A group of 10 missionaries with little experience and few braincells have been arrested in Haiti for suspected child trafficking after they attempted to sneak 33 kids out of the country. The 5 women and 5 men are members of a small Baptist church in Idaho, and claim they were merely trying to help these poor kids find new homes and new parents. The problem with their plan is not only did they have no documentation; a significant portion of the children they were attempting to sneak to the Dominican Republic were not actually orphans.

This whole business has caused a huge stir, and the government is worried more children might be taken away from their homes and loved ones and sold as sex workers (it was already a problem BEFORE the earthquake). The president has declared  he must personally approve every adoption to avoid any more potential child trafficking while the dust settles.

Now I’m going to give these idiots the benefit of the doubt; I’m sure they thought they were rescuing the children from a life of both poverty, and more specifically, evil voodoo magic. Unfortunately, since so many aid services are run by similarly well meaning religionists with brains two sizes too small, many locals are distraught that the priority is often on conversion, and not actual welfare of Haitians.

“There are many who come here with religious ideas that belong more in the time of the Inquisition,” said Max Beauvoir, head of Haiti’s Voodoo Priests Association, which represents thousands of priests and priestesses. “These types of people believe they need to save our souls and our bodies from ourselves. We need compassion, not proselytizing now, and we need aid — not just aid going to people of the Christian faith.”

The government hasn’t decided if they are going to prosecute these morons, but this whole affair could have some serious consequences for other religious groups hoping to offer aid. I would put it plainly: we’ll take your money, but you can keep your fucking religion to yourself.