of death," her death certificate states. Jehaan was 17.
Tasneem Losper holds a drawing made by her niece Jehaan up to the camera.
Foto: Lee-Ann Olwage / DER SPIEGEL
The drawing of the utopia she wanted now lies folded on a dark brown cabinet, which has become a sort of shrine. The brief notes from Jehaan to her "Ma," written mostly after an argument between the two, are also here. "I'm sorry," is scrawled on one, or: "Please forgive me. I love you." Tasneem Losper holds the letters in her hands, trembling, she is no longer able to hold back the tears. "We lost her," she sobs.
Between April and June alone, 116 women were murdered in the Western Cape Province in South Africa, more than one per day, in addition to 159 attempted femicides. After years of slightly declining homicide rates, the numbers are now ticking up again. The president of South Africa has said the country finds itself in the midst of a "war" against women and children. There have been emergency meetings, high-level talks and action plans. But Jehaan Petersen lived in this war, and for her, all that came too late.
Western Cape, SA
‘No one wants to talk to us’: victims of child sexual abuse
from Victoria state schools fight for justice
‘We believe you, we support you,’ Daniel Andrews said after George Pell’s death,
but those abused in the state’s government schools are still waiting for an apology
‘We’ve been trying to get some sort of recognition for what we’ve been through for months and months
and haven’t received it,’ Glen Fearnett says. Photograph: Ellen Smith/The Guardian
Glen Fearnett who was a victim of sexual abuse as a child is speaking about historic child sexual abuse in Victorian public schools.
Benita Kolovos
Fri 20 Jan 2023 14.00 GMT
The Guardian
Following the death of George Pell, Victoria’s premier, Daniel Andrews, issued a message to victims of child sexual abuse that was widely praised: “We see you, we believe you, we support you.”
But this hasn’t been the experience of Glen Fearnett, who has been fighting for recognition from the government for the abuse he says he and other children suffered at the hands of paedophile teachers at state schools in the 1970s.
During Fearnett’s time at Beaumaris primary school, in Melbourne’s south-eastern suburbs, it is believed three teachers on staff were abusing children. The number of former students coming forward is still rising, with police currently investigating allegations.
Despite this, the government and department of education have never publicly apologised to victims. Instead, it has pursued what has been described as an “aggressive” defence of civil claims, dragging out proceedings and upsetting victims in the process.
“I absolutely 100% support the sentiment of the [premier’s] statement but it was frustrating, as we’ve been trying to get some sort of recognition for what we’ve been through for months and months and haven’t received it,” Fearnett told Guardian Australia.
“We’ve been trying for a very long time with pretty much no response. Silence.
“No one wants to talk to us.”
Read the rest of this story at The Guardian Australia.
Man jailed for nine years for historic child sexual abuse
by Cumbria Crack
20/01/2023
A man – extradited from Cyprus to answer for his crimes – has been jailed for nine years for a string of child sex offences committed decades ago in Cumbria.
Rodney Savage, 69, of no fixed address, was sentenced at Carlisle Crown Court after pleading guilty at an earlier hearing to:
Three counts of indecent assault of a girl under the age of 14
Two counts of gross indecency with a girl under the age of 14
One count of assault a girl under 13 by touching
Savage’s offending came to light after police received a report in November 2019.
Extensive enquiries were carried out by detectives to identify and speak with victims and witnesses. The enquiries established the scale of Savage’s abuse, which was committed over a period spanning the mid-1980s to the early 2000s in the Carlisle area.
Investigating officer, Detective Constable Lisa Atkinson, said: “Both women have been incredibly brave in reporting what happened to them and they deserve huge credit.
“Our enquiries uncovered the scale of abuse of which Savage carried out over a period spanning almost two decades.
“When interviewed, Savage continually denied that he sexually abused these women when they were children. He has shown no remorse whatsoever for his crimes.
“I hope that this sentencing sends a clear message to survivors of sexual abuse, we are here to investigate what has happened and bring offenders to justice.
“No matter how long ago an incident occurred, we will do all we can to identify offenders and hold them to account. In this case we applied for Savage to be extradited from Cyprus so we could interview him and subsequently secure convictions.
“Together with trusted partner agencies, we can provide you with tailored support that continues throughout the length of our enquiries. If you are a victim of sexual abuse, please do not suffer in silence.”
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