There was a story on LifeSite News on Wednesday Man Behind Effort to Legalize Abortion in Nicaragua Gets 30 Years for Step-Daughter's Rape. A correspondent has kindly pointed out to me that this is the same man who was cast as a pro-choice hero on the notorious BBC programme "Sex in the Holy City", broadcast in 2003 (BBC transcript ) I mentioned David Kerr's study of this programme earlier this year (Can we trust the BBC - 1). SPUC attacked the BBC's misleading reporting and bias and Fiorella Sultana de Maria (now Nash) - pictured left - delivered a copy of their report Bias and the BBC.In one part of the programme, Steve Bradshaw looks at Nicaragua where abortion is illegal, and casts Cardinal Miguel Obando Y Bravo as the baddie who is influencing the government to retain the law. Then the underdogs are introduced:
But earlier this year one family took the cardinal on, provoking a national row that split Nicaragua and capture the headlines for months. Maria and Francisco's daughter, Rosa, not her real name, had been raped and was pregnant. At the time she was just 8. When we met in the capital Managua, Francisco and Maria, both Catholics, told me why they decided to seek an abortion for Rosa, despite the opposition of the church.Then the girl's "father" (in fact her step-father) is given a chance to speak for himself:
FRANCISCOBradshaw adds an editorial voice in case we have not got the message fully.
Rosa's father
Well I did feel very bad about what the church was thinking, and then I said to hell with the church. I don’t want to have anything to do with the ministers or priests in the church, I don’t want to know.
"BRADSHAW: Defeat, this time, for the Cardinal. For many in Nicaragua Rosa's parents have become heroes, an ordinary couple defying the church and making a stand for women's rights. Others in Nicaragua are also defying the ban on abortion."Unfortunately for the BBC's portrayal of Rosa's father, Francisco Fletes Sanchez, as the pro-choice hero, it now turns out that he was in fact the man who raped her. He has been convicted and sentenced to 30 years in prison for his crimes. He was in fact on the run at the time, having escaped from Costa Rica to Nicaragua.
The parents did arrange a clandestine abortion in Nicaragua for their daughter with the help of the Women's Network Against Violence, a pro-abortion network of feminist groups. The abortion prevented the authorities from identifying Fletes as the father of the baby. It is certainly no mystery why he was such a passionate advocate of abortion. He continued to rape his step-daughter and finally confessed to his crimes when she had another baby who was not aborted.
Several members of the Network have now had charges filed against them for their role in procuring the abortion. One of these is Marta Maria Blandon, the Director for Central America of the international pro-abortion agency Ipas. Blandon admitted publicly in an interview in 2003 that she knew Fletes was being investigated by Costa Rican authorities when she helped him to escape to Nicaragua.
This aspect of abortion is one that is not given much publicity. (Do let me know if there is any public response to this from the BBC, for example.) Here in England, we have clandestine abortions for schoolgirls and contraceptive advice given without parents being allowed to know. How many cases of rape and incest are being covered up? And how much comfort is given to the perpetrators by the BBC's portrayal of the Catholic Church?
15 comments:
Write to them, pointing out this new information, and explaining(don`t use long words) how it renders their journalism completely wrong: YOU HAVE GOT IT WRONG. NOW DO A DOCUMENTARY WHICH GETS IT RIGHT. should do it. If enough people do it, in the name of innocent life, it could work. They do respond to protests in numbers. Mind you, lots of us gave up watching the box some time ago..... even those who work for the BBC.
Some years ago I attended a Theology in the Pub meeting in my deanery and this case was used as a stick with which to beat the Church. Unfortunately only the minority will learn the true story and the rest will be left with the spin to repeat.
Sharon
Good post! This is a textbook example of the Beeb's shoddy and ideological journalism getting it into serious trouble. Unfortunately the BBC is very bad at pointing its cameras at itself, unless the scandal is about something really serious, such as a Blue Peter 'phone-in competition. And of course because it's about abortion and the Catholic Church the secular press won't touch this with a ten-foot pole.
The standards have slipped so much it is a tragedy. I used to love the BBC. Now, to think we pay fees to support this kind of biased corrupted and corrupting slop, it really offends me.
Robin Aitken has shown in very clear terms how their journalism has often been completely wrong. I use the blog to give a voice to these concerns because I do not have much confidence in the BBC's ability to police itself or correct its mistakes.
For fear of repeating myself, repeating myself, repeating myself..... BOYCOTT PAYMENT OF THE BBC LICENSE FEE! When the 'threatening' letters come respond by saying that your human rights as a Catholic are being violated by the BBC's biased and distorted anti-Catholic agenda. See what comes back. It will only work to bring these stories to the full light of day if sufficient numbers of good people do this.
Walking away from this with a shrug of the shoulders and a 'what can we do' or pulling the plug on the TV is NOT the answer. Surely as consumers we have a right to decent TV programmes which are entertaining, clean and without agendas.
The media has a lot of 'growing-up' to do because currently they behave like spoilt brats doing pretty much as they like irrespective of the consequences. Don't let the truth get in the way of a good story is their driving force. Well, if we all sit back and just take it all in because it's too much effort to get out of the couch and phone or write to complain we'll continue to get fed this garbage. If the BBC even got 1000 letters/emails/calls from just the blog readers - and there are plenty of passionate Catholics out there - they might just think about a response. If they got a million letters with reasons for unpaid license fees, oh that would sting hard and just maybe some heads would roll and programme policy changes considered/made. Well, I can dream eh!
Thanks for letting us know. This is unbelievable. How sickening and totally typical of the ingrained blind foolish bias of the media
"The standards have slipped so much it is a tragedy"
Agreed. But... the truth is, Benfan, Catholics, or even people of conscience are no longer taking up their places in the media to put this right. It has been overtaken by secular atheists who care only about their own self interests. Nature abhors a vacuum, and as good people vacate the roles of responsible journalism (yes it`s poorly paid and the BBC is a vile, bullying environment in which you have to be made of steel to survive) - guess what - Liberal,Secular Atheists take over. I reckon we get the media we deserve.
I agree that the BBC is biased and I know you're not ever so keen on the Corporation, Father but perhaps your title for this post ought to read, 'BBC unwittingly helped to cover up child molester'?
The lack of judgement which led to the "cover up" stemmed from the journalist's eagerness to attack the Catholic Church. There is some evidence that the pro-abortionists who helped Fletes to escape knew he was being investigated. It seems to me that it is for the BBC to say whether the "cover up" was unwitting or not. This is no more than they would expect from, say, a Bishop who moved a child-molesting priest.
I have copied and pasted this post into a word document. Narrow the margins, etc and the whole post fits on one page. I am printing multiple copies and will distribute around, churches etc.. I hope as many as possible will do this. Perhaps CMOC will allow it to be given out at Westminster Cathedral. Remember Communism fell because ordinary people came out in sufficient numbers.Its not impossible that one day this nasty organisation, the BBC will also one day implode. Just needs prayer and effort.
Thank you Father!
Ken
Another example of the bias from the BBC was this mornings (25 Nov) edition of "Sunday"
Sir Stephen Wall arguing, so I surmised, that it is possible to be a Catholic and not to believe in what the Catholic Church teaches.
Their bias was compounded when they then interviewed a Tablet journalist from that famous "Catholic" magazine who surprise surprise, agreed.
Radio 3 is still the jewel in the crown.Yes the BBC is biased & lwft wing but so is the RC church. However, the RC church does not want to mak abortion illegal so get real.
I see. Thank you, Father.
Looks like Radio 3 'anonymous' forgot to take their pills last night!
Post a Comment