The Child Protection eNewsletter

U.S. warns Germany over sexual trafficking…
The United States accused 12 nations Monday of failing to do enough to stop the modern-day slave trade in prostitutes, child sex slaves and forced laborers and warned key ally Germany that it should do more to stop an expected tide of trafficking for sexual exploitation during the upcoming World Cup. http://www.cbsnews.com "The U.S. government opposes prostitution," a State Department report on global human trafficking said. "These activities are inherently harmful and dehumanizing." According to some estimates, thousands of foreign women, many from Eastern Europe, will engage in sex work in Germany during the four-week tournament that begins Friday. The United States called Germany a "source, transit and destination country" for sex workers and other exploited people. The 2006 Trafficking in Persons Report still gave Germany its highest overall rating for compliance with efforts to stop trafficking and noted German efforts to combat exploitation during the World Cup. Congressman Christopher Smith (R-N.J.), Chairman of the House subcommittee on global human rights, urged Germany last month to recriminalize prostitution and suggested that it should be reclassified as an "egregious violator" of human trafficking. http://www.foxnews.com

The 2006 Trafficking in Persons Report is available online at http://www.state.gov Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice called trafficking in persons “a form of modern-day slavery”, and noted that “we strive for its total abolition.” http://www.state.gov She also said that “future generations will not excuse those who turn a blind eye to it."

“Road Rage” and spousal abuse blamed on “Intermittent Explosive Disorder”…
A new study by the National Institute of Mental Health suggests that road rage, temper outbursts that involve throwing or breaking objects and even spousal abuse can sometimes be attributed to the disorder, though not everyone who does those things is afflicted. http://www.cbsnews.com By definition, intermittent explosive disorder involves multiple outbursts that are way out of proportion to the situation. These angry outbursts often include threats or aggressive actions and property damage. The disorder typically first appears in adolescence; in the study, the average age of onset was 14. The study was based on a national face-to-face survey of 9,282 U.S. adults. About 5 percent to 7 percent of the nationally representative sample had had the disorder, which would equal up to 16 million Americans. The average number of lifetime attacks per person was 43, resulting in $1,359 in property damage per person. About 4 percent had suffered recent attacks. The findings were released Monday in the June issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry. http://archpsyc.ama-assn.org

In other news...
Researchers reported the use of potent antipsychotic drugs to treat children and adolescents for problems like aggression and mood swings increased more than fivefold from 1993 to 2002. http://www.nytimes.com The researchers, who analyzed data from a national survey of doctors' office visits, found that antipsychotic medications were prescribed to 1,438 per 100,000 children and adolescents in 2002, up from 275 per 100,000 in the two-year period from 1993 to 1995.

Top U.S. law enforcement officials have told Internet companies in a meeting Friday they must retain customer records longer to help in child pornography and terrorism investigations, and they are considering asking Congress to require preservation of records, possibly for two years. http://www.msnbc.msn.com Colorado Congressman Diane DeGette (D-CO) had already introduced legislation to require record retention for one year. http://energycommerce.house.gov "The goal is to help law enforcement identify perpetrators when evidence is discovered connecting an account to the production and/or distribution of child pornography," she said. "Law enforcement agencies are desperate for more technological assistance in their work to eradicate the trade of online child sexual abuse." The amendment, which was cosponsored by Wisconsin Congressman James Sensenbrenner (R-WI), was withdrawn while an attempt was made to reach agreement with the ISPs. http://www.internetnews.com

About 17 percent of college students say that they have cut, burned, carved or harmed themselves in other ways, according to a survey of 3,069 U.S. students. http://www.upi.com A survey by researchers at Cornell and Princeton universities found of the 20 percent of women and 14 percent of men who reported self-injurious behavior, less than 7 percent of the students studied had ever sought medical help for their self-inflicted physical injuries. The study appears in this month’s issue of Pediatrics, released Monday. http://pediatrics.aappublications.org


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